Denver residents of a nearby potential homeless micro-community site on Wednesday confronted Mayor Mike Johnston over his homeless strategy, with some arguing his plans could create new problems for neighborhoods.

More than 100 Denverites squeezed into the brewery room of Ratio Beerworks, where Johnston and District 7 Councilwoman Flor Alvidrez held a community meeting. A micro-community site proposed for 5500 Yale Ave., just east of I-25, prompted a handful of nearby residents to line up and relay worries, ask the mayor sharp questions and offer suggestions.

“Site selection can make or break outcomes for participants living in the micro-communities. Also, the nature and magnitude of the impact on those living near micro-communities,” Alec Baker, a resident within 1,000 feet of the Yale site, told The Denver Gazette.

“This site would be dangerous for new micro-community residents and also dramatically increase the danger for permanent residents,” Baker said. “Our neighborhood functionally has only one entry and exit point with no through traffic, so there are no options to avoid the problem area.”

Perceived problems expressed by residents included increased crime, violence, drugs, public defecation, decrease in home values, police officer response times, rapid re-zonings and nearby schools, residents told Johnston and Alvidrez.

“We can disagree on strategy, but homelessness is the No. 1 issue facing this city,” Johnston told residents during the town hall.

“I do believe we have a moral commitment to make sure we can help folks who are unhoused and get them off the streets, into services. I also believe we have an obligation to make sure we can have every single person in Denver feel safe in their neighborhood,” he added.

Micro-communities consist of a supervised set of tiny homes, or “pallet” shelters, with access to bathrooms, kitchens, showers, mental health treatment and other services. The idea is to offer homeless people a place to live that can be built faster and cheaper.

During his first day in office July 18, the mayor vowed to house 1,000 homeless people by year’s end. Johnston’s administration is prioritizing the building of micro-communities, announcing Tuesday the city is paying $19.6 million in 2023 to build them, part of up to $52 million allocated for the new mayor’s homeless initiatives this year.

After Johnston’s office released 11 potential sites for micro-communities, residents near 5500 Yale Ave. said they were taken aback upon learning their area is being considered. American Legion Post 1 is adjacent to the site.

“This is a very difficult position for me to be in,” Alvidrez said. “These people want to be a part of a community and we want to build that.”

Some suggested moving all micro-communities into one area — to the area near Denver International Airport, for example.

Denver has been in open conversations with Aurora on homelessness, Johnston told the crowd.

Some residents said Denver officials should have consulted residents first before unveiling the sites for potential micro-communities.

“The mayor’s office could have come to the neighborhood first, introduced the idea and asked what we would need to feel comfortable with it,” Baker said.

Some made reference to the Yale Corridor Report, which was created by the city in 2020 to “evaluate potential infrastructure improvements for people walking, biking, taking transit and driving.”

“According to Denver’s own Yale Corridor Report, the area is a hotspot for car accidents,” nearby resident Tyler Burgett said. “With no sobriety requirements and 100 new neighbors, I do have safety concerns for both the micro-community members and the motorists along Yale.”

An incident with a man in the area screaming at people in their backyards took a police response time of three hours, according to Burgett.