HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 05/13/2014 - SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSISDATE:
STAFF:
May 13, 2014
Mary Atchison, Director of Social Sustainability
Bruce Hendee, Chief Sustainability Officer
WORK SESSION ITEM
City Council
SUBJECT FOR DISCUSSION
Social Sustainability Gaps Analysis.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Social Sustainability Gap Analysis is the first step in the development of a Social Sustainability Strategic
Planning Process. This analysis examined a variety of social issues that impact the social environment of our
community to determine the scope of the need among our citizens, and the capacity that currently exists within
our community to meet those needs.
The focus areas examined in the study are:
Housing
Homelessness
Persons living in poverty
Health and wellness
At-risk youth and education
Diversity and equity
Needs of targeted populations.
GENERAL DIRECTION SOUGHT AND SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED
1. Are there any other focus areas missing in which you feel the City should participate, such as local foods?
2. Are there any areas in which you feel the City should not be involved?
3. Currently the roles the City of Fort Collins plays in these issues are:
Funder
Provider of incentives
Convener
Strategic partner
Collaborator
Provider of reduced program fees.
What are Council’s thoughts regarding these roles or others the City should consider?
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
The triple bottom line approach was adopted by the City in 2011 as a way to increase cooperation with the Fort
Collins community, in pursuit of innovative alliances and continued improvements in the areas of economic health,
environmental services, and social sustainability. While a focus on environmental health and economic health
had been previously developed, social sustainability was a very new concept. The department was formed in
2012, and since then has begun the process of defining the scope of its work within the City structure and also the
external community.
May 13, 2014 Page 2
The Social Sustainability Gap Analysis is the first step in the development of a strategic plan for the Social
Sustainability department. The purpose of the Study is to identify the needs in our community, identify the
components in the systems we have in place to address those needs, and identify gaps and capacity issues
within these systems. These findings will inform the strategic plan development process.
The original draft of the Social Sustainability Gaps Analysis was posted on the Social Sustainability Department’s
web site for input from the community. A few comments were received, many of which were incorporated into the
final version. Then, Department staff met individually with community experts for each chapter to gather input.
The final, updated draft will be discussed at the May 13 Work Session. The department will then launch into a
strategic planning process to identify our focus for the next 3-5 years. Staff will present the Social Sustainability
Strategic Plan to Council at a Work Session on July 22. BBC Research & Consulting and Clarion Associates
were engaged by the City to conduct the study.
During the preparation of the report, several key themes emerged that reinforce the need to take a
comprehensive approach towards a more sustainable future for the City. Each of these themes, described below,
is cross-cutting-they affect many different populations in Fort Collins, and begins to suggest some areas of focus
towards a more socially sustainable future.
Income Disparity - Nearly 20 percent of the community are living in poverty, a factor that is particularly acute
for families. Over half of those in poverty are employed. For those not working or working in low wage jobs,
there is a growing disparity between them and others employed in higher-paying sectors. This impacts their
ability to meet a number of their primary needs such as housing, transportation, child care, health care, and
others.
Housing Across the Spectrum of Needs - In order to ensure a successful future, Fort Collins needs a wider
range of housing that meets the needs of different households and economic groups. Lack of affordable
housing affects most of the target populations examined in this study-although some are impacted more than
most, such as persons experiencing or at-risk of homelessness, persons with disabilities and seniors and
persons earning low wages and living in poverty. But increasingly, housing availability is becoming a problem
for the community’s workforce and middle class, affecting our economic vitality as well as social well-being.
Maintaining a Healthy Community - The City generally has a healthy, active population and has a strong
infrastructure for physical education and recreation-yet growing obesity rates among the City’s youth and
others reinforce a need to integrate more physical activity into daily life. The overall health of our community -
including mental health, a growing problem - is important to all segments of our population, from youth to
seniors to elderly.
Transportation Options - Although an analysis of transportation alternatives and how they affect the target
groups assessed in this report was not a specific part of this study, transportation challenges were raised by
many of the stakeholders. The most common barrier mentioned was lack of transit availability on weekday
evenings and Sundays, which limits persons with disabilities from taking jobs that require evening or Sunday
hours-in addition to hampering their full participation in the community. Other considerations include access to
medical services, shopping, and recreation for seniors. As our population ages, of necessity many in the
community will become less able to rely on cars for daily needs, and our transportation system will need to
evolve to meet these changing needs.
The major systemic gaps identified in the analysis of the study are:
Housing
This report begins with an analysis of housing affordability overall in the City. Lack of affordable housing affects
most of the target populations examined in this study-although some are impacted more than most, such as
persons experiencing or at-risk of homelessness, persons with disabilities and seniors and persons earning low
wages and living in poverty. The overall analysis of housing affordability found both a shortage of rental subsidies
and rentals of less than $625/month. The analysis also concluded that it is difficult for renters who are earning
less than $75,000 to become homeowners in the City and that more than 8,000 existing homeowners are
May 13, 2014 Page 3
overburdened by the debt they carry on their homes. Specifically,
An estimated 8,800 households in Fort Collins are renting apartments or homes that they cannot afford.
These households are “cost burdened,” meaning they are paying more than 30 percent of gross household
income in housing and basic utilities costs (an industry standard). About half of these are thought to be
students. The remainder are working residents earning low wages, residents who are unemployed and
residents who are disabled and cannot work-in other words, those residents who are truly living in poverty.
Overall, there are 8,425 homeowners (28% of all owners) in Fort Collins that cannot afford their monthly
housing costs; these owners are cost burdened. Renters wanting to buy have very few options in the market
until they earn around $75,000 and can afford homes priced around $250,000, of which there is a limited
supply.
Fort Collins has implemented many outstanding programs to address housing needs. Yet rising housing prices,
driven by high demand for living in the community, has made it challenging to keep up with needs. To address
current housing needs and ensure that low and middle income households can remain in the City in the future:
The City could benefit from as many as 4,000 additional housing subsidies and additional rental units for
these households, who can afford to pay no more than $625 per month in rent and utilities.
Housing programming should focus on providing a continuum of housing types. Ideally, all areas of the City
should have a range of housing, from affordable rentals to higher end homes.
Homelessness
The analysis of homelessness in Fort Collins identified that the factors underlying homelessness are complicated
and many, and addressing homelessness requires a comprehensive approach for both housing and services. At
any point in time, it is estimated that the Fort Collins homeless population is between 250 and 500 people, and
more than 1,000 students are estimated to be homeless at some point during the school year.
Fort Collins has many resources in place to prevent and address homelessness-yet gaps remain in some areas.
The community has been working hard to coordinate and collaborate to fill gaps in our service delivery system for
the homeless population. The primary gaps in providing a more sustainable network for persons who are
homeless include:
Expanded shelter options for families and youth including a day shelter;
Permanent supportive housing to keep residents from falling back into homelessness;
Transitional housing, especially in periods when subsidized housing supply is oversubscribed;
A shelter for youth who are homeless; and
Expanded onsite and mobile resources, particularly rapid access to mental health care for persons who are
homeless.
Poverty
Although the vast majority of residents in Fort Collins have strong economic situations, some residents---mostly
the working poor-struggle to make ends meet. Recent Census data on poverty in the community show:
19 percent of Fort Collins residents are poor (11% when adjusted for the presence of college students);
9 percent of Fort Collins families are poor;
May 13, 2014 Page 4
Persons living in poverty are generally educated and employed;
Growth in poverty in the past decade was strongest for the City’s youngest residents; and
Poverty rates of children in single parent households are very high.
The City has many programs to help persons in poverty with their daily needs, including housing costs. Efforts to
reduce poverty should focus on breaking intergenerational poverty, by focusing on education-as well as building a
more robust working environment for the working poor.
Health and Wellness
The most significant gaps related to community health and wellness, based on observations of data, service
provider inventory and agency interviews, include the following:
There is lack of capacity and consistency for the provision of mental health and substance use disorder
treatment (e.g., walk in sites), particularly for low income residents lacking private insurance.
The community lacks long-term residential treatment programs (especially for women with either mental
health difficulties or substance use disorders, only one is available for men).
There are no residential treatment facilities available for children under age 10 with behavioral or mental
illness.
The City lacks a detox center for substance abusers.
The City has a strong infrastructure for physical education and recreation-yet growing obesity rates among
the City’s youth reinforce a need to integrate more physical activity into daily life.
Gaps in food provision are generally economic and inability to afford healthy food may increase with food
stamp reductions in the future.
Education and At-Risk Youth
Most children in Fort Collins benefit from the City’s strong educational institutions, cultural offerings and safe and
stable environment. Some children are not as fortunate and need strong community and school supports to
ensure that they succeed. These children include an estimated:
4,000 children who live below the poverty level;
1,000 who are homeless;
300 who are neglected and abused;
3,200 who have untreated mental illness;
1,700 who leave school because of dropping out or are asked to leave (suspended/expelled); and
As many as 10,000 who score at a less than proficient level on standardized tests.
Addressing the needs of the community’s children begins in preschool and, for some children, continues
throughout their growth. Although Fort Collins offers many programs and a strong educational environment, not all
children are receiving the supports they need. As many as 200 children need childcare subsidies and 800 could
benefit from early childhood education. In addition, many could benefit from enhanced and continued programs to
stabilize their educational environments.
May 13, 2014 Page 5
Diversity and Equity
The review of diversity and equity in Fort Collins found many positive elements of an inclusive, tolerant and
diverse community. In general, Fort Collins is viewed by outsiders as an accepting community, perhaps a bit
ignorant, but not overtly hostile. Unfortunately, tensions among cultures still occur as evidenced by the 6 hate
crimes (4.1 per 100,000 people ) reported in the City in 2011-a higher incidence rate than Loveland, Boulder and
the state, but much lower than nearby Greeley.
While the City cannot control racial diversity, there are some inequities and gaps related to equity and
accessibility for different races and ethnic groups across the community. These include the following:
One third of both Asian and Hispanic households earn less than $25,000 per year, compared with just 25% of
non-Hispanic white households.
Poverty rates are highest for Black/African American Residents (38%), and lowest for non-Hispanic white
residents (17%).
9.5% of the City’s residents speak languages other than English at home.
The community has many resources, both on and off the CSU campus, to support diversity and further
inclusiveness. Moreover, the community has various places of worship for different religious affiliations and
options for non-English speakers. To further diversity and increase tolerance in the community and enhance
social sustainability, continued efforts should be made to build understanding and celebration of diverse cultures
and lifestyles, accommodate non-English speakers, and reduce discrimination and inequities.
Targeted Populations
While the needs and gaps of the targeted populations examined in this section (persons with disabilities, seniors,
and victims of domestic violence) vary, there are some common themes among them, including, but not limited to
the following:
Affordable, accessible, and appropriate housing;
Emergency support and rapid access to services;
Ongoing and enhanced services and support; and
Need for more transportation options.
These needs are also apparent in the other targeted populations examined in other sections of this report
(residents who are gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender individuals (GLBT), veterans, and at-risk youth). All of the
targeted populations examined also have unique needs and gaps, as discussed in detail later in this report.
Transportation
Although an analysis of transportation alternatives and how they affect the above target groups was not a specific
part of this study, transportation challenges were raised in many of the stakeholder interviews conducted for the
gaps analysis. The most common barrier mentioned was lack of transit availability on weekday evenings and
Sundays, which limits persons with disabilities from taking jobs that require evening or Sunday hours-in addition
to hampering their full participation in the community (e.g., to attend Sunday religious services, City events).
May 13, 2014 Page 6
ATTACHMENTS
1. Fort Collins Social Sustainability Gaps Analysis, April 30, 2014 (PDF)
2. Powerpoint presentation (PDF)
April 30, 2014
Fort Collins
Social Sustainability
Gaps Analysis
Prepared for
City of Fort Collins
Sustainability Services Area
321 West Maple Street
Fort Collins, Colorado 80521
Prepared by
BBC Research & Consulting
1999 Broadway, Suite 2200
Denver, Colorado 80202-9750
303.321.2547 fax 303.399.0114
www.bbcresearch.com
bbc@bbcresearch.com
ATTACHMENT 1
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS I
Contents
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 1
Report Overview ................................................................................................................................................................ 1
Summary of Findings ......................................................................................................................................................... 2
SECTION I. HOUSING .................................................................................................. 7
Overview ............................................................................................................................................................................
7
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................... 7
Community Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 10
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................... 14
Summary of Findings ....................................................................................................................................................... 18
SECTION II. HOMELESSNESS ....................................................................................... 19
Overview .......................................................................................................................................................................... 19
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................. 20
Community Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 25
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................... 28
Summary of Findings ....................................................................................................................................................... 29
SECTION III. PERSONS LIVING IN POVERTY ...................................................................... 30
Overview .......................................................................................................................................................................... 30
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................. 31
Community Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 35
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................... 38
Summary of Findings ....................................................................................................................................................... 41
SECTION IV. HEALTH AND WELLNESS ......................................................................... 42
Overview .......................................................................................................................................................................... 42
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................. 42
Community Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 49
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................... 59
Summary of Findings ....................................................................................................................................................... 60
SECTION V. AT RISK YOUTH AND EDUCATION ................................................................. 61
Overview .......................................................................................................................................................................... 61
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................. 62
Community Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 76
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS II
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................... 82
Summary of Findings ....................................................................................................................................................... 83
SECTION VI. DIVERSITY AND EQUITY .......................................................................... 84
Overview .......................................................................................................................................................................... 84
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................. 84
Community Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 93
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................... 96
Summary of Findings ....................................................................................................................................................... 98
SECTION VII. TARGETED POPULATIONS........................................................................ 99
Overview .......................................................................................................................................................................... 99
Data & Trends .................................................................................................................................................................. 99
Community Resources ................................................................................................................................................... 106
Analysis & Gaps ............................................................................................................................................................. 109
Summary of Findings ..................................................................................................................................................... 115
SECTION VIII. CONCLUSION AND NEXT STEPS ................................................................117
Conclusion and Key Themes ......................................................................................................................................... 117
Creating a Social Sustainable Fort Collins ..................................................................................................................... 117
Next Steps ...................................................................................................................................................................... 119
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 1
Introduction
REPORT OVERVIEW
PURPOSE
This report summarizes the results of a Social Sustainability Gaps Analysis, conducted by BBC Research & Consulting
(BBC) for the City of Fort Collins (“the City”). The City commissioned the gaps analysis as part of its initiative to build a
cohesive, coordinated approach to community sustainability across City departments.
This study complements a City Strategic Plan for Social Sustainability (Strategic Plan) to be completed in 2014. The broad
purpose of the Strategic Plan is to determine the steps to be taken to move from a current state to a desired future state of
community- and organization-wide social sustainability. Ultimately, the Strategic Plan will help guide City Council and City
staff in setting future work program and priorities.
This Social Sustainability Gaps Analysis report will help support the Social Sustainability Strategic Plan development by
providing a quantitative and qualitative assessment of supportive service gaps in the community. It is intended to provide a
summary of current trends in the Fort Collins community, related to various components of social sustainability, including
but not limited to housing, homelessness, poverty, health, wellness, education, diversity, and the needs of special
populations. This report also highlights many different programs and initiatives of the City of Fort Collins and other local
organizations working to address these trends and community needs.
The report provides a high-level overview of the current state of affairs to inform the City of Fort Collins’ strategic planning
process and decision-making related to social sustainability. While this document may also inform other organizations and
efforts, it is necessary to clarify that this report is not intended to serve as an exhaustive inventory of all organizations,
resources, or service providers available to residents within the City of Fort Collins.
WHAT IS SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY?
Social sustainability is the practice of ensuring healthy social systems so that people in our community can thrive. We do
this through partnerships, programs and policies that provide equity and opportunities for all.
METHODOLOGY
The scope of work used in this study consisted of four primary tasks:
• Collection of existing quantitative and secondary data on population levels and housing and program inventories;
• Interviews with providers of supportive services in Fort Collins and Larimer County to gather information on client
needs, organizational needs, service demand and wait lists;
• A comparison of existing resources and capacity levels with needs; and
• Preparation of this report documenting research findings.
During the course of this study, several public events were held to review the preliminary findings and seek additional input
and insight. In November 2013, a workshop was held with members of the City’s Advisory Boards and Commissions, and
in December 2013, a public open house was held. The draft report was posted on the City’s website for review in January
and February 2014. Finally, City staff met with a number of key stakeholders and service providers to review the
preliminary findings and seek their input, leading to additional revisions and refinements in March and April 2014.
STUDY CHALLENGES AND LIMITATIONS
The reader should be aware of the challenges and limitations of the social sustainability gaps analysis:
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 2
• Some types of residents with needs are difficult to locate, which means their needs for services and/or housing are
underrepresented. For example, residents without a permanent home may be temporarily living with friends or family
and at-risk of homelessness, but not counted in annual surveys.
• Disabilities and illnesses may be undiagnosed or unreported .Some categories of persons with certain needs are
underestimated due to their reluctance to undergo testing and diagnosis and/or failure to disclose their health
information.
• Many individuals have overlapping needs, making it difficult to compartmentalize them into one needs category.
Because of overlapping needs, service providers’ housing facilities and developments rarely serve a single population.
As such, it is difficult to match available resources with needs with a high degree of precision.
• This study covered a large number of issue areas and targeted population groups. It is by no means a comprehensive
study of the needs of a specific group, but instead a broad assessment of supportive service needs.
