(The Center Square) – The city of Denver is looking to spend over $6 million on the Denver Asylum Seeker Program for the continued influx of migrants coming to the city and looking to join the program.
The contract will pay for Haven of Hope to manage communications with new migrants looking to join the Denver Asylum Seeker Program while providing food and personal items citywide, according to documents from the Aug. 14, 2024, Safety, Housing, Education & Homelessness Committee meeting.
The contract between the city of Denver and Haven of Hope is for $6,049,292 and goes from Aug. 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025.
The Denver Asylum Seeker Program offers long-term care for migrants who must wait 180 days after applying for asylum to receive work authorization before April 10, 2024. To be eligible for DASP, people must apply for the WorkReady program, followed by unpaid workforce training through partnerships and non-profits, local host businesses, educational institutions and training organizations. English language training and financial literacy are also offered through the program.
“It’s hard to say for certain what the future will hold when it comes to newcomer numbers. Either way, it’s better to have the contract in place and not need it than the alternative,” said Communications Specialist Jon Ewing, in an email to The Center Square when asked if the city anticipated new migrants coming to the city throughout the next year at the same rate.
Ewing also stated that contracts are “up to” agreements, meaning they only pay out costs that occurred.
Participants receive a debit card for food and essential items depending on the size of their family, and one adult member is provided with an RTD pass for transportation and rent for up to six months, or the duration of the process, according to the city’s website.
The city has additional rental assistance contracts for the program through ViVe Wellness for $7,863,598 and Papagayo for $2,924,179. These contracts will also run from Aug. 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025 that are included in the document.
Migrants who arrived after Apr. 10, 2024, and continue to arrive are given short-term shelter for up to 72- hours and assistance to move to another destination. No changes to the program, or available capacity, are expected currently.
According to its website, Denver has assisted 42,644 migrants from the southern border since December 2022, costing taxpayers over $72 million for services for migrants.
