It was November 2023 when Voces Unidas de las Montañas, an advocacy organization, sounded the alarm about close to 100 unhoused people, mostly from Venezuela and unfamiliar with a Colorado winter, camping in cars and tents beneath the Veterans Memorial Bridge at the north entrance to Carbondale. According to Carbondale Police Chief Kirk Wilson, what began as 10 to 15 people grew rapidly. “It’s very unlikely it’s going to look similar to last year,”
Mayor Ben Bohmfalk
At the time, an estimated 26,000 Venezuelan migrants had arrived in Denver, the majority bussed north from Texas. With crowded conditions in the city, groups began fanning out to other areas in search of job opportunities. Venezuelans who arrived in the United States prior to August 2023 are eligible for temporary protected status: legal documentation which shields them from deportation and allows them to apply for a work permit. The process, however, takes time and money ($545 per person, $50 for minors under the age of 14). Meanwhile, day labor opportunities were found in the Roaring Fork Valley.
As temperatures steadily dropped with winter’s approach, Carbondale faced a potential life-safety emergency. The Town responded with three stated priorities: ensure immediate basic needs are met, securing shelter from December through March; assist refugees with legal advice and other resources toward legal work and self-sufficiency; engage local counties, other municipalities and nongovernmental agencies in a regional approach to unhoused refugees.
With assistance from Voces Unidas, Colorado’s Department of Local Affairs, Pitkin County, the Third Street Center and other nonprofits, the First United Methodist Church and other churches, Roaring Fork Schools, Age-Friendly Carbondale, the Aspen Community Foundation and generous individuals, around 60 individuals were kept sheltered, fed and clothed through the winter with volunteer attorneys helping those eligible navigate the process to acquire a work permit. Others were provided transportation to other cities.
Alex Sanchez, founder, president and CEO of Voces Unidas, told The Sopris Sun he was “surprised and disappointed” by the lack of a regional response. When Garfield County was approached with a $50,000 funding request, the commissioners instead passed a “non-sanctuary” resolution which led Voces Unidas to declare them a “hostile government” toward immigrants. Sanchez called the resolution “toxic” for citing disease spread and crime as justifications, enforcing racist stereotypes.
Nearly one year later, Carbondale officials are not concerned about a repeat scenario. “It’s very unlikely it’s going to look similar to last year,” said Mayor Ben Bohmfalk. “Last year, we weren’t monitoring and weren’t really aware.” This year, the dynamic is different. “Denver isn’t being overwhelmed by recent arrivals every week,” Bohmfalk continued. “We aren’t anticipating a big influx of people,” and those who arrived last year and stayed seem more settled in the area.
“Of course, if there’s a human health crisis, and people’s lives are at risk, I think the Carbondale community will always step up,” Bohmfalk added. “But it just doesn’t feel like that’s where we are now.”
Nonetheless, a small group of migrants has consistently camped beneath the 133 bridge all summer. Wilson said the Carbondale Police Department has been patrolling the area to ensure the Town’s camping ordinance is followed, not allowing people overnight in undesignated areas. However, the north side of the river falls under the jurisdiction of Garfield County, Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), making a coordinated response difficult.
“We’re seeing fewer encounters in that area, which reflects our efforts to address concerns collaboratively,” Wilson said. “Regarding crime, we haven’t experienced an increase in major incidents. We’ve noticed the usual increase in cases where people forget to lock up their valuables during the summer months.” He added, “Our priority is to ensure the safety and well-being of all Carbondale residents and visitors, regardless of a person’s background.”
Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario pointed out that camping under the 133 bridge is nothing new. “I’ve been around here 38 years and there’ve been people sleeping under that bridge in that viaduct for 38 years,” he told The Sopris Sun. “It’s always been a problem.” Vallario explained that CDOT issued a letter allowing his office to charge people with trespassing. “Problem is, can’t put people in jail for that level of trespassing, they don’t show up for court, blah, blah, blah.” He suggested sealing the area from access as a possible solution.
One result of last year’s reckoning was the Valley Alliance to End Homelessness emerging to lead a regional approach. This initiative belongs to the West Mountain Regional Health Alliance (WMRHA) nonprofit. Earlier this year, WMRHA was awarded $355,000 from The Colorado Trust, a private foundation, “as support for providing housing assistance and wraparound services to immigrants and refugees, specifically recent arrivals from Venezuela.”
WMRHA received the grant in collaboration with Recovery Resources, Alpine Legal Services and Mind Springs Health. Rob Stein, a former Roaring Fork Schools superintendent who volunteered extensively with the newcomers response last year, was hired as a consultant for the planning process, now underway. The planning phase will determine how the organizations involved can best work together and where service gaps still exist.
“One of the biggest gaps is around emergency shelter,” said WMRHA Executive Director Cristina Gair. “That’s a gap not just for our newly-arrived immigrants but overall for our homeless population.” Additional grant money from the Colorado Health Foundation will support the regional effort.
“What became clear to us last year is that our small Carbondale municipal government and staff are not equipped to be the lead provider of services. We don’t ever want to find ourselves in that position again,” Bohmfalk said. “What we want to do is help people access services through groups like the Valley Alliance to End Homelessness.”
Gair is optimistic that the work will be broadly beneficial for the Valley. “I think it’s going to move forward in a good direction and just improve our overall system of homeless response,” she said. “There’s still lots to do to best serve those experiencing homelessness, and the newcomers.”