This study incorporates the best data available at the time it was completed. Additional data that become available,
particularly from more specific studies of special needs groups, should be taken into account along with the findings in this
study.
ORGANIZATION
This report is organized around the six areas of focus, the last of which encompasses six targeted population groups.
These areas of focus include:
• Housing
• Homelessness
• Poverty
• Health and wellness
• Education and at-risk youth
• Diversity and equity
• Targeted populations
o Persons with disabilities
o Seniors
o Victims of domestic violence
o Veterans (discussed in the homelessness section)
o Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender residents (discussed in the diversity and equity section)
o At-risk youth (discussed in the education section)
These targeted populations—as well as low income households in general—were chosen because they often face some of
the greatest challenges to accessing the housing and services they need and may require public support and subsidies.
Each topic-based section includes an overview and list of key definitions followed by detailed discussion of current data
and trends. An inventory of current community resources, including organizations, projects, initiatives, and other efforts
follows. Then each section provides a discussion of analysis and gaps, including discussion of key indicators of need,
ways to address those needs, and computed or observed gaps. The gaps are generally presented as graphics that depict
the gap in service provision based on a comparison of need and resources. Since demand for services is fluid and difficult
to estimate precisely, a range of need is provided where available. The types of indicators to measure need vary
depending on the data available, area of focus and resident population. Finally, each section concludes with a summary of
key findings.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
The City of Fort Collins and its many service providers have created a solid infrastructure for social sustainability. The City
has embraced many best practices for housing and service programming and is recognized as a very valuable partner by
providers.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 3
Yet, gaps do exist in access to needed housing and services in Fort Collins. Some of these gaps are market driven (e.g.,
high demand for housing), many are economic (e.g., budget cuts for organizations, job losses for residents), and some are
driven by demographics or the unique needs of special populations. The following pages highlight the primary gaps from
each section of this report.
HOUSING
This report begins with an analysis of housing affordability overall in the City. Lack of affordable housing affects most of the
target populations examined in this study—although some are impacted more than most, such as persons experiencing or
at-risk of homelessness, persons with disabilities and seniors and persons earning low wages and living in poverty. The
overall analysis of housing affordability found both a shortage of rental subsidies and rentals of less than $625/month. The
analysis also concluded that it is difficult for renters who are earning less than $75,000 to become homeowners in the City
and that more than 8,000 existing homeowners are overburdened by the debt they carry on their homes. Specifically,
• An estimated 8,800 households in Fort Collins are renting apartments or homes that they cannot afford. These
households are “cost burdened,” meaning they are paying more than 30 percent of gross household income in
housing and basic utilities costs (an industry standard). About half of these households are thought to be students.
The remainder are working residents earning low wages, residents who are unemployed and residents who are
disabled and cannot work—in other words, those residents who are truly living in poverty.
• Overall, there are 8,425 homeowners (28% of all owners) in Fort Collins that cannot afford their monthly housing
costs; these owners are cost burdened. Renters wanting to buy have very few options in the market until they earn
around $75,000 and can afford homes priced around $250,000, of which there is a limited supply.
Fort Collins has implemented many outstanding programs to address housing needs. Yet rising housing prices, driven by
high demand for living in the community, has made it challenging to keep up with needs. To address current housing
needs and ensure that low and middle income households can remain in the City in the future:
• The City could benefit from as many as 4,000 additional housing subsidies and additional rental units for these
households, who can afford to pay no more than $625 per month in rent and utilities.
• Housing programming should focus on providing a continuum of housing types. Ideally, all areas of the City should
have a range of housing, from affordable rentals to higher end homes.
• The City should continue to implement innovative approaches to addressing housing needs, such as its land banking
program, and continue to foster private-public partnerships.
HOMELESSNESS
The analysis of homelessness in Fort Collins identified that the factors underlying homelessness are complicated and
many, and addressing homelessness requires a comprehensive approach for both housing and services. At any point in
time, it is estimated that the Fort Collins homeless population is between 250 and 500 people, and more than 1,000
students are estimated to be homeless at some point during the school year.
Fort Collins has many resources in place to prevent and address homelessness—yet gaps remain in some areas. The
community has been working hard to coordinate and collaborate to fill gaps in our service delivery system for the homeless
population. The primary gaps in providing a more sustainable network for persons who are homeless include:
• Expanded shelter options for families and youth including a day shelter;
• Permanent supportive housing to keep residents from falling back into homelessness;
• Transitional housing, especially in periods when subsidized housing supply is oversubscribed1;
• A shelter for youth who are homeless; and
• Expanded onsite and mobile resources, particularly rapid access to mental health care for persons who are homeless.
1 Note that transitional housing is the best option for very specific populations (e.g., youth exiting from foster care, survivors of intimate partner violence).
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 4
POVERTY
Although the vast majority of residents in Fort Collins have strong economic situations, some residents---mostly the
working poor—struggle to make ends meet. Recent Census data on poverty in the community show:
• 19 percent of Fort Collins residents are poor (11% when adjusted for the presence of college students);
• 9 percent of Fort Collins families are poor;
• Persons living in poverty are generally educated and employed;
• Growth in poverty in the past decade was strongest for the City’s youngest residents; and
• Poverty rates of children in single parent households are very high.
The City has many programs to help persons in poverty with their daily needs, including housing costs. Efforts to reduce
poverty should focus on breaking intergenerational poverty, by focusing on education—as well as building a more robust
working environment for the working poor.
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
The most significant gaps related to community health and wellness, based on observations of data, service provider
inventory and agency interviews, include the following:
• There is lack of capacity and consistency for the provision of mental health and substance use disorder treatment
(e.g., walk in sites), particularly for low income residents lacking private insurance.
• The community lacks long-term residential treatment programs (especially for women with either mental health
difficulties or substance use disorders, only one is available for men).
• There are no residential treatment facilities available for children under age 10 with behavioral or mental illness.
• The City lacks a detox center for substance abusers.
• The City has a strong infrastructure for physical education and recreation—yet growing obesity rates among the City’s
youth reinforce a need to integrate more physical activity into daily life.
• Gaps in food provision are generally economic and inability to afford healthy food may increase with food stamp
reductions in the future.
EDUCATION AND AT-RISK YOUTH
Most children in Fort Collins benefit from the City’s strong educational institutions, cultural offerings and safe and stable
environment. Some children are not as fortunate and need strong community and school supports to ensure that they
succeed. These children include an estimated:
• 4,000 children who live below the poverty level;
• 1,000 who are homeless;
• 300 who are neglected and abused;
• 3,200 who have untreated mental illness;
• 1,700 who leave school because of dropping out or are asked to leave (suspended/expelled); and
• As many as 10,000 who score at a less than proficient level on standardized tests.
Addressing the needs of the community’s children begins in preschool and, for some children, continues throughout their
growth. Although Fort Collins offers many programs and a strong educational environment, not all children are receiving
the supports they need. As many as 200 children need childcare subsidies and 800 could benefit from early childhood
education. In addition, many could benefit from enhanced and continued programs to stabilize their educational
environments.
DIVERSITY AND EQUITY
The review of diversity and equity in Fort Collins found many positive elements of an inclusive, tolerant and diverse
community. In general, Fort Collins is viewed by outsiders as an accepting community, perhaps a bit ignorant, but not
overtly hostile. Unfortunately, tensions among cultures still occur as evidenced by the 6 hate crimes (4.1 per 100,000
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 5
people ) reported in the City in 2011—a higher incidence rate than Loveland, Boulder and the state, but much lower than
nearby Greeley.
While the City cannot control racial diversity, there are some inequities and gaps related to equity and accessibility for
different races and ethnic groups across the community. These include the following:
• One third of both Asian and Hispanic households earn less than $25,000 per year, compared with just 25% of non-
Hispanic white households.
• Poverty rates are highest for Black/African American Residents (38%), and lowest for non-Hispanic white residents
(17%).
• 9.5% of the City’s residents speak languages other than English at home.
The community has many resources, both on and off the CSU campus, to support diversity and further inclusiveness.
Moreover, the community has various places of worship for different religious affiliations and options for non-English
speakers. To further diversity and tolerance in the community and enhance social sustainability, continued efforts should
be made to build understanding of diverse cultures and lifestyles, accommodate non-English speakers, and reduce
discrimination and inequities.
TARGETED POPULATIONS
While the needs and gaps of the targeted populations examined in this section (persons with disabilities, seniors, and
victims of domestic violence) vary, there are some common themes among them, including, but not limited to the following:
• Affordable, accessible, and appropriate housing;
• Emergency support and rapid access to services;
• Ongoing and enhanced services and support; and
• Need for more transportation options.
These needs are also apparent in the other targeted populations examined in other sections of this report (residents who
are gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender individuals (GLBT), veterans, and at-risk youth). All of the targeted populations
examined also have unique needs and gaps, as discussed in detail later in this report.
TRANSPORTATION
Although an analysis of transportation alternatives and how they affect the above target groups was not a specific part of
this study, transportation challenges were raised in many of the stakeholder interviews conducted for the gaps analysis.
The most common barrier mentioned was lack of transit availability on weekday evenings and Sundays, which limits
persons with disabilities from taking jobs that require evening or Sunday hours—in addition to hampering their full
participation in the community (e.g., to attend Sunday religious services, City events).
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 7
Section I. Housing
OVERVIEW
A housing market is considered to be socially sustainable if it is characterized by both equity and diversity—that is, if it
provides opportunities for all residents and offers housing options that accommodate a diverse set of incomes, preferences
and life stages. Common barriers to an equitable, diverse, and therefore socially sustainable, housing community are
market failures in terms of affordability, accessibility and special needs housing resources.
This section discusses the housing needs specific to Fort Collins along with an inventory of resources that are already in
place to meet those needs. The section ends with a “gaps analysis” designed to identify and quantify any potential gaps in
the Fort Collins housing market where the City may have an opportunity to improve service provision.
Throughout this section, the term “affordable housing” refers to housing that requires less than 30 percent of a household’s
monthly income (consistent with federal definitions). Households that spend 30 percent or more of their monthly income on
housing expenses are considered “cost burdened.”
DATA & TRENDS
A number of thoughtful reports—including the City’s Affordable Housing Strategic Plan (2010), the 2010-2014
Consolidated Housing and Community Development Plan, and the Fort Collins Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing
Choice (called an AI, conducted in 2012) along with county-level reports such as the Larimer County Needs Assessment
(2009) and the Larimer County Affordable Housing Report (2013)—document the state of housing in Fort Collins. Another
important source of data is the Colorado Division of Housing, which publishes Vacancy and Rent Surveys on a quarterly
basis. The primary needs identified by those reports can be summarized into the following categories:
• Affordable housing (rental units and resources for potential home buyers).
• Housing for people with special needs, especially seniors and residents with disabilities.
Those two needs, which are reflected in the City’s current housing-related priorities, are consistent with the findings of this
report and are the primary focus of the following discussion.
AFFORDABILITY
Median housing costs—as measured by rent and home value—in Fort Collins are higher than in Colorado as a whole, and
higher than in surrounding communities of Loveland, Laramie and Greeley. Yet the City’s median income is lower than in
the state overall, partially due to the student population. Communities with a large student presence have unique housing
challenges. These challenges are mostly manifested in the rental market, which generally accommodates students’
preferences at the expense of low-income renters who have longer-term affordability needs.
Rental Market
The median rent, including utilities, for all rental units in Fort Collins was $1,002 per month in 2012. By the end of the 3rd
quarter of 2013, it had increased to $1,043. To afford the City’s median rent and average utilities and not be cost
burdened, a renter would need to earn $40,080 per year. Approximately 40 percent of the City’s renters can afford to pay
the median rent and utilities.
In 2000, Fort Collins’ median rent was $689. The median rent in 2012 was $313 per month higher than in 2000. To afford
this increase, renters in the City would need to earn $12,520 more per year. Renter incomes did increase in the decade—
but by just $4,337. Therefore, renters have lost purchasing power in the City’s rental market during the past 12 years.
Those renters who cannot find affordably priced rentals are living in units that cost more than they can afford. These
households are “cost burdened.”
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 8
As might be expected with a decrease in purchasing power, the proportion of renters who are cost burdened has
increased. In 2000, about 47 percent of Fort Collins renters (9,187 individuals) were cost burdened, spending 30 percent
or more of their income on rent. By 2012, 59 percent of Fort Collins renters (16,030 individuals) were cost burdened.
Rental vacancy rates are closely tied to affordability—low vacancies associated with a tight rental market lead to increases
in rent. In Fort Collins, rental vacancy rates in 2010, 2011 and 2012 were the lowest they had been since the early 2000s.2
Although the first two quarters of 2013 show a slight increase in the vacancy rate (from 2.5% in Q4 2012 to 5.5% in Q1
2013 and 7.0% in Q2 2013), the market remains tight and rents remain high. Figure I-1 displays the average annual
vacancy rate for the City of Fort Collins (as a whole and by quadrant).
Figure I-1.
Rental Vacancy Rates, Fort Collins, 2000 through 2013
Note: The Statewide Multifamily Vacancy and Rent Survey provides vacancy rates by quarter. Figures shown reflect the annual average.
2013 data includes only the first two quarters.
Source: Statewide Multifamily Vacancy and Rent Survey by Market Area and BBC Research & Consulting.
A recent article in the Coloradoan newspaper reports that more than 5,000 apartments are either under construction or in
planning stages, which should help alleviate low vacancy rates, although not all units in planning stages may move on to
construction. However, at least several hundred of those are expected to be high-end units and are unlikely to impact
demand for affordable units in the City, and a significant number are student housing projects that are rented by the room.3
Ownership Market
The median value of owner-occupied homes in Fort Collins was $248,800 in 2012 according to the ACS.4 Between 2000
and 2012, the median home value increased by $79,200. Homeowners would need to earn approximately $19,320 more
per year in 2012 than in 2000 to afford that increase.5 Moreover, median household income for Fort Collins homeowners
did increase by about that much ($19,384), which means owners’ purchasing power remained about the same during the
past 12 years. This conservative analysis assumes that all increases in income are dedicated to housing costs—meaning
that other costs do not rise (a best-case scenario).
2 Statewide Multifamily Vacancy and Rent Survey by Market Area. Ron L. Throupe, Ph.D.. The Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver. Available
online at http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/DOLA-Main/CBON/1251592890239.
3 http://www.coloradoan.com/article/20130512/BUSINESS/305120018/
4 According to Fort Collins Board of Realtors September 2013 monthly market report, the median sold price for homes in Fort Collins was $245,750—only
$3,050, or 1 percent, lower than the median value.
5 This assumes a 10 percent down payment, 5.0 percent interest and 20 percent of monthly payment is used for property taxes, utilities and insurance.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 9
Just 44 percent of current owners could afford the median-priced home if they were buying today. In 2012, more than one
quarter (28%) of all home-owners were cost burdened, living in homes that cost more than they can afford, up from 22
percent in 2000.
Figure I-2.
Changes in
Affordability, Fort
Collins, 2000 to 2012
Note:
Affordable home price assumes a
10 percent down payment, 5.0
percent interest and 20 percent of
monthly payment is used for
property taxes, utilities and
insurance.
Source:
2000 Census, 2012 ACS and
BBC Research & Consulting.
ACCESSIBILITY
In 2011, about 14 percent of all Fort Collins households contained at least one person with a disability and about 8 percent
contained at least one person with an ambulatory disability (2009-2011 ACS). Among senior households, 42 percent
included a person with a disability. Accessible housing is already in demand and as the population continues to age, that
demand is likely to increase.
According to surveys conducted for the 2012 AI conducted in Fort Collins:
• Stakeholders and residents believe there are not enough affordable, accessible housing units in Fort Collins for
persons with disabilities.
• One-third of resident survey respondents whose household includes a member with a disability are living in housing
units that do not meet their accessibility needs. The most common accessibility improvements desired include grab
bars, ramps, wider doorways, and single-level residences.
One of the challenges related to accessible housing is that about half of accessible units in Fort Collins are occupied by
non-disabled persons. Often this is a result of timing in the housing market, since quite often when an accessible unit is
available for rent, no one in need of an accessible unit is looking, and it is rented to a non-disabled tenant.
Improving housing options for special needs populations (the elderly, persons with disabilities, at-risk/endangered teens
and young adults, victims of domestic violence, persons with mental illness and/or substance abuse issues, and persons
with HIV/AIDS and their families) has also been identified as a top-level housing need in Fort Collins. Population sizes and
needs for those special needs groups are discussed in subsequent sections of this report.
$689
$26,977
2000
2012
Median rent
Median income
$1,002
$39,497
Median rent
Income required
to keep up with
increase in rent
$31,314 Actual median
income
RENTERS
$169,000
$61,532
2012
Median value
Median income
$248,800
$80,852
Median value
Income required
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 10
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
This section profiles the primary Fort Collins resources related to serving the City’s housing needs. Those resources
include City plans, government programs, and non-profit organizations.
CITY PLANS
Fort Collins’ Comprehensive Plan, titled “City Plan,” contains overarching policy statements that promote balanced and
integrated living patterns. Topics addressed include the goal of a mix of housing types in all City sectors. Additionally,
affordable housing is encouraged to be dispersed throughout the City.
