DENVER — Alongside her dogs Romeo and Flynn, Lindsey Torres told Denver7 life inside the Stone Creek shelter hasn't been easy.
Inside the Salvation Army-run shelter off of Quebec Street, Torres said there have been issues with bugs, mold and hot water.
"I'd just almost rather be outside," she said.
On Thursday, The Salvation Army announced its operations at three hotel shelters will end when its contracts with the City and County of Denver expire in December 2025. That includes Stone Creek, where Torres lives, The Aspen, and Tamarac.
The city said the shelters will continue to operate under new providers moving forward.
According to Denver's Department of Housing Stability (HOST), Stone Creek is sheltering 146 individuals; The Aspen is sheltering 227 people; and Tamarac is a temporary home for 188 families.
All three are part of Denver Mayor Mike Johnston's All In Mile High Communities, an initiative that aims to end street homelessness in Denver.
Denver
The Salvation Army operations will end at 3 hotel shelters in Denver
On Thursday, Denver7 spoke with The Salvation Army and the City and County of Denver to find out why the contracts won't be renewed in the new year.
"For three months, consecutive months, we were struggling just to make cash flow," explained Major Nesan Kistan, divisional commander of The Salvation Army Intermountain Division.
Kistan said the organization faced more than $5.2 million in uncovered operating costs to run the three buildings. In addition, he said they've had to foot legal costs associated with the shelters.
"We were taking money from a number of different areas to help support this initiative," Kistan told Denver7.
Moving forward, Kistan said, The Salvation Army will focus on addiction treatment programs, insisting the change doesn't mean they're saying goodbye to the City and County of Denver altogether.
“We have served the people in Denver the last 145 years with care, compassion, and the high standard of service," Kistan said. "We're not changing. We're not walking away from the City of Denver.”
Jon Ewing, spokesperson with the Denver Mayor's Office, said this was a mutual decision between both parties.
"We did have early conversations about them coming back to run the Tamarac, and I think ultimately, both sides just decided that it would be best to part ways in this," he explained.
The Salvation Army has been under scrutiny for several violent incidents at the shelters.
In March 2024, there was a double homicide at The Aspen shelter. And this March, at the same location, a Salvation Army employee was charged with sexually assaulting a woman living there.
In July, an 11-year-old girl fell six stories out of a window at the Tamarac shelter.
The city said the shelters will continue to operate under new providers in 2026.
"Nothing is going to change for the people who are staying there," said Ewing.
Torres told Denver7 she's hopeful conditions will improve when a new operator takes over.
"Anyone would be better," she said.
The Salvation Army will continue to operate the following shelters:
- Lambuth Family Center (short-term family shelter)
- Connection Center (provides access to Salvation Army and community resources and services)
- Harbor Light Center (shelter for men recovering from addiction or looking to prevent a relapse)
- Crossroads Center (24/7 emergency shelter serving at least 250 men daily in partnership with the city)
