The mayor who would end homelessness succeeded in growing the number of street dwellers by more than 700 his first year in office and called it a resounding success.
Under Denver Mike Johnston’s program that went $65 million over budget in year one to cost $155 million, homelessness spiked from 5,818 people in 2023 to 6,539 one year later.
It’s the most Colorado thing we’ve seen since John Hickenlooper declared he would end homeless back in 2003.
Democrats aren’t ending homelessness, they are enabling a transient lifestyle that too often centers around substance abuse, mental illness, or both.
The youth population under 17 also grew from 270 to 295.
As for any increase in homelessness due to the migrant crisis that has folks of unknown legal status living in shelters and tents, they weren’t even counted.
The 2024 count was taken on Jan. 22, at which time more than 900 migrants were in Denver shelters, while any migrants sleeping on the streets were not counting.
So the number of homelessness on that night was closer to 7,300.
How is Denver’s media holding Johnston’s feet to the fire?
They aren’t.
They are celebrating with Johnston’s brag there were 150 less unsheltered folks sleeping outside on the night of Jan. 22, 2024 than on Jan. 30, 2023 — not counting immigrants.
Now for some trivia, Hickenlooper’s 10-year plan to end homelessness was projected to cost $122 million.
Johnston blew $155 million in just his first year and homeless increased.
That’s what Democrats call success.