The City also has an Affordable Housing Strategic Plan, which establishes priorities and strategies for the City’s affordable
housing programs and informs the Consolidated Plan and Annual Action Plans required by HUD. The most recent plan
(2010) identifies four ordered priorities to address affordable housing needs:
• Increase the inventory of affordable rental units (with units for those below 30% AMI as the highest priority);
• Preserve existing affordable housing units;
• Increase housing and facilities for people with special needs; and
• Provide financial assistance for first-time homebuyers.
Another key priority of City Plan, particularly in response to the City’s upcoming MAX Bus Rapid Transit System is Transit-
Oriented Development (TOD). Significant new development of multifamily housing is occurring along the Mason Street
Corridor in response to new transit opportunity, which commences operations in May 2014.
The City’s current funding streams that contribute to housing-related goals include Federal Community Development Block
Grant (CDBG), Federal Home Investment Partnership (HOME) grants, City General Fund Budget Affordable Housing Fund
(AHF) and Private Activity Bonds (PAB).
The Fort Collins 2012 AI evaluated Fort Collins’ housing market and regulatory climate to assess both public and private
sector conditions that impact fair housing choice. The AI suggested a Fair Housing Action Plan which was included in the
City’s most recent Annual Action Plan: 1) Improve the housing environment for people with disabilities; 2) Strengthen fair
housing information, educational and training opportunities; 3) Support efforts to improve residents’ creditworthiness; 4)
Continue to pursue infrastructure and public amenity equity; 5) Continue efforts to make community amenities accessible
to all residents; and 6) Make improvements to land use code.
In 2013, the City Council adopted a special report titled “Affordable Housing Redevelopment Displacement Mitigation
Strategy,” which discusses City policies and responsibilities related to the preservation of affordable housing (with an
emphasis on mobile home parks) and displacement of low-income people when redevelopment occurs. The report outlines
current City policies and presents recommendations and actions to help bolster the preservation of affordable housing in
the City and can be found on the City’s website.
CITY PROGRAMS
To address its affordability needs, the City combines federal block grant and local funding with a handful of other
affordable housing programs. These include developer incentives, a housing trust fund, and a land banking program.
The Competitive Process
The City channels millions of dollars from four funding streams through its semi-annual Competitive Process, the fall cycle
of which is almost exclusively focused on housing-related proposals. Housing funding proposals received are overlaid
against the Affordable Housing Strategic Plan priorities in assessing priority for potential funding. Types of programs and
proposals funded through the Competitive Process, using the City’s federal CDBG and HOME monies—as well as the
City’s Human Services Program and Affordable Housing Fund dollars—includes:
• Homebuyer Assistance program, providing loans to eligible households to cover down payment and closing costs up
to a maximum of 6 percent of the sales price. The assistance is in the form of a loan which is paid back when the
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 11
house is either sold, transferred out of the buyer’s name, rented, or if buyer seeks another second lien (like a home
equity loan) on the property.
• Housing rehabilitation and accessibility improvements for nonprofit housing providers.
• Land acquisition for affordable housing development.
• Housing preservation through acquisition.
• Tenant based rental assistance provided through the local housing authority for persons with addiction and mental
illness coming out of homelessness. (Fort Collins Housing Authority and its programs are discussed in more detail
later in this section).
• Emergency rent assistance and first month’s rent assistance programs; funds for emergency shelter operations for
both the general population and domestic violence survivors; funds to support case management and emergency
assistance (including housing, utilities, medication and other life needs) for agencies working with those who have a
disability or HIV/AIDS; and funds to assist programs which keep seniors living independently.
• Funds for activities—such as childcare scholarships—that stabilize and assist households, and indirectly contribute to
job and housing stability.
• Comprehensive self-sufficiency programs for single parents, which address a housing stability component as part of
the case management assistance.
Development Incentives
The City has established a number of development incentives to help ease the financial and regulatory burden for
developers constructing qualified affordable housing projects. Those incentives include impact fee delay, development
review fee waivers, administrative construction fee waivers, priority application processing and density bonuses. Although
the incentives were developed to help foster affordable housing development, the City has acknowledged that the
incentives may not sufficient to stimulate development of affordable housing projects, and should be evaluated for
effectiveness and compared to best practices of other communities.
The City does not have an inclusionary zoning ordinance. The City considered adopting an ordinance, but was dissuaded
by Colorado’s prohibition from including rental units as part of inclusionary zoning.
Housing Fund
The City has a housing program (the “Affordable Housing Fund”) that is funded through General Fund contributions. The
City’s budgeted dollars are the trust’s sole source of revenue. An ongoing, permanent source of revenue has not been
identified. Currently, because of budget cuts, the annual contributions have dropped from $875,000 to $285,000. The fund
dollars are used to supplement federal grants awarded (CDBG and HOME) for housing programs and projects. The City
dollars carry fewer regulatory restrictions, and there is more flexibility for the types of activities that can be funded.
Land Banking
Fort Collins established its land banking program with a general fund contribution of $1 million. The City’s program is
specifically designed to acquire property for development of affordable housing units, basically a hedge against rising land
costs. Under the program, the City acquires property and holds it long-term (a minimum of 5 years, but more often 7-10
years). After a holding period ends on a specific property, the next step is for the City to issue a request for proposals
(RFP) for affordable housing project development on the site. However, the City is not permitted to use the land bank as
an investment vehicle (e.g., to generate monies to fund affordable housing development). To date, the City has acquired
five Land Bank sites. Although some of these properties have reached the minimum level of maturity for the program (five
years), no sites have sold, nor are there any plans to sell any in the near future.
Faces and Places of Affordable Housing Campaign
One of the most successful examples of a campaign to educate the public about affordable housing originated in Fort
Collins. In 2002, the City, in partnership with a leading developer of affordable and market rate housing, conceived the
Faces and Places of Affordable Housing poster campaign.6 The award-winning campaign’s purpose was to change
residents’ attitudes about the types of people who live in affordable housing and their impression of what affordable
housing development looks like.
6 http://www.fcgov.com/socialsustainability/faces-places-posters.php?key=affordablehousing/faces-places-posters.php.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 12
The original posters were designed to communicate the faces of residents who live in affordable housing, their hourly wage
and the gap between their earnings and the average rent in the community. The 2004 versions of the Faces of Affordable
Housing campaign featured actual community residents with the message, “Can I be your neighbor?” and facts supporting
the economic benefits of having fire and health care professionals, administrative clerks and teachers living in the
community.
FORT COLLINS HOUSING AUTHORITY
Fort Collins Housing Authority (FCHA) administers the Section 8 housing choice vouchers. The FCHA also offers resident
services designed to promote self-sufficiency and homeownership.
Public Housing Units
The FCHA operates 154 scattered site public housing units ranging in size from one to four bedrooms. The wait list for
public housing units is approximately 1,500 and is currently open. FCHA is currently applying to HUD for the disposition of
88 single-family units, which have become too costly to maintain. FCHA intends to reinvest the proceeds to maximize
impact and increase economies of scale for both new and existing affordable housing.
Redtail Ponds Housing
The FCHA is currently collaborating on a mixed-income community development (Redtail) that will provide permanent
supportive housing for formerly homeless individuals (40 units) and 20 units for low income (less than 50% AMI)
households. The development is also designed to include on-site supportive services.
Villages Affordable Housing
The Villages, Ltd. is an affordable housing nonprofit that owns approximately 800 affordable units (of which 80 Section 8
project based units) in eight locations scattered throughout Fort Collins.7 Villages was created to extend the capabilities of
the FCHA and all village communities are managed by the FCHA. Collectively, the Villages communities comprise the
largest project-based housing choice voucher program in Fort Collins.8
Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers
FCHA administers approximately 1,100 Housing Choice vouchers, including 115 Veterans Affordable Supportive Housing
(VASH) vouchers. The voucher wait list is currently closed. FCHA recently briefly opened the list when it received 100 new
vouchers for people with disabilities and 50 family unification vouchers.
A portion of FCHA’s vouchers are project-based vouchers, for use at specific units owned by nonprofit landlords including
CARE Housing, Neighbor to Neighbor, Villages, Ltd. and the owner of the Northern Hotel. For its project-based voucher
program, FCHA gives preferences to people working with Project Self-Sufficiency and victims of domestic violence working
with Crossroads Safehouse.
According to a geographic analysis conducted for the AI, vouchers are well distributed in most areas of the City and are
not heavily concentrated in areas with ethnic or low income concentrations. However, the tight rental market and relatively
low fair market rent (FMR) limit—the maximum amount that HUD will reimburse a renter receiving a subsidy—can make it
difficult for voucher holders to find units in today’s tight rental market.
OTHER AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROVIDERS AND ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS
A number of nonprofit organizations provide additional housing resources for Fort Collins residents. According to the City’s
Consolidated Plan, there are 1,207 LIHTC rent-assisted units in Fort Collins (80 of which are accessible) and 1,200 other
affordable housing units, for a total of 2,407 affordable units in the City. (It should be noted that landlords accepting
housing choice vouchers may be included in that total; it is not additive to the voucher and PHA unit count). Some of the
primary affordable housing organizations are discussed below, however, the following list should not be considered
exhaustive.
7 Fort Collins Consolidated Housing and Community Development Plan: FY2010-2014.
8 http://fchousing.com/housing-programs/villages-affordable-housing.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 13
CARE Housing
CARE Housing develops and manages affordable housing communities in both Fort Collins (six communities) and Windsor
(one community). In Fort Collins, CARE operates a total of 324 units designed for working families earning between 30 and
60 percent of AMI.9 The waitlist for Care Housing communities is approximately 300 families.
Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N)
The mission of Neighbor to Neighbor is to “open doors and advance lives by providing housing counseling, supportive
services, and multi-family affordable housing.” N2N services include emergency rent assistance, first month’s rent
assistance, foreclosure prevention counseling, homebuyer education, housing choice voucher communities and affordable
housing communities. Neighbor to Neighbor has 108 multifamily units for moderate to low income renters (earning 0-60%
of the AMI) in eight communities in Fort Collins and another 14 units in two communities in Loveland. Altogether, N2N
serves 295 clients in its communities, most of which are families.
As of November 2013, N2N had 60 households on the wait list for two bedroom units and 22 for three bedroom units.
Households generally wait for more than one year before a unit becomes available. Most clients stay in N2N communities
for between three and five years and leave because they move from the City, rather than into market rate housing within
Fort Collins.
Habitat for Humanity Fort Collins
Habitat for Humanity International is a nonprofit Christian housing ministry that builds affordable homes in partnership with
families earning less than 60 percent of AMI. Habitat provides a zero percent interest loan with affordable monthly
payments to homeowners who also contribute up to 500 hours of “sweat equity” in the building of their home and a down
payment. Fort Collins Habitat has built approximately 50 homes and has a goal of building 50 more by 2020.10
FINANCIAL SERVICES
The following organizations provide a number of financial tools and services related to affordable housing opportunities in
Fort Collins.
Funding Partners for Housing Solutions
This is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) based in Fort Collins that helps create access to capital in
underserved markets and among target populations throughout Colorado. Loan programs offered in Larimer County
include project financing, residential purchase assistance (home loans and down payment assistance), energy efficiency
improvement program for nonprofits, and a modification assistance program.11
GreenPath Debt Solutions
Formerly Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Northern Colorado, 12 GreenPath is a local non-profit agency
specializing in consumer budgeting. It offers residents a number of financial management tools including credit counseling,
debt management, financial education, housing counseling, and bankruptcy counseling and education services.13
Foreclosure Prevention Hotline
The Colorado Foreclosure Hotline was created in 2006 to provide a central point of contact for homeowners in danger of
foreclosure. The hotline serves homeowners facing potential foreclosure by connecting them to HUD-approved counseling
resources. In Fort Collins, foreclosures peaked in 2009 but have been declining steadily since that time.
9 http://www.carehousing.org/.
10 http://www.fortcollinshabitat.org/.
11 http://www.fundingpartners.org/loan-programs/county/Larimer.
12 Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Northern Colorado and Southeast Wyoming recently combined operations with GreenPath Debt Solutions.
13 http://www.greenpath.com/cccs-of-nc.htm.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 14
ANALYSIS & GAPS
To examine how well Fort Collins’ current housing market meets the needs of its residents—and to determine how likely it
is to accommodate demand of future residents and workers—BBC conducted a modeling effort called a “gaps analysis.”
The analysis compares the supply of housing at various price points to the number of households who can afford such
housing. If there are more housing units than households, the market is “over-supplying” housing at that price range.
Conversely, if there are too few units, the market is “under-supplying” housing.
RENTERS
Affordability for renters has two components: mismatches in the rental market and ownership opportunities for renters
wanting to buy. The gaps analysis conducted for renters in Fort Collins addresses both rental affordability and ownership
opportunities.
Rental Market
Figure I-3 compares the number of renter households in the City in 2012, their income levels, the maximum monthly rent
they could afford without being cost-burdened, and the number of units in the market that were affordable to them.14 The
“Rental Gap” column shows the difference between the number of renter households and the number of rental units
affordable to them. Negative numbers (in parentheses) indicate a shortage of units at the specific income level. Renters
with too few affordable units to serve them are not homeless, but are paying more for rental units than they can afford
because of the shortage of units in their price range.
The gaps analysis in Figure I-3 shows that:
• Almost 3,700 renters earn less than $10,000 per year but there are only 220 rental units priced at their affordability
range (less than $250/month). This leaves a “gap,” or shortage, of 3,471 units for these extremely low income
households.
• Rental unit shortages also exist for renters earning between $10,000 and $15,000 per year (2,301 renters versus 345
units), renters earning between $15,000 and $20,000 per year (2,685 renters and 427 units) and those earning
between $20,000 and $25,000 per year (2,713 renters and 1,559 units).
• Altogether, the City has a shortage of rental units priced affordably for renters earning less than $25,000 per year of
8,838 units. Some of these renters are students (discussed in more detail below).15 These households are also
working residents earning low wages, residents who are unemployed and residents who are disabled and cannot
work—in other words, those residents who are truly living in poverty.16
One additional consideration is the varying needs of different size households, and the need for a variety of unit sizes to
meet varying needs. This will need to be considered as affordable housing needs are addressed in the future.
Rental Market Gaps by AMI
The gaps in Figure I-3 are also presented in terms of AMI, which is consistent with many federally funded programs.
The private rental market in Fort Collins largely serves renters earning between 31 and 80 percent of AMI—75 percent
of rental units are priced within that group’s affordability range. There is a substantial mismatch in supply and demand
at the 0 to 30 percent of AMI category: 37 percent of all renters earn less than 30 percent of AMI but only 7 percent of
rental units are affordable to them leaving a gap of 8,317 units.
A Note about Students
It is difficult, given data limitations, to easily separate out renters who are students and may receive assistance paying
rent from parents, student loans and/or other non-income sources. Recent data from CSU’s Institutional Research
14 The ACS reports rent amounts as paid by the household (as opposed to the amount received by the landlord). As such, the distribution of rental units in the
figure does account for subsidized units.
15 Data limitations make it difficult to separate out renters who are students and may receive assistance paying rent from parents, student loans and/or other
non-income sources. These students affect the rental market in a number of ways but their true economic need for affordable units is unknown.
16 It is important that these renters are not homeless. Those renters who cannot find affordability priced rentals are living in units that cost more than they can
afford. These households are “cost burdened.”
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 15
office estimate that there are approximately 21,000 full-time undergraduates studying at CSU during the academic
year and that approximately 5,200 live in university-provided housing. This leaves about 16,000 students living in
private housing, primarily in the City limits. At an average household size of 3.5, as many as 4,600 units could be
occupied by current students. These students affect the rental market in a number of ways but their true economic
need for affordable units is unknown. The off-campus students may comprise a large part of the rental gap if they
report their full-time residence as Fort Collins and have low earned incomes.17 These individuals may also be past
students, no longer in school but unemployed, and still in need of affordable housing.
Therefore, the rental gap shown above is an upper-bound estimate of need. Adjusting for student households could
result in a reduced gap of approximately 4,200 non-student households in need of affordable housing.
Figure I-3.
Rental Market Gaps
Note: HUD 2013 MFI for Fort Collins-Loveland was $75,800.
Source: 2012 ACS & BBC Research & Consulting.
17 The students would not be counted as Fort Collins residents if they report another place of residence—such as their parents’ address—on the Census survey.
Income Range
Less than $5,000 $125 1,528 6% 38 0% (1,491)
$5,000 to $9,999 $250 2,162 8% 182 1% (1,980)
$10,000 to $14,999 $375 2,301 8% 345 1% (1,955)
$15,000 to $19,999 $500 2,685 10% 427 2% (2,258)
$20,000 to $24,999 $625 2,713 10% 1,559 6% (1,154)
$25,000 to $34,999 $875 3,814 14% 7,075 25% 3,261
$35,000 to $49,999 $1,250 4,205 15% 10,739 38% 6,533
$50,000 to $74,999 $1,875 4,549 16% 5,856 21% 1,306
$75,000 or more $1,875+ 3,705 13% 1,920 7% (1,785)
Total 27,664 100% 28,140 100%
AMI Range
0-30% of AMI $569 10,164 37% 1,847 7% (8,317)
31-50% of AMI $948 5,853 21% 9,856 35% 4,003
51-80% of AMI $1,516 5,329 19% 11,154 40% 5,826
81-100% of AMI $1,895 2,668 10% 3,551 13% 883
101-120% of AMI $2,274 1,043 4% 1,038 4% (5)
More than 120% of AMI $2,275+ 2,607 9% 694 2% (1,913)
Total 27,664 100% 28,140 100%
Max Affordable
Rent, Including
Utilities
Rental Gap
Renters Rental Units
Number Percent Number Percent Rental Gap
Max Affordable
Rent, Including
Utilities Number Percent
Renters Rental Units
Number Percent
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 16
Market Options for Renters Wanting to Buy
A similar gaps analysis was conducted to evaluate the market options affordable to renters who may wish to purchase a
home in Fort Collins. Again, the model compared renters, renter income levels, the maximum monthly housing payment
they could afford, and the proportion of housing units with a value affordable to them.18 The maximum affordable home
prices shown in Figure I-4 assume a 30-year mortgage with a 10 percent down payment and an interest rate of 5.00
percent. The estimates also incorporate property taxes, insurance and utilities (assumed to collectively account for 20% of
the monthly payment).
