At the July 22 meeting of the Arapahoe County Board of Commissioners, more than a dozen residents, program alumni and SAFER’s founder urged commissioners to investigate the abrupt closure of the SAFER transitional housing and supportive‑services program and to halt a proposed sale of the program’s building purchased with county ARPA funds.

The public commenters said SAFER serves people with serious mental illness and substance‑use histories who are at risk of homelessness and criminal‑justice involvement. Phoenix Noire, who identified herself as having participated in the program and speaking on behalf of SAFER and Centennial, told commissioners, “I have found there's a missing $1,800,000 in their coffers that I can't account for,” and asked the board to investigate the organization that now oversees SAFER.

Why it matters: Speakers described SAFER as a program that reduced recidivism and overdoses and provided housing and wraparound services to people exiting incarceration or living with severe mental illness. Several residents and advocates said the program’s sudden closing — now scheduled for early August, according to comments — risks returning participants to homelessness and relapse.

Participants and advocates called out two financial issues. Several speakers said SAFER’s building, 9799 East Geddes (Gettys) Avenue in Centennial, was purchased with Arapahoe County ARPA funds and that program leadership or its fiscal sponsor, Mental Health Colorado, had not been transparent about the money. Wade Nichols, a SAFER resident, said SAFER “received different grants. One of them being the ARPA fund of a minimum of $2,000,000 that was meant to be used for low income subsidized housing” and asked the county to “freeze the sale of the building until at the very minimum a detailed financial probe by the government can be ascertained.”

Gina Schimmel, an Arapahoe County attorney who founded SAFER, said SAFER had been a separate 501(c)(3) and later became fiscally sponsored by Mental Health Colorado. “Mental Health Colorado's decision to close SAFER lacks transparency and was done clandestinely,” Schimmel said, adding that “SAFER works” and citing the program's low rates of re‑incarceration. She asked the board to stay any sale so a new nonprofit could be found to continue SAFER’s services.

Several current and former residents and program volunteers described the program’s direct effects. Subtarshi (Steve) Bhattacharya said his recovery and housing stability were due to SAFER: “I owe my recent success to SAFER,” he said. Wanda Morgan — who identified herself as living at the program’s address — described short notice to residents and alleged statements that residents were told the hotel was sold and would only have a brief runway to relocate; she said the quick closure had produced relapses.

Advocates also described national and local partners trying to identify alternatives. Therese Howard of House Keys Action Network said her group had collected resident statements and surveys and urged commissioners to “buy time immediately” so a replacement operator could be found.

What commissioners said: The board noted the comments and recorded them under public comment; no formal motion, investigation or staff direction related to SAFER was recorded during the meeting. Commissioners did not vote on any SAFER‑specific action in the July 22 session.

Clarifying details from meeting comments: SAFER participants and advocates said (a) county ARPA funding of about $2,000,000 was used to acquire the building at 9799 East Geddes (Gettys) Avenue, (b) residents report being told the program would close in mid‑ to late‑August but some said they then heard an earlier August 1 deadline, and (c) advocates and the founder asked the county to pause sale/transfer while finances are reviewed. Mental Health Colorado was described by commenters as the program’s current fiscal sponsor/operator; commenters alleged lack of transparency but did not provide documentary proof at the hearing.

Speakers quoted in this article spoke during the meeting’s public comment period and were identified by name. The board did not take a vote or adopt a resolution on the SAFER matter at the July 22 meeting.