All Roads, Boulder’s largest shelter, announced Thursday, March 20, that it will reduce its overnight bed capacity from 180 to 160, effective April 21.
The decision follows Boulder County’s cuts to a grant program that supports local safety-net providers, driven in part by a reduction in federal funding. All Roads, one of the program’s largest recipients, saw its grant funding drop by about 30%, from $900,000 to $653,500.
As part of an agreement with the City of Boulder, the shelter had expanded its capacity to 180 beds in early 2024.
“However, reductions in local government support since then have made it impossible to maintain the staffing necessary for that level of service,” the organization said in a statement. “Restoring full capacity before next winter will depend on increased fundraising and new revenue sources.”
Even with the expanded capacity, the shelter has routinely turned people away due to lack of space. In recent months, more than two dozen people have been denied access on some nights. A recent point-in-time count recorded 727 unhoused people in Boulder County — a slight decrease from the previous year.
When humanism is no longer a consideration and dehumanization is a natural response to a growing population that has become a burden to the family unit,community,economy,and the country.The burden , the problem,the homeless.The disabled vetrans,the physically handicapped, mentally ill,elderly,the people coming out of the judicial system,substance abusers,victims of domestic violence,minorities living below poverty level,and the growing population with personality disorders,are not being treated,rehabilitated,educated,financially accomadated,given what they need to be a part of the American dream.All of those programs got cut years ago.Now the program for all of the above is called homelessness,and all of these individuals are the burden.The government doesn’t want to waste money on the burden,and it doesn’t want the hardworking,middle class,to question where their taxes are going,so,the burden is dehumanized by the system.It is an intensional eye soar,a shameful,and disgraceful example of what an American citizen is made of. The cut on funding homeless resources and the focus being put on social security is the cut back on humanism.History repeats itself,and I am part of the burden.There are many ways to solve the homeless problems,but who cares about them?
According to BRL, turnaways at the shelter have jumped to an average of 17/night since they removed 20 beds a couple of weeks ago. Is anyone at the city questioning WHY they removed 20 existing beds? Beds already there, now gone. How much did it cost to keep those existing beds in place? This is a symptom of a larger problem that no one at the city can bother to question or address. Those 20 beds were funded by a city grant. Now the shelter repurposes that money for other uses? I don’t get it. I wonder if anyone at the city even cares at at all. Council is consumed by shiny new developments in East Boulder and can’t be bothered to care about those populations listed above by Cynthia. This is not just a matter of shortage of funds. We as a society decided that we will not even provide the most basic of resources to those in our community in desperate need. Boulder is among the most arrogant and thoughtless among cities as we strive to make conditions ever more hospitable to private equity investors and high tech bros at the expense of everyone else who can no longer compete in the market or didn’t retire with enough wealth not to worry about their survival.