5280: Matt McCormick joined the St. Francis Center as an intern in 2016. He eventually became a full-time staffer for the Five Points day shelter, handing out jackets during snowstorms, helping people fill out applications for housing, and watching as apartment buildings went up and affluent neighbors moved in.

He also saw the number of people experiencing homelessness in metro Denver nearly double from 2016 to 2023, reaching 10,054. The rise led to frustration with former Mayor Michael Hancock’s handling of the issue, and that year voters elected a new mayor, Mike Johnston, who promised to end unsheltered homelessness during his first term. One of his first moves was to convert the Comfort Inn on Quebec Street into a shelter for individuals and couples.

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