Fort Collins Rescue Mission recently broke ground on a new homelessness resource center. The future facility on Mason Street will have 250 shelter beds and day services.
"We want this building to be housing focused from the very moment somebody steps foot inside it," said Seth Forwood, the Vice President for Programs at Fort Collins Rescue Mission. He said the goal is to help move people toward more permanent, stable housing.
The project has been years in the making. The Rescue Mission raised over $27 million to fund the facility. Some surrounding residents and businesses have opposed the new center, but it ultimately won approval from city officials. Construction will take about a year.
Right now, overnight options in Northern Colorado are few and far between. Fort Collins Rescue Mission's downtown shelter closed in August after a kitchen fire. It's unclear if it will reopen because of steep mitigation costs. And down the road in Loveland, other resources are disappearing.
"With Loveland closing their homeless shelter, the need is very crucial right now in Northern Colorado and I think we should take care of our neighbors and give them a safe place to be if they have nowhere else to go," Forwood said.
The South Railroad Facility in Loveland is closing this week. It’s the only dedicated overnight homeless shelter in the city. It opened in a temporary capacity in 2023 to align with a city camping ban that required available shelter to enforce.
“The temporary permit has expired. We can't make an exception for ourselves. That wouldn't be fair for others who are working under a temporary permit. It also would not be legal for us to do," said Kimberly Overholt with the city.
Fifty people will be impacted by the closure. The city will continue to provide daytime support for the unhoused at the Loveland Resource Center. It’s unclear how the city will enforce its camping ban.
Some that provide support to homeless individuals are wondering what comes next.
Those who work with these communities say it’s difficult to see people struggle with limited resources.
“That is our question to the authority as well, ‘Where would you like us to point them to?’ Right? …I don't think you know the solution for all of them is to travel to the next neighboring city,” said Caterina Hall with Loveland's Community Kitchen. Hall says it's difficult to see people struggling with limited resources.
Loveland officials are holding community conversations around homelessness in October.
In Fort Collins, Forwood says they're weighing the cost of mitigation to reopen the downtown shelter. And they're exploring other potential solutions while construction on the new center is underway.
