Denver Mayor Mike Johnston calls for “learned hopefulness” on homelessness, housing, other challenges

Mayor Mike Johnston urged Denverites to embrace a “learned hopefulness” as an antidote to the challenges Colorado’s largest city faces amid a tumultuous national political environment during his annual State of the City address Monday night. “That is our dream for this precocious Queen City of the Plains, where we don’t believe in ‘can’t.’ We don’t believe in ‘impossible,’ ” the mayor said. “A place where we turn to each other, and not on each other. A place where we believe in working to build something bigger than us, that includes all of us and lasts longer than any of us.” He cast his hopeful phrase as the opposite dynamic of “learned helplessness,” or the fear that no matter what someone does, it won’t make a difference. Johnston, who last Thursday marked two years since being sworn into office, touched on homelessness, immigration, the revival of downtown Denver — with its 7 million square feet of vacant office space — and the city’s role in tackling climate change. Also, to knowing nods in the audience: the future of the Broncos in Denver. “Yes, we will get a long-term deal to keep the Denver Broncos here in Denver,” the 50-year-old mayor said to several hundred people gathered for the 40-minute speech in the Seawell Ballroom at the Denver Performing Arts Complex. Unlike in past years, the usual daytime speech was delivered at an evening event. Johnston has scored successes in his first two years. Street homelessness has decreased in visibility under his tenure, the result of a massive sheltering effort. On Monday, the mayor said that data point has dropped by 45% since 2023 in Denver — “the largest multiyear decrease in unsheltered homelessness of any city in American history.” (Overall homelessness has risen, however.) “We’ve closed every large encampment in the city, and reopened sidewalks to pedestrians and businesses,” Johnston said. “We have moved 7,000 people off the streets and moved 5,000 people into permanent housing.” But there are layoffs of city workers in the offing — the first in 15 years — amid an anticipated $250 million budget shortfall. Johnston spoke about several other areas of challenge for the city during his speech, saying that efforts so far have not been “good enough.” “We still have business owners on Broadway who don’t feel safe having staff members close up the shop and walk to their cars after work, and that’s not good enough,” Johnston said. “We still have teachers leaving our schools and nurses leaving our hospitals to move back home to the Midwest, because they can’t afford to live in this city anymore, and that’s not good enough.” The mayor said the city is on the right track when it comes to public safety, noting that Denver’s homicide rate this year has dropped by 46%. “Adjusting for population, our homicide rate this year is the lowest in the last decade,” he said. “Auto theft is down by over 50%, and catalytic converter theft has dropped by over 90%.” He credited some of that improvement to better interaction between police and residents. “We have officers out walking beats, building relationships with our neighbors on trust patrols,” Johnston said. “And in the midst of turbulent political times, our officers have stood up for freedom of speech and kept the peace at more than 200 demonstrations — both large and small over these last two years.” Part and parcel of reviving downtown Denver, which was beaten down during the COVID-19 pandemic and then had to endure a multiyear 16th Street mall reconstruction project, is revamping the city’s permitting system, Johnston said. Developers have complained for years that the city’s cumbersome construction permitting process takes far too long, adding costs to projects. In April, Johnston signed his first executive order, creating the Denver Permitting Office. “We took a process that used to take three years and made a promise: Your permit will be done in 180 days or we’ll refund up to $10,000 in fees,” he said to applause. Mayor Mike Johnston speaks during the State of the City address in the Seawell Ballroom at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts on Monday, July 21, 2025. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post) Related Articles Denver mayor negotiates with council on bond package amid frustrations over project list Denver wants to ask voters to rename Department of Excise and Licenses this November Keeler: Broncos stadium with retractable roof? Broncos Country thinks it’s coming, whether they like it or not Should Aurora give its mayor and City Council a major pay boost? Voters could weigh in. Denver’s mayor thinks big and moves fast — netting mixed results. Two years in, should he slow down? But relations between Johnston and the City Council have not always been smooth of late, with some council members expressing frustration with the mayor for not paying enough attention to their concerns. One of those sticking points has been a mammoth bond issue that is being pitched to voters in the November election. Through the measure, the city would pay for projects like road and park improvements by issuing debt if voters approve the “Vibrant Denver” bond package this fall. Earlier this year, city officials estimated the proposal would reach about $800 million, but the most recent version — which isn’t yet final — totals $935 million, including contingency and administration costs as well as some added projects requested by council members. Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter, The Spot.