Boulder council hears evaluation of homelessness system, commissions systems-modeling strategy

Boulder City Council on Feb. 13, 2025 received a county-funded evaluation of the local homeless services collaborative and directed staff to proceed with a systems-modeling strategy update led by consulting firm Clutch, while also adopting an emergency ordinance on the council’s consent agenda.

The evaluation of the Housing and Human Services Collaborative (HSBC), presented by Margaret “Meg” Chamberlain of Public Policy Associates, affirmed the collaborative’s housing-first orientation but flagged gaps in data integration, perceived equity concerns and a hostile community climate toward people experiencing homelessness. Assistant City Manager Mark Wolf and Clutch founder Mandy Chapman Semple described a systems-modeling process that the city and partners plan to use to test scenarios and prioritize investments.

Why it matters: Council members said they want a strategy that links goals, resources and measurable outcomes amid shrinking temporary funds and ongoing pressure on shelters and public spaces. City staff warned that American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding that supported new programs will expire in 2025–2026, potentially reducing local capacity unless alternate funding is identified.

Key findings presented

Public Policy Associates’ evaluation reinforced that “housing first continues to be the best practice,” and that HSBC’s collaborative approach is a strength, the consultant said. The evaluation identified six themes: data systems, equity, community climate, housing and supports, crisis services and collaboration. It singled out a technical barrier: limited integration between the county’s local case-tracking system and the national Homeless Management Information System (HMIS), which complicates analysis and predictive modeling.

The report also surfaced qualitative concerns from people with lived experience about unclear prioritization and the experience of moving between adult-focused and family-focused systems. The evaluation recommended clarifying governance, expanding equity assessments and creating a shared vision across governmental partners.

Trends and operational updates

City staff and program leads provided 2024 operational data and recent program updates. Megan Newton, policy adviser on homelessness, said 264 people exited homelessness in Boulder in 2024 and that the system’s exit rate improved to about 39% for the year. At the same time, shelter demand rose: shelter capacity turnaways peaked in November 2024, with roughly 80–83% of nights seeing at least one turnaway, and average nightly turnaways also rose seasonally.

City staff summarized recent program developments: the Day Services Center recorded thousands of visits in its first nine months, with 15 partner agencies on-site and 30 state housing vouchers tied directly to the center. Newton said “85 percent of the clients accessing the center also connect with partner programs.” A retention-focused program funded by ARPA, called Building Home, reported an 88% retention rate for 2024 and 94% across two years; staff noted ARPA funding will not be permanent.

The city also described an expanded clinical presence at the respite center through a Clinica Family Health partnership and summarized an extreme-weather shelter operation in January that served 90 unique individuals over three nights at a cost staff reported as $31,326 and 884 personnel hours.

High-utilizer initiative and funding questions

City staff described a cross-agency “high utilizer” initiative that targets people whose repeated service or justice-system contact creates high public-cost and safety impacts. Carl Castillo described a proposed comprehensive program previously estimated at about $5 million in year one that the city re-scoped into a phased plan with an initial estimated cost of $1.7 million. Castillo said philanthropy is being explored as one potential funding approach.

Council members repeatedly pressed staff on funding details and program performance. Beth Crowe, deputy director of housing and human services, told council the city allocated $450,000 in 2024 for the Keep Families House prevention program; she said that program served 624 unduplicated families in 2024. Council members asked for more consolidated, program-level quantitative performance and cost data to guide budget choices.

County role and evaluation reception

Susanna Lupus Baker, director of the Boulder County housing department, said the county supports the HSBC evaluation and that several recommended governance changes are already underway, including rotating chair responsibilities and allowing two representatives per government entity on the executive board. Baker said the county will brief its commissioners and continue to work with the city to operationalize recommendations.

Clutch Consulting engagement and timeline

Assistant City Manager Mark Wolf described the city’s engagement of Clutch Consulting to produce a strategy update using system modeling. Mandy Chapman Semple of Clutch said the firm will (1) compile documents and data, (2) convene stakeholders and focus groups, (3) run system-modeling scenarios to test how different investments would affect inflow and outflow, and (4) develop an implementation plan and evaluation framework. Semple said the team plans stakeholder engagement from February–April and aims to produce an implementation-ready framework and feasibility testing by May–July 2025.

Staff direction and next steps

Council members asked staff for a phased delivery of data that will support near-term budget decisions. Kurt Furnhaver, Director of Housing and Human Services, said staff will circulate a 2024 outcomes report via the city hotline and continue to work with Clutch and county partners. Council feedback emphasized (1) clearer, program-level performance and cost data, (2) governance clarity for the collaborative, (3) an implementation plan tied to funding scenarios and (4) measurable outcomes the public can track.

Council actions at the meeting

On the special-meeting portion of the agenda the council voted to convene an executive session under Colorado statute and later adopted the consent agenda, which included an emergency ordinance described as Ordinance 86 87 (amending BRC 1981 §5-5-18, suspension of facility privileges). The consent item was adopted by emergency measure and announced as passed on the record.

What’s next

Staff said they will forward the city’s 2024 homelessness outcomes summary and continue scheduling Clutch-led stakeholder sessions. Clutch’s timeline anticipates a draft strategy and implementation framework to guide funding and operational decisions by mid-2025; council members signaled they will press for program-level performance and cost data to inform 2026 budgeting and near-term allocation decisions.

Quotes used in this article are from the meeting transcript and are attributed to speakers as first introduced: Kurt Furnhaver, Director of Housing and Human Services; Meg Chamberlain, Public Policy Associates; Mandy Chapman Semple, Clutch Consulting; Beth Crowe, Deputy Director, Housing and Human Services; Susanna Lupus Baker, Boulder County Housing Department Director.