The “Renter Purchase Gap” column in Figure I-4 shows the difference between the proportion of renter households and
the proportion of homes affordable to them. Negative numbers indicate a shortage of units at the specific income level;
positive numbers indicate an excess of units.
The sale gaps analysis shows the Fort Collins market to be relatively affordable for renters earning more than $50,000 per
year, especially those earning $75,000 or more. About 30 percent of homes are affordable to renters earning between
$35,000 and $50,000 and an additional 41 percent of homes are affordable to renters earning between $50,000 and
$75,000. Overall, 23 percent of all renters can afford the 2012 median home value of $248,800.
Figure I-4.
Renter Purchase Gaps
Note: HUD 2013 MFI for Fort Collins-Loveland was $75,800.
Source: 2012 ACS & BBC Research & Consulting.
18 Home value was used as a proxy for ownership market options. The median value of homes in Fort Collins ($248,800) is very similar to the median sale price
($245,750); however, the distribution of home values may differ from the for-sale market offerings, particularly at the lower end of the value range. As such, the
gaps analysis should be interpreted as a lower-bound estimate of affordable for-sale housing need.
Income Range
Less than $5,000 $20,491 6% 2% 2% -3%
$5,000 to $9,999 $40,982 8% 2% 4% -6%
$10,000 to $14,999 $61,469 8% 1% 5% -8%
$15,000 to $19,999 $81,960 10% 0% 5% -10%
$20,000 to $24,999 $102,451 10% 2% 6% -8%
$25,000 to $34,999 $143,433 14% 5% 12% -9%
$35,000 to $49,999 $204,906 15% 18% 30% 3%
$50,000 to $74,999 $307,361 16% 41% 71% 24%
$75,000 or more $307,362+ 13% 29% 100% 16%
100% 100%
AMI Range
0-30% of AMI $93,193 37% 5% 5% -31%
31-50% of AMI $155,322 21% 9% 15% -12%
51-80% of AMI $248,515 19% 35% 50% 16%
81-100% of AMI $310,643 10% 21% 71% 12%
101-120% of AMI $372,772 4% 10% 81% 6%
More than 120% of AMI $372,773+ 9% 19% 100% 10%
100% 100%
Renters Who Want
to Buy: Max
Affordable Home
Percent of
Renters
Percent of
Housing Stock
Cumulative
Percent of
Housing Stock
Renter
Purchase
Gap
Percent of
Renters
Percent of
Housing Stock
Cumulative
Percent of
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 17
HOMEOWNERS
Between 2000 and 2012, owner purchasing power stayed about the same in the City’s housing market (housing prices
increased at about the same rate as owner incomes). Overall, the market is relatively affordable to current homeowners.
Even if we assume owners would not use their current equity for the purchase of a new home, the distribution of home
values is similar to the income distribution of current owners, except for a small gap for owners earning between $10,000
and $25,000 per year (10% of renters compared to 2% of home values). In other words, there appears to be no substantial
mismatches between owner affordability and the for sale market. However, a traditional gaps analysis does not provide a
complete picture of homeowner needs given the complexities of the recent mortgage crisis, changing interest rates,
differences in equity, personal finances and economic conditions. As such, cost burden may be a better measure for
understanding current homeowner needs.
Overall, there are 8,425 homeowners (28% of all owners) in Fort Collins that cannot afford their monthly housing costs.
Figure I-5 shows the number and proportion of owners that are cost burdened by mortgage status, age and income.
Younger homeowners and those with lower incomes are most likely to be cost-burdened. Over two-thirds of cost-burdened
owners earn less than $50,000 per year.
Figure I-5.
Cost-Burdened Owners, by
Age and Income Level, 2012
Note:
Total excludes 78 owner-occupied households
for which cost burden could not be calculated.
Source:
2012 ACS and BBC Research & Consulting.
All Owner-Occupied Households 30,102 8,425 28%
By Mortgage Status
With a mortgage 23,804 7,774 33%
Owned free and clear 6,298 651 10%
By Age of Homeowner
Householder 15 to 24 years 880 684 78%
Householder 25 to 34 years 4,164 938 23%
Householder 35 to 64 years 19,107 5,178 27%
Householder 65 years and over 5,951 1,625 27%
By Income of Household
Income Less than $20,000 2,480 1,958 79%
Income $20,000 to $49,999 5,979 3,824 64%
Income $50,000 to $74,999 5,027 1,526 30%
Income $75,000 to $99,999 5,614 787 14%
Income $100,000 or more 11,002 330 3%
Total* Number Percent
Cost-Burdened
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 18
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
This analysis of housing affordability in Fort Collins identified two primary needs in the current market:
• Under provision of affordable rentals. An estimated 8,800 households in Fort Collins are renting apartments or
homes that they cannot afford. These households are “cost burdened,” meaning they are paying more than 30 percent
of gross household income in housing and basic utilities costs (an industry standard). About half of these students are
thought to be students. The remainder is working residents earning low wages, residents who are unemployed and
residents who are disabled and cannot work—in other words, those residents who are truly living in poverty.
• Challenging environment for maintaining and attaining homeownership. Overall, there are 8,425 homeowners
(28% of all owners) in Fort Collins that cannot afford their monthly housing costs; these owners are cost burdened.
Renters wanting to buy have very few options in the market until they earn around $75,000 and can afford homes
priced around $250,000.
Fort Collins has implemented many outstanding programs to address housing needs. Yet rising housing prices, driven by
high demand for living in the city, has made it challenging to keep up with needs. To address current housing needs and
ensure that low and middle-income households can remain in the community in the future:
• The City could benefit from as many as 4,000 additional housing subsidies and additional rental units for these
households, who can afford to pay no more than $625 per month in rent and utilities.
• Housing programming should focus on providing a continuum of housing types. Ideally, all areas of the City should
have a range of housing, from affordable rentals to higher end homes.
• The City should continue to implement innovative approaches to addressing housing needs, such as its land banking
program, and continue to foster private-public partnerships.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 19
Section II. Homelessness
OVERVIEW
This section discusses homelessness in Fort Collins and explores the diverse needs of persons and families experiencing
homelessness and the resources available in the community.
DEFINITIONS
In 2011, in response to provisions of the 2009 Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing
(HEARTH) Act, HUD issued new definitions of homelessness. These definitions are used for eligibility determination for
homeless program funding. HUD broadly classifies four categories of homeless: literally homeless; imminent risk of
homelessness; homeless under other federal statutes; and fleeing/attempting to flee domestic violence.19
Literally Homeless
HUD defines the literally homeless as an “individual or family who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,
meaning:
• Has a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not meant for human habitation;
• Is living in a publicly or privately operated shelter designated to provide temporary living arrangements (including
congregate shelters, transitional housing, and hotels and motels paid for by charitable organizations or by federal,
state and local government programs); or
• Is exiting an institution where (s)he has resided for 90 days or less and who resided in an emergency shelter or place
not meant for human habitation immediately before entering that institution.”20
Imminent Risk of Homelessness
Those who are at imminent risk of homelessness are an “individual or family who will imminently lose their primary
nighttime residence, provided that:
• Residence will be lost within 14 days of the date of application for homeless assistance;
• No subsequent residence has been identified; and
• The individual or family lacks the resources or support networks needed to obtain other permanent housing.”21
Homeless under Other Federal Statutes
Under other federal statutes, HUD considers persons to be homeless if they are “unaccompanied youth under 25 years of
age, or families with children and youth who do not otherwise qualify as homeless under this definition, but who:
• Are defined as homeless under the other listed federal statutes;
• Have not had a lease, ownership interest or occupancy agreement in permanent housing during the 60 days prior to
the homeless assistance application;
• Have experienced persistent instability as measured by two moves or more during the preceding 60 days; and
• Can be expected to continue in such status for an extended period of time due to special needs or barriers.”22
19 https://www.onecpd.info/resources/documents/HomelessDefinition_RecordkeepingRequirementsandCriteria.pdf.
20 Ibid.
21 Ibid.
22 Ibid.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 20
Fleeing or Attempting To Flee Domestic Violence
Any individual or family is considered homeless who:
• “Is fleeing, or is attempting to flee domestic violence;
• Has no other residence; and
• Lacks the resources or support networks to obtain other permanent housing.”23
DATA & TRENDS
HOMELESS POPULATION
This section characterizes the homeless population in Fort Collins based on Point-In-Time (PIT) surveys and a
Vulnerability Index survey conducted in 2014.24 Figure II-1 presents the results of a PIT survey of the homeless conducted
in Fort Collins 2013. In 2013, about one-third of the homeless counted in the PIT were children and youth (under age 24).
Figure II-1.
Observed Homelessness in Fort Collins, 2014
Source:
2014 PIT surveys, Homeward 2020.
The 2014 PIT survey measured additional characteristics of persons experiencing homelessness in Fort Collins. Slightly
more than one in three persons reported being victims of domestic violence. One in five was determined as severely
mentally ill.
Figure II-2.
Characteristics of Persons Experiencing
Homelessness, Fort Collins, 2014
Note:
Percentages do not add to 100 percent because an individual
may be represented by more than one characteristic.
Source:
2014 PIT survey, Homeward 2020.
In conjunction with the 2014 PIT, the Vulnerability Survey was conducted in partnership with the 100,000 Homes
Campaign. Volunteers surveyed 179 homeless persons in Fort Collins of which 152 met the HUD definition of homeless;
these surveys were used for a Vulnerability Index. The 100,000 Homes Vulnerability Index serves to identify and prioritize
persons experiencing homelessness based on their health and markers that increase the risk of mortality.
23 Ibid.
24 These counts and surveys generally take place outside locations of service provider and in shelters including the Rescue Mission, Catholic Charities,
Crossroads Safehouse and Faith Family Hospitality.
Under age 18 52 18 %
18 to 24 21 7 %
24 and older 220 75 %
Total 293 100 %
2014
Number
of People Percent
Survivors of Domestic Violence 102 35 %
Severely Mentally Ill 36 12 %
Chronically Homeless Individuals 47 16 %
Chronic Substance Abuse 34 12 %
Veterans (2 female) 15 5 %
Persons with HIV/AIDS 1 <1 %
Chronically Homeless Families 3 1 %
Number of
people
Percent of all
homeless
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 21
Figure II-3 presents some of the results from the 2014 Fort Collins Registry Week surveys. Note that the questions posed
in the Vulnerability Index are different from those in the PIT survey, and different people were surveyed, so the responses
are not directly comparable. Based on the Vulnerability Index, the vast majority of homeless individuals have been involved
with the justice system, almost half of the individuals interviewed have a mental illness and two in five are vulnerable to
dying on the streets due to health problems.25 Health problems associated with a heightened risk of mortality as measured
by the Vulnerability Index include: “three or more hospitalizations or emergency room visits per year; more than three
emergency room visits in the past three months; age 60 or older; cirrhosis of the liver; history of frostbite immersion foot or
hypothermia; HIV/AIDS; and tri-morbidity, co-occurring psychiatric, substance abuse and chronic medical condition.”26
Figure II-3.
Findings from the 2014 Registry Week Vulnerability Index Survey, Fort Collins
Note: n=179 unduplicated Vulnerability Index surveys with persons experiencing homelessness in Fort Collins.
Source: Homeward 2020/
Chronic Homelessness
HUD classifies individuals as chronically homeless if they have experienced homelessness for a year or longer, or if
they have experienced four or more episodes of homelessness in the past three years, and have a disability. In the
2012 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, HUD estimates that 15.8 percent of the homeless population nationally is
chronically homeless. The 2014 Fort Collins PIT estimate of 16 percent is similar to the national estimate.
The National Alliance to End Homelessness reports that the chronically homeless are among the most vulnerable of
persons experiencing homelessness. Chronic homelessness is strongly correlated with high rates of severe mental
illness, substance abuse disorders and other physical illnesses. The Homeward 2020 10 Year Plan to End
Homelessness characterizes the chronically homeless as “the most visible, vulnerable and costly form of
homelessness in the community.” The Plan also notes that more than half of the dollars dedicated to homelessness in
Fort Collins target the chronically homeless. This relatively small proportion of the total homeless population is also
overrepresented in hospitalizations, emergency services, substance detoxification and corrections facilities.
Permanent housing with supportive services is considered a successful and cost-effective intervention for the
chronically homeless. Supportive services are critical to addressing the non-housing vulnerabilities of this population,
including treatment for substance use disorders, mental illness and other health difficulties.
25 http://100khomes.org/sites/default/files/About%20the%20Vulnerability%20Index.pdf.
26 Ibid.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 22
Families
In 2012, persons in families comprised 38 percent of persons experiencing homelessness nationally. Colorado had
the second highest rate of unsheltered homeless families (62% of all homeless families).27 In the 2013 Fort Collins
PIT, 33 percent of persons experiencing homelessness were in family households, similar to the national share.
Unlike the finding for Colorado that 62 percent of homeless families are unsheltered, in Fort Collins, only 6 percent of
homeless family households included in the PIT survey were unsheltered, of 31 family households unsheltered in
2014.
In contrast to the relatively low numbers of homeless families identified in City PIT counts, the Poudre School District
(PSD) estimated that more than 1,000 students in the 2010-2011 school year were homeless, and this number has
been growing annually.28 Part of the difference between the number of homeless families in the PIT and that reported
by the school district can be attributed to a difference in how each population is defined—the PIT has a very strict
definition, where housing insecure households (e.g., doubling up for example) may qualify for “homelessness” by the
school district.
The National Coalition for the Homeless reports that poverty and the lack of affordable housing are the primary
causes of family homelessness. Unlike the chronically homeless, family homelessness tends to be shorter term—
ending a single episode of homelessness within three to six months.29 Typically, families become homeless after a
period of housing instability characterized by eviction or moving from a housing unit due to inability to pay, doubling up
with other households, couch surfing, and finally living in cars or motels before entering a shelter system. Many are
fleeing domestic violence. Most homeless families are single mothers, under age 30, with two young children.30
Families experiencing shorter term, single episode homelessness comprise about 70 percent of homeless families.31
Most families who experience homelessness are very similar to other families in poverty who remain housed. Both
groups have limited education and employment opportunities and both are more likely than other populations to have
experienced physical or sexual violence, mental illness and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Given these
similarities, researchers have examined the factors that may tip one family into homelessness while another remains
housed. Several key differences among homeless families differentiate them from others in poverty:
• Lack of social networks of family or friends—sometimes the difference between becoming homeless or not is
being able to borrow money to make rent. Social supports in the form of informal child care, sharing
transportation or other tangible resources and the companionship of friends and family helps those living in
poverty weave together the tapestry of formal and informal resources that keep them housed. Those without
these supports can tip into homelessness. One study found that 27 percent of parents in homeless families were
formerly in the foster care system, suggesting even weaker or nonexistent family ties.32
• Homeless families also have lower participation rates in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), one
of the primary programs designed to assist families in poverty.33 The purposes of the TANF program include
providing assistance to families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives.
The program purposes also include reducing dependence on cash assistance through promoting work and
marriage, preventing out-of-wedlock pregnancies, and promoting the formation and maintenance of two parent
families.
Rapid re-housing has been demonstrated as one of the most successful strategies to remove families from
homelessness and help them remain permanently housed. Many need no additional assistance after the initial
supports for re-housing.34 Families successfully assisted by rapid re-housing are very similar to those placed in
27 Ibid.
28 See Section V. Education for more detail on homeless children in the Poudre School District.
29 http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/families.html
30 Ending Family Homelessness: National Trends and Local System Responses, October 2012.
31 Ibid.
32 Ibid.
33 Ibid.
34 http://www.endhomelessness.org/pages/families.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 23
transitional housing; research suggests that more families could be assisted by shifting funds away from transitional
housing programs for families and into rapid re-housing.35
A low proportion of homeless families—approximately 5 to 16 percent—have repeated instances of episodic
homelessness36. Strategies to help these families are usually more intensive due to the high likelihood of severe
mental illness or substance use disorder by the parent(s). For these families, children are often removed from the
household so that the parent(s) can receive the intensive treatment needed to provide a stable and healthy home.
Strategies to help these families often involve intensive housing and service supports in the form of permanent
supportive housing.37
Unaccompanied Youth
Nationally, each year, about 1.6 million youth (age 24 and younger) join other runaways and homeless youth on the
streets. In Fort Collins, three in ten homeless persons are age 24 or younger. Unlike youth and children who are
homeless with a family, unaccompanied youth are on their own. These unaccompanied youth typically fall into one of
three classes:
• “Runaway-homeless youths, who stayed away at least one night without parents’ or guardians’ permission;
• So-called ‘throw-away’ youths who left home because parents encouraged them to leave or locked them out of
the home; and
• Independent youths who feel they have no home to return to due to irreconcilable familial conflicts or have lost
contact with their families.”38 Homeless independent youths may include those who age out of the foster care
system.
