Safe Parking
About Colorado Safe Parking Initiative
The Colorado Safe Parking Initiative (CSPI) is a community-driven nonprofit organization working to create a safe environment for individuals and families sheltering in vehicles because they are experiencing homelessness.
Sheltering in vehicles is often a first stop for individuals who lose permanent housing. Without intervention and support, many fall deeper into homelessness and may eventually end up on the streets.
Safe parking provides many benefits including safe, legal overnight parking with restroom access, connection to additional supporting services and a caring community to be a part of while they strive to get back on their feet and into suitable, long-term housing.
The Barton Institute for Community Action serves as the fiscal sponsor for CSPI.
The Need for Safe Parking
According to the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative Point-in-Time Survey and various municipal and county-level counts, hundreds of individuals and families are estimated to be sheltering in vehicles in the seven-county Denver metro area, and there are nearly a thousand statewide. But because most surveys of people experiencing homelessness exclude or undercount people living in their vehicles, the actual number of individuals experiencing vehicular homelessness may be even higher.
The Approach
CSPI has developed a scalable service model for Colorado via “SafeLots” which provide individuals and families experiencing homelessness with a safe and stable place to park while connecting them to housing and other services that help them get back into more permanent housing.
The organization is further involved in evaluating effectiveness of safe parking programs, advocating for people sheltering in vehicles, and addressing legal barriers to safe parking. To do all of this, in addition to the Executive Director and a small staff, CSPI relies on volunteers, including people experiencing homelessness, members of faith communities, advocacy organizations, and representatives from government and academia.
