The number of daily migrant arrivals has slowed in recent weeks, but thousands are expected to leave Denver city shelters through the end of March as they reach their length-of-stay limits.
As of Thursday morning, 3,225 migrants were staying in the hotel shelters, according to city data, and although restrictions on how long the asylum seekers can remain in those rooms were paused this week because of cold weather activation, that respite is expected to lift this weekend. On Feb. 5, the city reinstated its time limit for families with children in shelters, and increased it from 37 days to 42 days. The limit for individuals remains 14 days.
In the first week, about 500 migrants moved out of the hotels, and by the end of March, the city estimates that nearly 4,000 people will be released from shelters, said Jon Ewing, spokesperson for the Department of Human Services.
City officials say they are working with nonprofits and other partners to make sure the migrants — a majority of them who had fled conditions in Venezuela — don’t end up living on the streets. Data on where each of the 500 migrants went was not available Wednesday.
City staff and volunteers are focusing on helping the newcomers apply to legally work in the country while their asylum cases are pending. Delays in work permits are driving up local governments’ costs for sheltering and other support, while making it difficult for the migrants to make money and support themselves and their families.
That’s the top issue U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper heard at a roundtable discussion Wednesday afternoon with government and community leaders about the migrant response.
“The federal government should make sure there are either ways for people to work or provide the resources to communities like Aurora or Denver, where they can actually deal with the problem in a respectful way,” Hickenlooper said in a written statement. “We’ve got to make sure there are resources for counties, municipalities, and states to get through this.”
In addition to contracting with nonprofit organizations and others in the community, the mayor’s office announced Thursday that the city had appointed a Newcomer Program director, a new position aimed at managing Denver’s short and long-term responses to migrant arrivals from the southern border. Sarah Plastino, a human rights and immigration lawyer, is expected to start later this month.
The city has spent about $42 million on services for migrants since December 2022, Monday data from the city showed. The state legislature has also introduced legislation to help with funding for local response efforts, including in schools, and for nonprofits to set up a systemwide response.