Unaccompanied youth runaways tend to be female and Caucasian. Native American and African American youth are
also overrepresented compared to their population proportion in all three classes of unaccompanied homeless youth,
as are lesbian and gay youth. Between 20 and 40 percent of unaccompanied homeless youth consider themselves to
be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered (LGBT).39
Violence in the home (including emotional/mental, physical and sexual) is one of the primary factors contributing to
runaway youth. Another predictor of youth homelessness is behavioral problems, mental illness such as depression
and substance use disorders prior to the episode of homelessness. Unaccompanied homeless youth tend to have
weaker social networks and supports than those of homeless families, further compounding their isolation and
vulnerabilities.40 A large share become homeless after aging out of the foster care system. Providers estimate that
about 60 youth between the ages of 16 and 21 are currently in the foster care system in Larimer County.
Once on the streets, unaccompanied youth are much more vulnerable to physical and sexual violence as well as
engaging in survival sex for food, shelter or money. Among unaccompanied homeless youth, LGBT youth experience
physical and sexual violence at a higher rate than their non-LGBT peers—59 percent compared to 33 percent
overall.41
Placing unaccompanied homeless youth into youth-focused stable housing with supportive services geared toward
restoring physical and mental health, life skills training and job training is seen as an effective practice for stopping
homeless episodes in this population.
Finally, it is important to recognize that a comprehensive approach – stable housing, as well as education, necessary
health support, life skills training, as well as opportunities for healthy and meaningful relationships (both family as well
as friends) – is necessary to address homeless youth.
35 Ending Family Homelessness: National Trends and Local System Responses, October 2012. Rapid re-housing moves families immediately into a permanent
home and provides short term subsidies. Transitional housing causes families to move after a certain time period, usually 24 months, and can cause instability in
schools, service networks, etc.
36 Ibid.
37 Ibid.
38 Homeless Children and Youth: Causes and Consequences, National Center for Children in Poverty, 2009.
39 Ibid.
40 Ibid.
41 Ibid.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 24
Veterans
The 2012 American Community Survey (ACS) estimates that there are 8,378 veterans living in Fort Collins. In 2012,
veterans comprised about 10 percent of the nation’s homeless population in the PIT count.42 This is down from 16
percent in 2009, the year the Veterans Administration announced a 5 Year Plan to End Veteran Homelessness.
Veterans represented 8 percent of the homeless population in the 2013 Fort Collins PIT count, slightly lower than the
national proportion. The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimated that the number of homeless veterans in
Colorado decreased by 27 percent from 2011 to 2012.43
In 2012, the Department of Veterans Affairs released the first comprehensive longitudinal study of homelessness
among veterans, with a focus on veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi
Freedom (OIF) and separated from the military between July 2005 and September 2006. The study tracked these
veterans for a period of five years and compared them to demographically similar veterans who separated from the
military in the same period.44 The findings are striking for all veterans, as well as those who served in OEF/OIF.
Based on the 2012 number of persons experiencing homelessness nationally and the U.S. population, about 0.002
percent of Americans are homeless. Among veterans, 3.7 percent of those who served in OEF/OIF have an initial
episode of homelessness within five years of leaving the military.45 The percentage of non-OEF/OIF veterans
experiencing an initial episode of homelessness within five years of military separation is 3.2 percent and 4.0 percent
for female veterans.46 The median timing of the first homelessness episode is three years after discharge.
Veterans who experience homelessness after separating from the military are more likely than veterans who do not
experience homelessness to have been47:
• Under the age of 35 at the time of discharge (79 to 84% of homeless veterans);
• Enlisted and in the lower pay grades (E1-E4) (70 to 78% of homeless veterans);
• Diagnosed with mental disorders, including substance abuse (50% or more of homeless veterans), and most
received this diagnosis prior to discharge;
• Diagnosed with traumatic brain injury (TBI) at a rate two to three times higher than non-homeless veterans; and
• Treated for military sexual trauma, particularly female homeless veterans.
The 2012 ACS estimates that there are 969 male veterans and 88 female veterans under the age of 35 in Fort Collins.
If the estimate that 3.7 percent of veterans become homeless within five years of separating from the service, applying
this rate to the veterans under age 35 suggests that approximately 40 veterans are or will become homeless in Fort
Collins.
The study authors recommended that the VA focus its homelessness prevention efforts on those recently separated
veterans with the risk factors noted above. Other studies suggest that rapid re-housing is an effective strategy for
most homeless veterans, however those with the most severe difficulties (e.g., physical and mental health disabilities,
including substance use disorders) are best served by permanent housing with supportive services provided by
experts in veteran care.48
It should be noted that there are additional challenges faced by those who leave the military with a less than
honorable discharge. These persons often face extreme challenges, and the VA does not provide any services or
assistance.
42 Volume 1 of the 2012 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress, HUD, Office of Community Planning and Development.
43 The State of Homelessness in America, National Alliance to End Homelessness, Homelessness Research Institute, 2013.
44 Homeless Incidence and Risk Factors for Becoming Homeless in Veterans, Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of the Inspector General, May 2012.
45 Ibid.
46 Ibid.
47 Ibid.
48 http://www.endhomelessness.org/pages/veterans.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 25
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
The Fort Collins Housing Authority and other area organizations provide public housing units, project based Section 8 units
and administer housing vouchers. These affordable housing opportunities were described in Section I. This section
describes the resources available to homeless individuals and families in Fort Collins.
COORDINATION AND DAY SERVICES
The Sister Mary Alice Murphy Center for Hope (Murphy Center) serves as a single point of access for persons who are
experiencing homelessness or are nearly homeless to connect to community resources. Resource specialists meet with
people seeking assistance and connect them with needed services. Services include employment assistance, housing
assistance, financial counseling, transportation assistance, job training and education opportunities, and mental health and
substance abuse counseling, phone and computer access for employment contacts, mental and dental health assistance.
In addition, the Murphy Center provides showers, lockers, phone and computer access and laundry facilities. Demand for
showers and laundry is so high that a lottery is conducted each morning for each.
A total of 23 different agencies and organizations are accessible to clients of the Murphy Center during the week.
Examples of some of the organizations that participate in service provision or resource referrals at the Murphy Center
include: Salud-Health Care performs health checks; Touchstone Health Partners offers therapy groups, medication
assistance, and referrals to the housing authority; Neighbor2Neighbor provides housing search assistance as well as
housing counseling and emergency assistance; the Homelessness Prevention Initiative screens applicants for emergency
rental assistance; Hand-Up Cooperative helps with employment training and searches; Navigators—a volunteer program—
helps individuals and families access state benefits; and Homeless Gear distributes clothing, equipment and non-
perishable food items.
HOMELESS PREVENTION
One of the key homelessness prevention strategies is providing one-time rental assistance to households at risk of losing
their housing. Assistance with paying utility bills is also important. The following organizations and initiatives provide rent
and utility assistance, along with other homelessness prevention services.
Homelessness Prevention Initiative
The Homelessness Prevention Initiative (HPI) works to prevent families in its service area— the Poudre School
District—from becoming homeless. Their primary prevention activities include providing rental assistance and financial
literacy classes. In the 2011-2012 program year, HPI prevented 855 families from becoming homeless by distributing
more than $240,000 in rental assistance dollars. HPI also refers families to other agencies for additional assistance.
HPI offers rental assistance intake at the Sister Mary Alice Murphy Center for Hope on Tuesdays and at five churches
across the City.49 Residents can also call 211 to be directed to intake screening by phone. HPI’s support to qualified
families is on a first-come first-serve basis as funding allows.
Neighbor to Neighbor Rent Assistance
Neighbor to Neighbor (N2N) provides up to $350 in rental assistance to qualified households. Households can receive
assistance one time per year, up to three times in their lifetime. Between January and October 2013, 102 Fort Collins
families have been assisted with emergency rent assistance.
N2N also offers qualified homeless and near homeless the opportunity to apply for as much as $500 towards first
month’s rent. This is a one-time assistance. Between January and October 2013, 80 households were assisted with
first month’s rent.
N2N housing counselors are available on Mondays and Wednesdays at the Sister Mary Alice Murphy Center for Hope
from the hours of 8:30am-12:00pm and 12:30pm-3:30pm and on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:30pm-3:30pm.
49 http://homelessnessprevention.net/contact-us.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 26
Salvation Army of Fort Collins Rent and Utilities Assistance
Residents with eviction or shutoff notices can contact the Salvation Army of Fort Collins for assistance. Funds are
allocated on a first come first serve basis, offered one time per month.
Catholic Charities Utilities Assistance
Qualified Larimer County residents can receive emergency assistance with utility shutoff notices from Catholic
Charities. Appointments can be scheduled by phone Monday through Friday from 8:30am-10:00am. In the most
recent fiscal year, Catholic Charities Northern provided 839 families with utilities assistance.
Disabled Resource Services Financial Assistance for Emergency Needs
As funding allows, Disabled Resource Services (DRS) can provide limited financial assistance to low income residents
with disability conditions for emergency needs, such as eviction or utility shutoff prevention, prescriptions and
transportation. In the 2011-2012 program year, DRS provided housing assistance services to 925 people.
EMERGENCY SHELTER AND TRANSITIONAL HOUSING
Figure II-4 summarizes the emergency shelter beds and selected transitional housing programs in Fort Collins. As shown,
the Fort Collins Rescue Mission has the greatest number of unrestricted beds for men and women (75 total). Overall,
Crossroads Safehouse has the greatest number of emergency shelter beds, but these are reserved for men, women and
children fleeing from domestic violence. At any point in time, there is capacity to shelter eight families in emergency
housing (excluding those served by Crossroads Safehouse). Catholic Charities operates a transitional housing program for
up to 16 male veterans. Through the Fort Collins Housing Authority, Crossroads Safehouse operates 25 transitional
housing units and an additional six housing units onsite for those who cannot safely live in the community.
The Corbett House provides the only transitional housing with supportive services for youth age 17 to 20. Since its
opening, the Corbett House has been full. The average length of stay is six months. Youth are referred to the program by
the Colorado Department of Human Services and the Colorado Department of Youth Corrections.
It is important to note that these shelters are all night shelters; the City does not have a day shelter where individuals and
families may stay during daylight hours (the Murphy Center is a resource, not a day, shelter). Although there is no
dedicated day shelter, the City does have a cooperative partnership between the Murphy Center and Catholic Charities to
provide day center services. Day shelter services are available in the mornings at the Murphy Center and in the afternoons
at Catholic Charities. In addition to these services, Faith Family Hospitality has a day center three days per week for their
families and families on their wait list.
HOST HOME PROGRAM
The Matthews House is a local organization that empowers young adults and families in transition to navigate difficulties
on the road to self-sufficiency. The Matthews House HOST (Housing Opportunities Supporting Transition) Program
provides a temporary home for children, youth, and families who are in a crisis situation, through volunteer HOST families.
HOST families provide support to families navigating difficult situations including loss of housing.
RAPID RE-HOUSING
Through the development of affordable housing and offering limited financial assistance (e.g., deposit, first month’s rent),
the purpose of rapid re-housing is to house homeless individuals and families as quickly as possible and then address
other factors or conditions that contributed to their episode of homelessness. The City’s efforts to develop and support
affordable housing were detailed in Section I. Strategies for increasing affordable housing in the City should include rapid
re-housing, as this tool best serves the needs of particular vulnerable populations.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 27
PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING
The Fort Collins Housing Authority is developing the City’s first permanent supportive housing—Redtail Ponds. This
development will have 40 units for formerly homeless individuals and 20 units for individuals earning 30 to 50 percent of
the Area Median Income. Redtail Ponds will offer a variety of supportive services, including case management, counseling
and life skills training. Construction is anticipated to commence in early 2014.
Figure II-4.
Emergency Shelter Beds and Transitional Housing Programs
Source: BBC Research & Consulting from provider websites and interviews.
Shelter Beds
Catholic Charities Mission Shelter 18 beds 6 beds 4 rooms
Catholic Charities Emergency Overflow 24 beds 6 beds 4 beds
Fort Collins Rescue Mission 59 beds 10 beds
Faith Family Hospitality 4 families
Crossroads Safehouse Emergency Shelter 107 beds
Transitional housing with supportive services
Catholic Charities Veteran's Program 12 beds
Fort Collins Rescue Mission New Life Program 14 beds
Crossroads Safehouse Housing Opportunities and
Mentoring Enrichment (HOME)
25 housing
units w/ FCHA
Crossroads Safehouse Housing Opportunities and
Mentoring Enrichment (HOME)
6 housing units
onsite
Corbett House 8 beds
Men Women Family Youth
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 28
ANALYSIS & GAPS
Unless specific studies have been conducted on persons experiencing or at risk of homelessness, the most current and
consistent data on the number of persons who are homeless are community Point-in-Time Counts or PIT counts from
January 2014. These counts are required by HUD for homeless funding and, due to budget constraints and the challenges
in identifying homeless populations, generally have limitations. Most counts focus on persons living in shelters or on the
street and, as such, can miss people doubling up or “couch surfing,” living in cars and/or motels and hotels. For these
reasons, the PIT counts can fluctuate from year to year and are usually viewed as lower bound estimates of need. Recent
PIT counts put the homeless population at between 250 and 500 people. The figure below summarizes the characteristics
of the community’s homeless population.
ADDRESSING NEEDS
Addressing the needs of the
homeless is complex, requiring a
continuum of housing choices and
supplemental supportive services.
Recent research and HUD direction
emphasizes “housing first” or rapid
re-housing approaches, which work
to minimize the amount of time
homeless individuals and families are
without homes.
Still, there is no “one size fits all”
solution to addressing
homelessness. Fort Collins has
worked hard to create a housing
continuum for the homeless, in
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 29
addition to building a model support center, where homeless individuals and families can access a variety of services. In
summary, there are approximately 1,000 households receiving some form of homeless prevention assistance, and there
are some emergency shelter options available to different population groups. Rapid re-housing is working for some
homeless households, and 60 supportive housing units are currently under development. Gaps remain, however,
especially in the area of transitional housing—the bridge between emergency shelters and permanent housing.
To reduce homeless—and break the cycle of homelessness, as well as poverty, with families—focusing on youth is
imperative. Intervention in the outcomes of youth needs to happen early and requires a comprehensive approach—stable
housing, as well as education, necessary health support, life skills training, and opportunities for healthy and meaningful
relationships (both family as well as friends).
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
This analysis of homelessness in Fort Collins identified that the factors underlying homelessness are complicated and
many, and addressing homelessness requires a comprehensive approach for both housing and services. At any point in
time, it is estimated that the Fort Collins homeless population is between 250 and 500 people, and more than 1,000
students are estimated to be homeless at some point during the school year.
Fort Collins has many resources in place to prevent and address homelessness—yet gaps remain in some areas. The
community has been working hard to coordinate and collaborate to fill gaps in our service delivery system for the homeless
population. The primary gaps in providing a more sustainable network for persons who are homeless include:
• Expanded shelter options for families and youth including a day shelter;
• Permanent supportive housing to keep residents from falling back into homelessness (which support rapid re-housing
programming);
• Transitional housing, especially in periods when subsidized housing supply is oversubscribed50;
• A shelter for youth who are homeless; and
• Expanded onsite and mobile resources, particularly rapid access to mental health care for persons who are homeless.
50 Note that transitional housing is the best option for very specific populations (e.g., youth exiting from foster care, survivors of intimate partner violence).
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 30
Section III. Persons Living in Poverty
OVERVIEW
This section addresses poverty in Fort Collins. It begins with
trends in poverty and then discusses some of the underlying
causes of poverty. The section also profiles resources in the
City that are dedicated to mitigating poverty and building self-
sufficiency of those who are poor.
Poverty is defined at the federal level and, except for Alaska
and Hawaii, does not vary based on state or municipality. For
2013, the poverty level by family size was:
• $11,490 for a single person,
• $15,510 for a two-person household,
• $19,530 for a three-person household, and
• $23,550 for a four-person household,
• Which equates to $4,020 for each additional household
member.
CAUSES OF POVERTY
In a 2008 paper, Dr. Martin Shields of CSU and colleagues examined trends in poverty in Larimer County and Fort
Collins.51 As suggested in Dr. Martin’s findings—and as documented in other research—the causes of poverty are not
completely understood. Macroeconomic indicators, such as growth in per capita income, no longer demonstrate a strong
statistical relationship with proportion of the population living in poverty.52 That is, poverty can persist and even increase in
spite of growth in a local economy.
It is important to note that there are some residents in every community who are not capable of being gainfully employed
and may require long-term public assistance. Persons with debilitating diseases, some persons with disabilities, and
persons who are elderly with infirmities often cannot generate household income through employment. Income
assistance—in the form of Old Age Pension (OAP), Aid to Needy Disabled (AND), Supplemental Security Income (SSI),
Social Security Disability Income (SSDI), Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits, Medicare or Medicaid, food stamps, and a
“preference” for existing public housing and Section 8 vouchers—are the most realistic strategies for maintaining
household income and limiting the effects of extreme poverty in these situations.
