Denver considers license for Colorado Village Collaborative pallet-shelter site
The proposed agreement would let the nonprofit operate a 24/7 Safe Outdoor Space at 3815 N. Steele St. through the end of 2026.
Denver is considering a license that would let Colorado Village Collaborative operate a 24/7 Safe Outdoor Space with pallet shelters for people experiencing homelessness at 3815 N. Steele St.
The proposed license would run from the date Denver and Colorado Village Collaborative mutually execute the agreement through Dec. 31, 2026. It could be extended through Dec. 12, 2027, with written approval from Denver’s director of real estate and a renewal request at least 30 days before expiration, according to the license agreement.
The filed City Council resolution received Finance and Business Committee approval Sept. 1 and was placed on the Mayor-Council agenda for Sept. 8, both by consent. The provided records do not show final adoption, mayoral approval or mutual execution of the license.
What the agreement requires
Colorado Village Collaborative would staff and operate the site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Before the license begins, it must obtain all required federal, state and local permits and comply with applicable laws and its related agreement with Denver’s Department of Housing Stability.
The agreement does not specify a permit number, opening date, number of shelters or numerical occupancy limit. It limits the property’s use to 24/7 pallet shelters for people experiencing homelessness and requires onsite work to be performed by licensed and insured vendors or city employees.
Colorado Village Collaborative would pay Denver an annual $10 license fee and assume most routine operating expenses, including utilities, janitorial services, trash and recycling, pest control, snow removal, Wi-Fi, security monitoring and minor maintenance. Denver would remain responsible for specified major structural, electrical, plumbing, exterior and fire-system work.
Denver could revoke the license for any reason with 30 days’ written notice. The city also could restrict the licensed area for maintenance or repairs and use the property for temporary showers, toilets and hand-washing stations.
The organization’s published microcommunity operating standards describe its general model, including 24/7 staffing, security cameras and locked gates, meals, case management, hygiene facilities, quiet hours, sanitation sweeps and rules addressing violence, weapons and public substance use. They do not describe a site-specific operating plan for this proposed arrangement.
The Steele Street property previously operated as a Safe Outdoor Space. Denver7 reported that a 2021 version was scheduled to open Dec. 14 with capacity for up to 50 people and that Colorado Village Collaborative planned an online Clayton community information meeting.
Denver now describes the property as Steele Village, a 40-unit microcommunity that joined the All In Mile High program in January 2025 and is managed by Colorado Village Collaborative, according to the city’s Steele Village page. Those earlier figures do not establish the capacity or opening date for the proposed pallet-shelter operation.