Amid a homeless crisis plaguing Colorado’s most populated city, a county just south of Denver claims to have found an effective solution to curbing homelessness in its communities.
In a campaign to mitigate homelessness, Douglas County officials emphasized one simple message: “Handouts don’t help.” They urged residents, for example, against giving money to homeless people on roadways or sidewalks.
From 2022 to 2024, Douglas County witnessed a steep drop in homeless people living on the streets, from 43 to six, according to a recent point-in-time count report conducted by several local third party nonprofits.
That homeless count, which Douglas County conducted on July 29, illustrates a one-time glimpse into homeless. Douglas County officials said they conduct a homeless count in the summer to calculate homelessness when people are most likely outside.
It's a separate count from the one conducted nationwide, in which counties in Metro Denver, including Douglas County, also participate. That separate, bigger survey is done in January.
With its count, Douglas County reported there were no homeless encampments or panhandlers on that one July day.
From 2022 to 2023, the number of homeless people living on the streets in Douglas County dropped from 43 to 11, the count said. Today, between those living on the streets, in cars or in shelters, the county’s homeless count reached a low of 69 homeless people, compared to the 93 counted last year.
Douglas County Commissioner Abe Laydon, the founder and chairman of the Douglas County Homeless Initiative, attributed the drop in homelessness to residents' contributions, the sheriff’s office and a team of behavioral health experts.
“The magic of what’s happening here is that the numbers were so small to start with, so that we could really nip it in the bud,” he told The Denver Gazette.
The point, Laydon said, was “to get on top of that before it became such a bad problem,” adding that two years ago, “it started by reclaiming our public spaces.”
Douglas County had created a team of experts, known as the “Homeless Engagement, Assistance and Resource Team," to help tackle the issue.
The HEART team, as county officials call it, is made up of experts in behavioral health and who are deployed in branded vehicles to help people living on the streets.
Here's how the county handles it. When a report is made about a panhandler or a homeless person, a HEART vehicle is deployed to the area and make an assessment.
Laydon called Douglas County’s approach “housing plus,” which, he said, is a balanced approach to “trauma-informed practices.”
“We recognize that shelter is a critical component to self-reliance and self-sufficiency to start moving in that direction,” the commissioner said.
In Denver, Mayor Mike Johnston's overriding approach to the city’s still-growing homeless crisis is called “housing first,” in which the primary consideration is getting people out of the streets without preconditions or requirements. Under Johnston's model, the city sweeps encampments and moves people into temporary, non-congregate shelters.
Denver, which is on track to spend nearly $155 million on the mayor's homelessness campaign, saw its total number of homeless people balloon from 5,818 last year to 6,539 this year, based on the January point-in-time count. And the city saw only 150 fewer "unsheltered" homeless people when compared to last year's count — data that puzzled one councilmember and led another to accuse the Johnston administration of having a "spend first, ask questions later mindset."
“We're part of the Denver Metro area in Douglas County,” Laydon said of Denver’s strategy. “We want to continue to work closely with our elected colleagues to address this problem. And we think we have a program that works really well.”
“For us,” Laydon added, “'housing plus' means wraparound. So, it is housing, but it is also food, shelter, job counseling, mental health counseling. It's treating those substance abuse issues that we know often come hand in hand with a lot of the issues that the unhoused face.”
Douglas County's homeless initiative, largely supported by federal and state grants, has cost a total $3.2 million since 2022, according to Douglas County officials.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office has, so far, assigned four deputies to the full-time HEART initiative, according to Sheriff Darren Weekly.
Between 2022 and 2024, the salaries of deputies, paid for by taxpayers, cost a combined $1.3 million, according to the county.
Between by American Rescue Plan Act funding, state grants and deputy salaries — Douglas County's homeless initiative cost the county $1.8 million in 2024.
In Douglas County, roughly 20% of homeless people accept the help, while some of the 80% who don’t accept either are struggling with drug addiction or have warrants out for their arrest. Since HEART has launched, the county has engaged with roughly 215 people on the street, according to the commissioner.
Douglas County’s homeless initiative is largely supported by federal funding and local donations, according to county officials.
Douglas County also contributed $1.4 million to the Aurora Homeless Navigation Campus; thus, designating five beds for the county to use, according to Laydon.
Douglas County also partnered with Step Denver and Ready to Work, two nonprofits addressing addiction needs and job support.
One of the battles Douglas County fought was to reduce panhandlers to zero.
“When you allow people and encourage people to give out money at intersections, it just increases the problem,” Laydon said.
The commissioner said HEART began when he first noticed two encampments near the intersection of Interstate 25 and Lincoln in Lone Tree, once a hotspot for panhandlers.
“In Lone Tree, we reaffirm our commitment to working with Douglas County and other neighboring cities to address homelessness in the Denver metro area,” Lone Tree Mayor Marissa Harmon said in a statement. “Every person we can help transition from homelessness to stability represents a significant step forward.”
“Homelessness is not a political issue. It's a public safety issue,” said Weekly, the sheriff. “We do everything that we can to keep Douglas County safe. We've added homeless navigators, civilian professionals that can help navigate and connect these folks with services that they need.”
The Douglas County sheriff said officers respond to every panhandling call it receives.
Throughout the country, there are 70 signs with a barcode to report homeless panhandling or donate to the Douglas County Community Foundation Homeless Relief Fund, which supports the HEART team and county homeless initiatives.
“We don’t want to arrest,” Weekly said. “We want to get them those resources that they need.”
“I think the real key and success of this program is just to be proactive,” the sheriff added. “To go out, be out there and look for these individuals who are panhandling or who are homeless that may need some assistance.”
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