Historically, the most successful anti-poverty program in the U.S. has been the Social Security program, an income
supplement program. Social Security has reduced poverty significantly—as evidenced in the low poverty rates of seniors—
by providing regular monthly income to elderly persons.
It is also important to draw a distinction between generational poverty (a child raised in poverty) and situational poverty
(poverty related to job losses, significant illness, etc.). Generational poverty is usually defined as poverty lasting two
generations or longer. These very different circumstances require different approaches. For situational poverty, the
solution is usually found in a temporary safety net (e.g., rent or mortgage assistance, shelter, childcare subsidies) and
access to programs to help an individual or family regain self-sufficiency. Generational poverty, in contrast, is a more
difficult situation to change. Families living in generational poverty need a broader and ongoing arrangement of supportive
services.
51http://www.bridgesnoco.org/images/What_Explains_Recent_Increases_in_Poverty_in_Larimer_County_DrMartin_Shields_Study.pdf.
52 Hoynes, Hilary, et. al. 2005. “Poverty in America: Trends and Explanation.” National Bureau of Economic Research. Paper No. 11681.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 31
DATA & TRENDS
The Census’ ACS estimates that in 2012, 8.9 percent of Fort Collins families and 19.3 percent of individuals lived in
poverty. This equates to 2,898 families and 27,225 individuals. The large difference between the family and individual
poverty rate in the City is partially due to the student presence. As shown in Figure III-1, Fort Collins residents between the
ages of 18 and 24 report a very high poverty rate (57.5% live below the poverty level). If 18-24 year olds are factored out of
the number of persons living in poverty, the overall rate drops to 10.3 percent.
Figure III-1.
Poverty by Age, 2012
Source:
American Community Survey, 2012.
In 2010, nearly 25,000 Fort Collins residents were living in poverty—about 18.2 percent of all residents. The 2012 ACS
data indicate that the number of residents living in poverty has increased slightly, to 27,225, or 19.3 percent of residents.
The 2000 Census counted 15,835 individuals living in poverty in the City in 1999, for a poverty rate of 14.0 percent53.
Family poverty has increased more dramatically than individual poverty on a percentage basis. Between 1999 and 2012,
the number of poverty-level families doubled, whereas persons living in poverty grew by 72 percent.
Figure III-2 shows trends in both individual and poverty family rates.
Figure III-2.
Poverty Trends, 1999-2012
Source: 2000 Census, 2005 ACS, 2008 ACS, 2011 ACS, and 2012 ACS.
53A three- year average of the ACS reports overall poverty at 18.5% - not a material difference from the 2012 rate of 18.2%.
Families 32,542 2,898 8.9%
Individuals 141,227 27,225 19.3%
Under 5 years 8,912 1,243 13.9%
5 years 1,958 59 3.0%
6 to 11 years 9,581 1,217 12.7%
12 to 14 years 3,732 608 16.3%
15 years 1,278 115 9.0%
16 and 17 years 2,775 697 25.1%
Child poverty rate 14.0%
18 to 24 years 26,837 15,437 57.5%
25 to 34 years 25,258 3,751 14.9%
35 to 44 years 16,308 997 6.1%
45 to 54 years 18,433 1,591 8.6%
55 to 64 years 14,093 1,105 7.8%
65 to 74 years 6,979 145 2.1%
75 years and over 5,083 260 5.1%
Totals 114,390 11,788 10.3%
Total In Poverty Poverty Rate
1999 2008 2010 2011 2012
Families living in poverty 1,417 2,737 1,794 2,317 2,434 2,898 1,320 93% 900 64% 1,481 105%
Family poverty rate 5% 10% 6% 8% 8% 9%
Individuals living in poverty 15,835 21,705 21,356 24,988 26,322 27,225 5,870 37% 9,153 58% 11,390 72%
Individual poverty rate 14% 18% 16% 18% 19% 19%
%
increas
1999-2012 change
2005
1999-2005 change
No.
increase
%
increase
No.
increase
%
increase
1999-2010 change
No.
increase
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 32
Factors Related to Poverty
Student Effect
Enrollment at CSU explains some, but not all, of the high individual poverty rate for several reasons. First, students
claiming another place of residence than Fort Collins (e.g., their parent’s home) would not be captured in the Census’
poverty numbers. Second, not all students are poor; some earn enough to be above the poverty line. Additionally, the
recent increase in the number of individuals living in poverty cannot be fully explained by increases in student numbers, as
discussed below.
The number of undergraduate students at CSU increased by just 1,734, or 8 percent, between 2003 and 2012. The
increase in all resident-instruction students (those taking classes on campus, including graduate students) was only 1,727.
Fort Collins residents living in poverty, by comparison, rose by 5,520 between 2005 and 2012. Figure III-3 shows current
and historical enrollment at CSU, according to the CSU Fact Book.54
Figure III-3.
CSU Enrollment, Fall 2003 – Fall 2012
Note: Only includes students who receive instruction in person on campus. Numbers reflect fall enrollment.
Source: CSU Fact Book, http://www.ir.colostate.edu/pdf/fbk/1213/2012_13_Fact_Book.pdf.
Race/Ethnicity
Figure III-4 shows poverty by resident race and ethnicity. Rates are highest for African Americans, persons reporting Some
Other Race (often Hispanics who do not consider their race as White) and residents of Hispanic descent. The poverty
rates of these groups far exceed those of residents in the City overall.
54 http://www.ir.colostate.edu/pdf/fbk/1213/2012_13_Fact_Book.pdf.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 33
Figure III-4.
Poverty by Race/Ethnicity,
City of Fort Collins, 2006-2010
Source:
American Community Survey 2006-2010
5-year estimate.
Household Structure
In Fort Collins, as in most cities, the family type with the highest poverty rate is single female headed households with
children. In Fort Collins, 36 percent of single mothers live in poverty, or 1,074 families. Single fathers, with a poverty rate of
28 percent, also have poverty rates much higher than the rate for all families with children (15%).
Figure III-5 shows the poverty rate by family type in Fort Collins.
Figure III-5.
Poverty by Household Type
Source: American Community Survey, 2012.
Persons with Disabilities
Curiously, in Fort Collins, persons with a disability have lower poverty rates than those without a disability. Overall, the
individual poverty rate in Fort Collins is 19 percent. Persons with one or more disabilities—a total of 9,940 in Fort Collins in
2012—have a poverty rate of 15 percent. This equates to 1,450 persons with disabilities in the City who are living below
the poverty level. It is important to note that the poverty level for those disabled persons who have never worked is
extremely low and that these vulnerable residents have very little opportunity to ever reach self-sufficiency.
There are two reasons for this phenomenon. First, as discussed above, residents between the ages of 18 and24 comprise
57 percent of all persons in poverty. Few of these residents are disabled. The prevalence of disability increases with age,
so the City’s seniors, who have a very low poverty rate, are the largest share of persons with disabilities.
Total Population 133,374 23,960 18%
Race
American Indian and Alaska Native 938 120 13%
Asian 3,948 823 21%
Black or African American 1,379 526 38%
White 119,266 20,313 17%
Some other race 3,474 1,185 34%
Two or more races 4,282 937 22%
Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino origin 13,109 3,546 27%
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino 111,425 18,495 17%
Total
Below
Poverty
Percent
Below
Poverty
Families 32,542 2,898 9%
Married-couple family 26,425 1,316 5%
with children 11,944 1,000 8%
Male householder, no wife present 1,522 281 18%
with children 1,002 281 28%
Female householder, no husband present 4,595 1,301 28%
with children 2,982 1,074 36%
Among all families with children living in poverty…
Percent that are married couples 42%
Percent that are single fathers 12%
Percent that are single mothers 46%
Total In Poverty Poverty Rate
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 34
Employment
Although persons in poverty are less likely to be educated and employed than those residents not living in poverty, many
residents in Fort Collins could be classified as the “working poor.” The majority of persons living in poverty in Fort Collins
have attended college. A slight majority (55%) of persons living in poverty work. These statistics, shown in Figure III-6,
suggest that some of the solutions for alleviating poverty lie in economic development.
Figure III-6.
Educational Attainment and Employment Status of Persons in Poverty, 2012
Source: American Community Survey, 2012.
Poverty Status by Employment Status
(for whom poverty status is
determined)
115,589 23,983 91,606
In labor force: 85,377 15,897 69,480 66% 76%
Employed 78,993 13,284 65,709 55% 72%
Unemployed 6,384 2,613 3,771 11% 4%
Not in labor force 30,212 8,086 22,126 34% 24%
100% 100%
p y
(for whom poverty status is
determined)
86,154 7,849 78,305
Less than high school graduate 3,424 673 2,751 9% 4%
High school graduate (includes equivalen 11,702 1,402 10,300 18% 13%
Some college, associate's degree 24,822 2,842 21,980 36% 28%
Bachelor's degree or higher 46,206 2,932 43,274 37% 55%
100% 100%
Not in Poverty
Poverty Status by Highest Level of
Eduational Attainment Total In Poverty Not in Poverty In Poverty
Total In Poverty Not in Poverty In Poverty Not in Poverty
Percent
Percent
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 35
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Poverty is a complex problem that, as discussed previously, could be related to many different factors, some generational
and some situational. As such, addressing poverty requires a diversity of resources. This section profiles the primary
resources that are in place in Fort Collins to assist residents living in poverty.
CITY ANTI-POVERTY PLAN
As a recipient of federal housing and community development block grants, Fort Collins is required by HUD to have an
anti-poverty plan in place. The City of Fort Collins first adopted a formal anti-poverty strategy as part in 1993. This strategy
seeks to integrate and coordinate local housing and support services for households that are below the poverty levels. To
accomplish this, City staff participates on many community-wide task forces, and promote programs that provide skills
development, education, and job training for low-income persons, as well as integrate public housing residents with
programs that focus on self-sufficiency.
HOUSING AND EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS
For most people, the most expensive household cost is their monthly rent or mortgage payment.55 As such, reducing
housing cost burden is one of the most effective tools to mitigating the impact of poverty. For example, a household
receiving assistance with housing costs may better be able to afford the cost of child care, which is necessary for work or
job training. Housing supports can also determine if residents living in poverty have shelter or fall into homelessness.
Section I discusses housing gaps in Fort Collins and lists the largest providers of housing assistance in Fort Collins. These
housing providers—particularly those that serve clients at the lowest income levels—are a very important part of improving
the self sufficiency of those living in poverty, as well as preventing homelessness.
The Murphy Center
Described in more detail in the Homelessness report section, the Murphy Center provides services to persons living in
poverty, both those housed and experiencing homelessness. The Navigators program assists guests of the Murphy Center
in applying for state and federal benefits such as food stamps and Temporary Aid to Needy Families. The Murphy Center
also offers an emergency assistance program that helps residents pay utilities, prescriptions and transportation. The
Homelessness Prevention Initiative provides rent assistance to community members facing the loss of housing due to an
unforeseen emergency.
EMPLOYMENT AND JOB TRAINING SERVICES
The Aspen Institute recently released several research reports that focus on addressing the needs of the unemployed and
raising self sufficiency of low income households, particularly in the wake of the current recession. The Institute’s research
has found that collaboration across multiple institutions is imperative to build the academic, supportive-service and
employment needs of low income workers. The Institute recommends the following strategies:
• Target a specific industry or cluster of occupations on which to focus job training and skills development services,
especially those industries with predicted growth and livable wages.
• Support students’ efforts to improve workforce skills by providing counseling, child care, and in some cases, basis
skills development.
• Connect with area businesses and provide labor market navigation services to students to help them find jobs and
improve their job hunting and communication skills.
• Combine the strengths of community colleges and local workforce nonprofits. Students are served more effectively by
a joint effort than by the organizations alone.
• Involve residents in the development of these programs and make them the agents of change. Top down government
programs have been found to be less effective than resident-involved programs.
55 This is not always true of seniors. Those without a mortgage payment or who are living rent-free (e.g., with family) may have very low monthly housing costs.
And for some, health care costs may exceed housing costs.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 36
Many of these recommended strategies are already in place at the Fort Collins organizations dedicated to employment and
job training for low income households. These organizations are profiled below.
Project Self-Sufficiency (PS-S)
This organization assists low income, single parents in the greater Fort Collins-Loveland area build self-sufficiency. The
majority of clients earn less than 30 percent of the AMI (86%) and many are female heads of household. Some have
physical disabilities and mental illness, with potential for full time employment, and 60 percent are victims of domestic
violence.
PS-S focuses on improving employment-readiness of its clients with career planning and job search assistance through
the Education and Life Training Center in Fort Collins (see profile below). Scholarships and childcare assistance to help
parents attend school is funded by service clubs. The organization also provides tutoring services for parents, particularly
in math and science, and access to computers. PS-S partners with local housing authorities to find their clients assisted
housing and maintain a services-sharing agreement with Crossroads Safehouse.
Education and Life Training Center (ELTC)
The ELTC provides employment readiness and job training to adults in Northern Colorado. The center offers classes in
computer software and general job readiness. ELTC partners with area nonprofits that serve clients with education and
training needs, many of which are profiled elsewhere in this section and report.
ELTC is also the lead agency of the Larimer County Circles initiative, which engages residents of all socioeconomic levels
into a discussion about poverty and to build awareness of the needs of persons in poverty. The goal of the initiative is to
create a community-based, ally-oriented approach to assisting persons in poverty. Larimer County is one of five Circles
sites in Colorado.
Nationally, the success rate for the program is 42 percent and, although lower than ideal, has the potential to move a large
number of people out of poverty and into self-sufficiency.
Larimer County Workforce Center
The Larimer County Workforce Center’s mission is to “improve the quality of life for individuals, families and communities
through employment and workforce development services.” The Center provides a wide variety of services from job
postings to resume building toolkits to networking opportunities. Some of their services target specific populations including
youth and veterans. For example, the Center offers youth professionalism workshops, tours of potential employers and an
online list of “youth-friendly” employers with minimum hiring age.
EMERGING PRACTICES TO BREAK THE CYCLE OF POVERTY
Two organizations in Fort Collins have focused in recent years on identifying the underlying causes of poverty and
developing strategies, as well as community awareness, to address the many challenges of poverty.
Bridges out of Poverty (Bohemian Foundation)
The Bohemian Foundation’s two-year pilot initiative, Bridges out of Poverty Northern Colorado, is an effort to bring together
public, private, faith-based and nonprofit organizations to build partnerships related to addressing poverty. The Foundation
provides training to area businesses, nonprofits, educators and community members to increase awareness of poverty and
provide them with tools to address community poverty and their own organizational or individual economic challenges.
Pathways Past Poverty
The Pathways Past Poverty (PPP) initiative is a program of United Way of Larimer County in collaboration with Colorado
State University, the Northern Colorado Economic Development Council (NCEDC), The Coloradoan, and several nonprofit
organizations. The program was started in response to the increase in poverty in the City and Larimer County.
PPP developed a “Prioritized Goals Master Document” to guide the United Way’s and partners’ efforts in addressing
poverty. This strategic plan has not yet been implemented; some of the goals may need updating to reflect the current
economic environment in the City. Yet many of the goals hit on the underlying needs—and solutions—for addressing
poverty in the City and county. In sum, these include:
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 37
Highest Priority
• Child care. Ensure families in Larimer County have access to quality child care.
• Job and skills development. Significantly increase the availability of, access to and quality of job training,
critical life skills and education opportunities.
• Housing. Develop and implement a multi-dimensional approach to low income housing to ensure that no
persons or families lack access to adequate housing.
• Community networks. Ensure that families facing poverty have the opportunity to take part in a community
supported process that enhances their own individual and family resources. Increase awareness of diversity and
poverty.
• Health and wellness. Develop and implement a multifaceted integrated health care, wellness and preventative
system.
Secondary priority
• Transportation. Develop and implement a seamless, affordable, integrated multi-modal transportation system.
• Education. Increase the academic success of all youth in Larimer County.
• Financial justice. Level the playing field for those in poverty (create countywide systemic change).
• Financial stability. Increase the level of financial literacy and stability in the community.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 38
ANALYSIS & GAPS
RESIDENTS IN POVERTY
The 2012 ACS, the most recent annual data available on the economic situation of residents in Fort Collins, identified
27,225 residents in Fort Collins who live below the poverty line (about $25,000 per year for a family of four). About half of
these individuals are young adults, many students. A recent report by the Census concluded that the City’s poverty rate
would be much lower, about 11 percent, if students are removed from the numbers. About 7,400 of residents in poverty are
“working age”—between 25 and 64 years old; these individuals are unemployed, underemployed or cannot work. Another
4,000 are children of poor families. Some, but a clear minority, are disabled—about 1,500.
Persons living in poverty are generally educated and employed, albeit at lower levels than the population overall. Slightly
more than half of persons in poverty work. And, even though they may work, their wages are not high enough to bring
them above the poverty line, especially if they are the only earner in their home. Single parents are especially challenged
by poverty; 36 percent of single moms and 28 percent of single dads live below the poverty line.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 39
GEOGRAPHIC CONCENTRATION
Figure III-7 shows concentrations of poverty in Fort Collins using 2006-2010 ACS data. Residents in poverty are mostly
located in the northern part of the City. This is true of both individual and family poverty.56 It is important to note that many
of the areas shown on the map with the highest concentrations are predominantly located in areas with large student
populations. The others are generally those where affordable housing is located, including mobile home parks.
Figure III-7.
Percent of Persons Living in Poverty, by Census Tract, City of Fort Collins, 2006-2010
Note: According to the 2006-2010 ACS, 18% of Fort Collins residents are living in poverty.
Source: American Community Survey 2006-2010 5-year estimate.
56 The At-Risk Youth and Education section uses maps by family poverty to examine correlations between poverty and educational achievement, as well as
location of ECE and before and after school programs.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 40
PEER COMMUNITIES
Figure III-8 compares poverty rates in Fort Collins with peer communities—those in surrounding states with large university
presences and not located in a larger urban setting. As the figure demonstrates, Fort Collins’ poverty rate is relatively low
for a college community. This may suggest that students in Fort Collins are supplementing their income with part- or full-
time jobs or have parental or spouse financial supports. This is also related to Fort Collins being a relatively higher income
community overall; the City’s family poverty rate is the lowest of peer communities, as is Boulder’s.
Figure III-8.
Family and Individual Poverty Rate in Peer Communities, 2008-2011 ACS
Source: American Community Survey, 2008-2011 3-year estimates.
UNIVERSITY RESEARCH
In the 2008 paper prepared by Dr. Martin Shields of CSU and colleagues that examined trends and poverty in Larimer
County and Fort Collins, the findings were based on data from 1999 through 2006 and, as such, do not reflect the impact
of the recent recession. 57 Yet many of the findings remain current according to 2012 data. These include the following.
• Growth in poverty in the past decade was strongest for the City’s youngest residents. More recent data (2000 through
2010) show that the number of children under age 5 living in poverty rose by 126 percent. It should be noted that the
number of younger seniors living in poverty more than doubled, yet the actual number of seniors who are poor is small
relative to children.
• Poverty rates of children in single parent household is very high. 2012 ACS estimates the poverty rate for single-
parent female households at 36 percent.
• A high school diploma is an important, but not sure, pathway past poverty. For adults 25+ years of age poverty rates
are highest for those with less than a high school degree (20% in 2012)—yet poverty still persists for those with higher
educational attainment. In the context of current economic conditions, findings suggest that individuals with a high
school education or less are the most vulnerable to falling into poverty.
• Unemployment rates are highest for those without a high school degree. Wages increase with education.
• Households where at least one adult is employed full-time are much less likely to be impoverished.
The study also concluded, based on an analysis of poverty relative to local economic variables that regional economic
development, as measured by wage and employment growth, can reduce poverty, but it takes dramatic growth to make
large differences. Regions where a higher percentage of individuals have finished high school or college tend to have
lower poverty rates. Base line education rates, however, have little effect on changing poverty.
ADDRESSING NEEDS
Much like homelessness, reducing poverty is complex and requires a comprehensive approach. Some communities—San
Francisco is the most notable—focus on income supports. Others address poverty primary through housing subsidies.
Some focus primarily on job training and education. Research conducted by Colorado’s Aspen Institute has focused on
breaking intergenerational poverty through family supports and robust education and mentorship programs for youth.
57http://www.bridgesnoco.org/images/What_Explains_Recent_Increases_in_Poverty_in_Larimer_County_DrMartin_Shields_Study.pdf.
Fort Collins, CO 30,962 2,486 8% 137,650 25,632 19%
Boulder, CO 17,711 1,466 8% 89,740 20,413 23%
Laramie, WY 5,772 585 10% 28,625 7,554 26%
Logan, UT 10,263 2,194 21% 44,519 13,816 31%
Las Cruces, NM 23,072 3,808 17% 94,708 21,461 23%
Total
Families Individuals
In Poverty Poverty Rate Total In Poverty Poverty Rate
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 41
The following approaches could be considered and pursued by a community aiming to reduce poverty:
• Income support for those who cannot work;
• Housing subsidies;
• Job training and skills development;
• Economic development to support living wage job creation;
• Child care and before/after school care for working families;
• Education system that addresses needs of students who are academically challenged;
• Variety of social service supports; and
• Comprehensive coordinated approach among public, nonprofit and private partners (such as employers).
As noted throughout this report, Fort Collins is fortunate to have many of these supports in the community. This report also
demonstrates that gaps exist in many areas, largely due to lack of funding. Fort Collins’ situation for working families in
poverty is also complicated by students in the workforce, who are willing to temporarily accept low wage jobs. This makes
job training and partnerships with area employers even more important in building the economic capacity of the City’s
working poor.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
Although the vast majority of residents in Fort Collins have strong economic situations, some residents---mostly the
working poor—struggle to make ends meet. Recent Census data on poverty in the City show:
• 19 percent of Fort Collins residents are poor (11% adjusted for college students).
• 9 percent of Fort Collins families are poor.
• Persons living in poverty are generally educated and employed.
• Growth in poverty in the past decade was strongest for the City’s youngest residents.
• Poverty rates of children in single parent households are very high.
The City has many programs to help persons in poverty with their daily needs, including housing costs. Efforts to reduce
poverty should focus on breaking intergenerational poverty, by focusing on education—as well as building a more robust
working environment for the working poor.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 42
Section IV. Health and Wellness
OVERVIEW
This section discusses the physical and mental health of Fort Collins residents. It also addresses many of the leading
forces and opportunities that influence and help shape overall health and wellness. Some of these are decisions that
individuals can make with respect to their own personal health, such as food choices, physical activity, and the use of
drugs, alcohol or tobacco. Yet others are more complex forces that are not necessarily individual decisions, but rather
community-wide forces such as socio-economic opportunities, affordability of and access to health care, options for
recreation and physical activity, environmental challenges, and the availability of nutritious food.
While health and wellness are interrelated, the definitions below highlight the differences between these terms.
Health
Health is the state of physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.58 The term
can be used to describe the state of individuals or populations, and can also be used to describe the state of communities
and other geographical areas.
Wellness
Wellness is a process through which people become aware of, and make choices toward, a more successful existence.
Wellness is multifaceted and interconnected, featuring a collection of dimensions including but not limited to physical,
spiritual, emotional, and social.59
DATA & TRENDS
PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH
The characteristics of Fort Collins residents who are vulnerable to physical and mental health difficulties and the resources
available to these populations follow. The types of health risks discussed include:
• Obesity
• Sexually transmitted infections and HIV/AIDS
• Mental illness
• Suicides
• Substance abuse
Prevalence
This section estimates the number of Fort Collins residents with physical and mental health difficulties, based on available
prevalence rates.
Obesity
Obesity rates are often linked to other related diseases such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart
disease, strokes, and arthritis, and can serve as a good proxy for a quick measure of overall health of a population.
Moreover, obesity and its related diseases are often considered treatable or preventable conditions, but again, factors
such as health care, opportunities for active living, and nutrition all impact the prevalence rates.
58 Preamble to the Constitution of the World Health Organization as adopted by the International Health Conference, New York, 19-22 June, 1946; signed on 22
July 1946 by the representatives of 61 States (Official Records of the World Health Organization, no. 2, p. 100) and entered into force on 7 April 1948.
59 The Six Dimensions of Wellness. The National Wellness Institute, 2014. http://www.nationalwellness.org/?page=Six_Dimensions. Accessed February 27,
2014.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 43
Based on rates calculated from the 2011-2012 Colorado Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, more than
38,000 Fort Collins residents age 18 and older are overweight and more than 18,000 are obese. Obesity rates are
highest for middle age adults (ages 35-54), as shown in Figure IV-1, and lowest for young adults (18-24). For children
ages 2-14 the obesity rate is 18.1 percent, according to the Colorado Child Health survey for 2008-2010 for Larimer
County,
Vida Sana, a community coalition addressing health disparities among Hispanic and low income households in North
Fort Collins, reports that 65 percent of Hispanics in the region are overweight and 25 percent are obese—rates much
higher than for the state overall (55% and 18%). 60
Figure IV-1.
Overweight and Obese Residents by Age Group, Fort Collins, 2011-2012
Note: Overweight is defined as a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 25.0 and less than 30.0. Obese is defined as a BMI of 30.0 or higher.
Source: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Colorado Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Statistics, Larimer County, 2011-
2012 and 2012 ACS.
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) and HIV/AIDS
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s STI/HIV surveillance program reports the number of
new STI and HIV cases in each county. Larimer County’s statistics for chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and HIV are
shown from 2008 to 2012 in Figure IV-2. From 2011 to 2012, the rate of chlamydia cases increased by 20 percent,
gonorrhea by 34 percent, syphilis a four-fold increase and new HIV cases increased by 26 percent. Despite these
increases, the 2012 STI/HIV rate per 100,000 population for each is much lower in Larimer County than found
statewide.
Figure IV-2.
New STI/HIV Cases, Larimer County, 2008-2012
Source: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, STI/HIV Surveillance Program Larimer County Five-Year Trend Tables, August 2013.
Mental Illness
Figure IV-3 presents estimates of the Fort Collins population with serious mental illness and any mental illness,
including mild disorders. Approximately 6,500 adults have serious mental illness. The National Institute on Mental
60 http://www.candoonline.org/sites/default/files/Vida_Sana_Powerpoint.pdf
Age Group
18-24 20% 6,408 5% 1,766
25-34 33% 8,558 17% 4,421
35-44 37% 6,099 18% 2,909
45-54 41% 7,636 21% 3,837
55-64 39% 5,572 20% 2,765
65+ 35% 4,335 22% 2,703
% Overweight # Overweight % Obese # Obese
2008 771 263.7 74 25.3 8 2.7 12 4.1
2009 120 242.0 41 13.8 3 1 7 2.4
2010 741 247.3 33 11.0 2 0.7 11 3.7
2011 885 279.8 33 10.8 1 0.3 7 2.3
2012 1,039 334.6 45 14.5 4 1.3 9 2.9
Colorado 2012 21,631 471 2,822 54.4 208 4 390 7.5
Rate per
100,000 Cases
Rate per
100,000
Chlamydia Gonorrhea Syphilis Newly Diagnosed HIV
Rate per
Cases 100,000 Cases
Rate per
100,000 Cases
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 44
Health reports that 58.7 percent of adults with serious mental illness seek treatment.61 Applying that statistic to Fort
Collins adults with serious mental illness suggests that approximately 2,700 adults have not sought treatment.
Untreated serious mental illness has both personal and social costs, including unemployment, disability, risk of
suicide, substance use disorders, homelessness, and can strain law enforcement and emergency response services.
According to the Institute on Mental Health data, mental illness among adolescents is much higher, for both serious
mental illnesses and any mental illness. According to the data, as many as 1,500 adolescents have a serious mental
illness (8% of adolescents) and 8,000 have any type of mental illness (43%).
One additional contributing factor is the stigma of mental illness among Latinos. where a deeply rooted mix of cultural
and socioeconomic factors have conspired to stigmatize people with mental illness. Although the rates of mental
illness among Latinos and whites in the U.S. are roughly equivalent, whites are far more likely to receive mental-
health treatment (about 60 percent more likely, a 2008 U.S. Surgeon General’s study found).
Figure IV-3.
Prevalence of Mental Illness Among Fort Collins Adults and Adolescents
Note: Adults are residents ages 20 and older. Adolescents are residents ages 10 to 19.
Source: BBC Research & Consulting from 2012 ACS and “Prevalence of Mental Illness in the United States: Data Sources and Estimates,” Congressional
Research Service, April 24, 2013.
Suicide
In its most severe state, mental illness can lead to residents taking their own lives. Figure IV-4 presents trends in
suicide attempts and suicide mortality rates for Larimer County from 2002 through 2012.As shown, rates of suicide
attempts have been declining annually since the peak year 2009. And, according to the Alliance for Suicide
Prevention, youth suicides have decreased dramatically, declining by 50 percent since 2005.
Overall suicide mortality rates fluctuate annually, and reached a new peak in 2012 of 22.5 suicides per 100,000
residents, compared to 20.3 statewide. For Fort Collins, this means that approximately 35 residents die each year due
to suicide.
The Alliance for Suicide Prevention reports that just 29 percent of county residents who committed suicide in 2012
were receiving mental health treatment; this is based on data from the Larimer County Coroner’s 2012 Annual Report.
The individuals who died by suicide in 2012 ranged from 16 to 91 years old and the average age was 49 years old.
61 http://www.nimh.nih.gov/statistics/3USE_MT_ADULT.shtml
Serious mental illness - adults 5.8% 6,501
Serious mental illness - adolescents 8% 1,509
Any mental illness,
including mild disorders - adults 25% 27,799
Any mental illness,
including mild disorders - adolescents 43% 8,034
Prevalence
# of Individuals
in Fort Collins
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 45
Figure IV-4.
Trends in Suicide Attempts and Suicide Mortality Rates, Larimer County, 2002-2012
Source: COMPASS of Larimer County and Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Colorado Health Information Dataset.
Substance Use Disorders
The number of Fort Collins residents with alcohol and drug use disorders is based on prevalence rates found in the
Archive of General Psychiatry.
The difference between abuse and dependence is based on criteria outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Broadly, alcohol or drug abuse is characterized by alcohol-related or drug-related
absences from work or school, driving while impaired, substance use-related legal problems, and negative social
interactions caused by substance use. Dependence characteristics include high tolerance for alcohol or drugs,
withdrawal symptoms, managing withdrawal symptoms by continued alcohol or drug use, reduced social or work
activities due to substance use, devoting time to use a substance or recover from its effects, continued substance use
despite other physical or psychological problems.
Based on these criteria, about 26,000 Fort Collins residents abuse alcohol and more than 11,000 abuse drugs. There
is likely overlap between these numbers and those in Figure IV-3, as substance use disorders are often correlated
with mental illness and physical health problems – about 50 percent of persons with a mental illness have a co-
occurring substance abuse disorder.
Figure IV-5.
Estimates of Fort Collins Residents with Substance Use Abuse and Dependence
Note: The prevalence rates are age-adjusted lifetime rates.
Source: BBC Research & Consulting from 2012 ACS and “Prevalence, correlates, disability, and comorbidity of DSM-IV alcohol abuse and dependence in
the United States: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions,” Archive of General Psychiatry, Volume 64,
Number 7, July 2007 and “Prevalence, correlates, disability and comorbidity of DSM-IV drug abuse and dependence in the United States: results
from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions,” Archive of General Psychiatry, Volume 64, Number 5, May 2007.
Lifetime alcohol abuse 17.8% 26,457
Lifetime alcohol dependence 12.5% 18,579
Lifetime drug abuse 7.7% 11,445
Lifetime drug dependence 2.6% 3,864
Prevalence
# of Fort Collins
Individuals
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 46
RECREATION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Colorado communities often lead the nation in measures of residents who are active and fit. For example, Denver
Metropolitan Area (MSA) is ranked fifth out of 50 MSAs in the U.S. by ACSM American Fitness Index.62 Like Colorado as a
whole, Larimer County has an active population, which continues to grow. According to Larimer County Compass, the
number of active adults in the county 18 and older climbed from 52 percent in 2005 to 65 percent in 2011. 63 The
percentages represent residents who practice regular, moderate physical activity at least 5 times per week for a minimum
of 30 minutes, or residents who performed vigorous exercise three or more times per week for at least 20 minutes. In sum,
the majority of Larimer County residents are exercising regularly.
Similarly, the Colorado Child Well-Being Index, created by the Colorado Children’s Campaign, ranked Larimer County as
the fifth highest (in terms of child well-being) of the state’s 25 largest counties. The index uses 12 indicators measuring
health, family and economic circumstances, and educational achievement.
Part of the reason for the high rankings is that the county and City make it easy for residents to recreate. The Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) reports that 86 percent of residents in Larimer County have
sidewalks or shoulders in their neighborhood that are “sufficient to safely walk, run, or bike.” Seventy percent have access
to a public exercise facility in their neighborhood. A list of parks and recreation resources is provided in the following sub-
section.
Fort Collins has many opportunities for its residents, including children, to improve their fitness level and overall health. But
not all residents take advantage of these, as evidenced in the following statistics for Larimer County from the CDPHE data.
According to CanDo, watching television (see table IV-14 below) has been associated with an increased Body Mass Index,
one measure of obesity.
Figure IV-14.
Child and Teen Healthy Lifestyle Indicators, Larimer County
Source: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Healthy Indicators, Larimer County.
62 http://americanfitnessindex.org/docs/reports/2013_afi_report_final.pdf
63 United Way of Larimer County and Larimer County Human Services Department, 2013 Community Indicators Report, Larimer County, Colorado
Healthy Lifestyle Indicators
Children age 1-14 years spending two hours per day or less in front of a screen
(e.g., TV, computer, video games etc.) on weekdays in 2010
81%
Children age 5-14 years are physically active for 60 minutes seven days per
week in 2009-2010
33%
Teens in grades 9-12 are physically active for 60 minutes seven days per week
in 2011
29%
Teens in grades 9-12 spend two hours per day or less watching TV on
weekdays in 2011
79%
Teens in grades 9-12 spend two hours per day or less playing video or
computer games on weekdays in 2011
76%
Percent
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 47
FOOD PROVISION
This section discusses access to healthy food, a major factor that contributes to overall health and wellness of a
population.
Access to Healthy Food Retailers
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) developed the Modified Retail Food Environment Index (mRFEI) to measure the
“number of health and less health food retailers within census tracts across each state as defined by typical food offerings
in specific types of retail stores (e.g., supermarkets, convenience stores, or fast food restaurants). Out of the total number
of food retailers considered healthy or less healthy, the mRFEI represents the percentage that are healthy.”64
Figure IV-15 presents the mRFEI for census tracts in Fort Collins. As shown, only one census tract has no healthy food
outlets, but there are many census tracts where up to 11 out of 100 food outlets are healthy, and the remainders are
unhealthy—convenience stores, small grocery stores (fewer than 4 employees) or fast food outlets.
Figure IV-15.
Modified Retail Food Environment Index
Note: The index increases as number of healthy food outlets in a Census tract increases.
Source: BBC Research & Consulting from the MRFEI dataset complied by the Centers for Disease Control, 2011.
CDPHE’s Health Indicators for Larimer County estimates that there are 8.24 fast food restaurants in Larimer County per
10,000 residents, compared to 0.87 healthy food outlets per 10,000 residents—or about 9.5 times as many fast food
restaurants as health food outlets. Yet the vast majority of residents say that healthy food is somewhat or very available in
their neighborhoods.
64 http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/resources/reports.html.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 48
Figure IV-16.
Access to Healthy Food Indicators,
Larimer County
Source:
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment,
Health Indicators, Larimer County.
As mentioned above, about one-third of the City’s children are considered obese. As Figure IV-17 suggests, the eating
habits of children and teens in Larimer County contribute to this statistic. Children, in particular, are much more likely to
consume fast food rather than fruits or vegetables.
Figure IV-17.
Healthy Eating Indicators—Larimer County Children and Teens
Source: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Health Indicators, Larimer County.
Food Insecurity
According to COMPASS, “food insecurity” refers to the lack of access to enough food to fully meet basic needs at all times
due to lack of financial resources. The inverse, “food security,” means access by all people at all times to enough food for
an active, healthy life. At a minimum, this includes the ready availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods and the
assured ability to acquire personally acceptable foods in a socially acceptable way.
Estimates from the USDA suggest that 14 percent of Colorado household have “low or very low” food security, with 5.8
percent having very low security.65 This is based on a 2010-12 survey of food security supplements. Applying this
prevalence rate to Fort Collins households suggests that as many as 8,200 households are food insecure, with 3,400
being very insecure.
National data on food insecurity show that the households most likely to be food insecure are single parents with children,
African American and Hispanic and living at 185 percent below the poverty level ($44,000) or less. As discussed in the at-
risk youth section, this is similar to the qualifying threshold for reduced lunches in public schools.
65 http://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us/key-statistics-graphics.aspx#map.
Healthy Food Indicators
Rate of fast food restaurants per 10,000 residents 8.24
Rate of healthy food outlets per 10,000 residents 0.87
Percent who say fresh fruits, vegetables, and other
healthful foods (such as whole grain breads or low fat
dairy products) are somewhat or very available in
their neighborhood
95%
Healthy Eating Indicators
Children age 1-14 years ate fruit two or more times per day and
vegetables three or more times per day in 2008-2010
13.3%
Children age 1-14 years ate fast food one or more times per week
in 2009-2010
64.6%
Children age 1-14 years consumed one or more sweetened drinks
per day in 2009-2010
15.5%
Teens in grades 9-12 have tried to lose weight in 2011 39.6%
Teens in grades 9-12 ate fruit two or more times per day in 2011 32.5%
Teens in grades 9-12 ate vegetables two or more times per day in
2011
28.1%
Teens in grades 9-12 consumed one or more sodas per day in
2011
23.0%
Percent
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 49
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
This section provides an overview of the organizations and services in Fort Collins that assist residents with maintaining
and improving their physical and mental health and overall wellness. It is not comprehensive, but provides an overview of
organizations working on these challenging issues. Some organizations have a broad health and wellness mission, while
others are dedicated to serving specific subpopulations in Fort Collins or Larimer County.The section is organized around
the following broad categories:
• Programs to reduce the costs of health care;
• Affordable health care clinics and providers;
• Mental health providers;
• Health and wellness focused providers and programs;
• Parks and recreation resources; and
• Programs that address food insecurity.
PROGRAMS TO REDUCE THE COSTS OF HEALTH CARE
Reduced Fee Health Care
Discounted health care services are provided to low income Colorado residents through the Colorado Indigent Care
Program (CICP) by participating providers. While not a health insurance program, CICP subsidizes patient care by
compensating providers with federal and state dollars. Qualifying residents are either uninsured or underinsured and have
incomes at or below 250 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL).
Figure IV-6 presents trends in the number of Larimer County CICP admissions and patient visits to participating health
care providers. Three Larimer County clinics and six hospitals participated in CICP in the 2011-2012 fiscal year. From
2000 to 2012, the number of admissions and patient visits to health care providers subsidized by the CICP increased by
237 percent, from 15,950 CICP admissions and visits to 53,776.
Figure IV-6.
Colorado Indigent Care Program Admissions and Visits by Larimer County Residents, 2000-2012
Note: Numbers reflect admissions and visits by Larimer County residents, not unduplicated patients.
Source: Colorado Health Institute from the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing.
Health Insurance
According to the 2012 ACS, nearly 9 in10 Fort Collins residents have health insurance. Among these, the majority is
covered by private insurance, but 28,914 residents also have some form of public coverage, such as Medicaid or
Medicare. At the time of this writing (November 2013), it is premature to speculate as to how implementation of the
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 50
Affordable Care Act will impact health insurance coverage rates in Fort Collins. The Act’s aim is to incentivize the 16,809
Fort Collins residents who have no health insurance coverage to become insured.
Figure IV-7.
Health Insurance Coverage Status, Fort Collins Residents, 2012
Source: 2012 ACS.
Medicaid Enrollment
Figure IV-8 presents the Larimer County Medicaid enrollment from 2010 through September 2013. Qualified residents
under age 21 participate in Medicaid’s Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program. Since
2010, the number of children and adolescents in Larimer County on Medicaid grew by 36 percent and adult participation
grew by 53 percent. As part of Colorado’s implementation of the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid eligibility was expanded to
additional populations; as such, growth in Medicaid enrollment is likely. Questions remain, however, about whether this will
further increase the gap in our health care delivery system, if capacity does not expand to meet the expected additional
demand.
Figure IV-8.
Average Monthly Medicaid Enrollment, Larimer County 2010-2013
Note: Data for 2013 are the September 2013 caseload.
Source: Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 51
Eligible for Medicaid/CHP+ but Not Enrolled
Figure IV-9 presents the percentage and number of Larimer County children (under age 18) who were eligible for coverage
under Medicaid or CHP+ but were not enrolled from 2008 to 2010. In 2010, the Colorado Health Institute estimated that
1,158 Larimer County adults were eligible for Medicaid but not enrolled—about 22 percent of the eligible population. With
the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and the expansion of Medicaid eligibility in Colorado, continued outreach to
these populations will be important.
Figure IV-9.
Percentage of and Number of Children Eligible for Medicaid or CHP+ But Not Enrolled, Larimer County, 2008-
2010
Source: Colorado Health Institute.
AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE CLINICS AND PROVIDERS
Providers Accepting New Medicaid Clients
According to Larimer County, in October 2013, 11 providers in Fort Collins were accepting new Medicaid patients for non-
emergency care. Figure IV-10 maps and names these providers, shown in reference to poverty rates. Three of the 11
providers are located in high poverty areas.
Figure IV-10.
Primary Care Providers Serving Medicaid Patients, 2013
Note: This map shows only those providers indicated by Larimer County as accepting new Medicaid patients as of October 3, 2013.
Other providers may accept new Medicaid patients.
Source: http://larimer.org/health/chs/medicaid_health.pdf.
2008 17% 26% 1,903 1,164
2009 18% 36% 2,400 1,845
2010 7% 28% 901 1,270
Medicaid CHP+ Medicaid CHP+
% of Children Eligible
But Not Enrolled
# of Children Eligible
But Not Enrolled
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 52
Health District of Northern Larimer County
The Health District of Northern Colorado serves the City of Fort Collins and other Northern Colorado communities. As a
special tax district created by voters in 1960, the Health District is funded by property taxes. Health District programs
include blood pressure and cholesterol screening, community impact team, dental connections, mental health connections,
family dental clinic, and prescription assistance. Through its Mental Health Connections program (a partnership with
Touchstone Health Partners), the Health District connects residents in need of mental health care services to local
providers, affordable prescriptions, and support and advice. The Health District also partners with other Fort Collins and
Larimer County health care providers and governments to address health care needs.
Fort Collins Salud Family Health Center
The Fort Collins Salud Family Health Center provides primary care and preventive care services for families and children,
and accepts Medicaid, Medicare, CHP+ and private insurance. Staff are bilingual and the Center caters in large part to the
Hispanic community in Fort Collins. Salud also has a mobile clinic to serve the migrant farmworker population in Larimer
County. The Fort Collins clinic also provides Medicaid and CHP+ enrollment services. Salud serves more than 12,000
patients per year. However, Salud has a 3-6 week wait time, which leads to Emergency Department usage, as people
can’t get treated and often conditions escalate. Overall, 41 percent of Salud are uninsured, and the majority qualify for
Medicaid. As implementation of the Affordable Care Act continues, they anticipate that the share of patients covered by
Medicaid may increase by as much as 20 percent.
Women’s Resource Center
Until early 2014, the Women’s Resource Center provided health education and outreach and preventive care services to
women living on incomes below the poverty line in Fort Collins. Services included cancer and diabetes prevention
screening, dental care, breast and cervical care, and outreach and education. However, the Center has now closed,
leaving a gap in the services they provided.
Women Infants & Children (WIC) Program
The Fort Collins WIC serves over 4,000 pregnant women, post-partum mothers, and infants and children up to five years
of age. Post-partum moms may receive benefits up to 6 months if not breastfeeding and up to one year if still
breastfeeding. The program provides women and children nutrition education (including referrals to other community
resources), breastfeeding support and a breast pump loan program, vouchers to purchase nutritious foods to supplement
the routine diet, and growth and anemia screenings. The qualifying criteria for receiving benefits is based upon 185
percent of poverty level.
MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDERS
Touchstone Health Partners
Touchstone Health Partners (THP, formerly Larimer Center for Mental Health) provides outpatient mental health and
addiction services at nine locations in Fort Collins. THP has programs that serve children, adolescents, adults, and families
across the spectrum of behavioral and mental health and substance use disorders. In addition to providing direct services
at the Fort Collins clinics, THP also partners with other organizations and agencies in a resource and referral capacity.
Touchstone is the primary mental health and substance use disorder treatment provider for low income residents of Fort
Collins. In 2012, Touchstone served more than 6,100 patients in Larimer County. One-third of their clients are youth
between the ages of 0 and 18. Clients can usually be seen for an initial evaluation in two to four days. Appointments to see
a psychiatrist or psychologist can take four to six weeks; there is a waitlist for these services.
Alliance for Suicide Prevention of Larimer County
The Alliance for Suicide Prevention of Larimer County provides outreach, education and resource referrals to Larimer
County adolescents and adults with the mission of suicide prevention. School and community based education programs
are delivered by trained volunteers in area middle and high schools as part of required health classes. The Alliance offers
support groups for families and friends of individuals who committed suicide (two groups per month). The organization also
works as a “broker” to family members and friends who identify someone at risk of suicide by connecting them with the
appropriate resources.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 53
Residential Treatment Facilities and Sober Living Housing
Figure IV-11 summarizes the results of searches to identify residential treatment facilities and sober living houses. Three
residential treatment facilities provide intensive treatment for adolescents with serious mental illness or substance use
disorders.
Only Mountain Crest Behavioral Healthcare Center Inpatient Hospitalization offers adult inpatient treatment for serious
mental illness stabilization or substance use detoxification. Average stays are four to five days and are not a substitute for
longer term residential treatment for adults. The study team identified one sober living facility for men in Fort Collins—the
Lighthouse. The Fort Collins Police Department confirmed that due to the lack of a detox center, substance abusers who
are public threats are often placed in Greeley, if space is available—or are booked into the local jail.
Mental Health Connections
Mental Health Connections is a partnership between the Health District of Northern Larimer County and Touchstone
Health Partners. It provides services for mental health or substance abuse problems, including information on counseling
and treatment options, referrals to counselors and treatment programs, and care coordination assistance
Figure IV-11.
Residential Treatment Centers and Sober Living Facilities/Homes in Fort Collins
Source: BBC Research & Consulting from provider websites and interviews.
HEALTH AND WELLNESS FOCUSED PROVIDERS AND PROGRAMS
Fort Collins has several providers, programs and initiatives to provide opportunities for residents to engage in healthy
activities.
University of Colorado Health
Through a network of community clinics, the Poudre Valley Hospital, Harmony Urgent Care, and the Mountain Crest
Behavioral Health Care Center, University of Colorado Health (UCH, formerly Poudre Valley Health System) provides
evidence-based health care services in Fort Collins. UCH is a partner in the CanDo coalition to reduce obesity in Fort
Collins. UCH’s Aspen Club focuses on wellness resources for seniors.
Coalition for Activity and Nutrition to Defeat Obesity (CanDo)
CanDo Fort Collins is a coalition of community members, both individuals and organizations. CanDo does not offer any
direct services, but is a coalition who work to improve health and wellness of Fort Collins residents. CanDo has several
subcommittees focusing on: the food environment, the built environment, community gardens, school wellness, and
worksite wellness. The overall mission of CanDo is to “improve the health of Larimer County communities by increasing
physical activity and healthy eating to reduce and prevent obesity.” Specifically, CanDo works to:
• Reduce the prevalence of overweight and obesity among citizens,
• Increase the percent of citizens who engage in regular physical activity,
• Increase the percent of citizens who practice healthy eating habits, and
Inpatient / Residential Treatment Center
Jacob Center Remington House RTC 20 Ages 10 to 18 6 months
Turning Point RTC for Boys 20 Ages 12 to 21 Varies
Turning Point RTC for Girls 14 Ages 12 to 21 Varies
Mountain Crest Behavioral Healthcare Center
Adolescent Residential Program Adolescents 3 months
Mountain Crest Behavioral Healthcare Center
Inpatient Hospitalization All 4 to 5 days
Sober Living Facilities
The Lighthouse Men
Number
of Beds
Average Length
of Stay
Populations
Served
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 54
• Create environments and policies that support healthy eating, active living, and healthy weights.
The Vida Sana Coalition
The Vida Sana Coalition promotes health equity for Hispanic/Latino and low-income residents. The coalition meets
quarterly as a whole to review progress and share successes. With funding from Colorado Department of Health’s Office of
Health Disparities, the coalition of over 200 community members works together to identify the risk factors among the
Latino/Hispanic and low-income communities that contribute to health disparities and create community based solutions.
Poudre School District
The Poudre School District has a number of programs that focus on student wellness. In 2012, the Board of Education
adopted a 5th learning goal that addresses the integration of health and wellness into the everyday activities of the school
environment. These include: school wellness teams to implement the School Health program; a Wellness Council to
oversee the health and wellness learning goal; and the “Academics in Action” program to promote the integration of
reading, writing, and math skills with PE physical skills.
Healthy Kids Club
Healthy Kids Club is a community outreach program, sponsored by University of Colorado Health System, to promote
health and wellness in local elementary school students. Healthy Kids Club partners with schools and agencies that serve
youth in Fort Collins, Loveland, and Windsor and provides in-school healthy lifestyle education programs.
Safe Routes to School
Safe Routes to School is a national program seeking to increase the number of students and parents safely walking and
bicycling to school. Fort Collins’ program is administered by the City. The City organizes adult leaders to oversee groups of
children walking and biking to school. Fort Collins was also recently awarded a grant from the Colorado Department of
Transportation through the state’s Safe Routes to School program to develop walking and biking paths to local schools.
PARKS AND RECREATION RESOURCES
There are numerous programs and organizations that focus on supporting physical activity and recreation throughout the
community. This section includes City of Fort Collins resources, and also identifies some of the many resources focused
on enhancing opportunities for youth, especially those with the ultimate goals of reducing child obesity and addressing the
needs of at-risk youth. Section V of this report discusses at-risk youth in detail.
City Parks and Recreation
The City of Fort Collins offers a broad array of recreation opportunities for its residents. In the City alone, there are 600
acres of parks, approximately 40,000 acres of natural areas, 20 miles of off-street hiking and biking trails, three golf
courses, a racquet center, three swimming pools, an ice rink and a community center. Other resources include a cultural
arts center, a senior center, and a discovery center for children. The City offers reduced fees for these programs for low
income residents and with City or school district residency.
Figure IV-12 lists the recreational and community facilities maintained by the City.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 55
Figure IV-12.
City of Fort Collins Recreation Facilities
Source: BBC Research & Consulting.
The City of Fort Collins maintains more than 50 parks. The City parks website provides detailed information as to
recreation and services that each park offers.66 Nineteen of the parks provide at least 10 different recreational services or
amenities. At least half of the parks offer basketball courts, playground (38 parks), water fountain, restrooms, shelter and
turf fields. The City’s three golf courses include one 9-hole course and two 18-hole courses. According to Golfsmith67 the
median cost for 18 holes of golf at a public course in the U.S. is $36. At the Collindale golf course in Fort Collins, the cost
is $20.
Figure IV-13 shows all park locations within the City, overlaid with areas of poverty concentration. As can be seen from the
Figure, poverty does not appear to be a barrier in terms of access to neighborhood parks. In fact, one of the City’s most
highly rated parks, City Park and City Park Pool, is located on West Mulberry Street near a high poverty level
concentration area.
66 http://www.fcgov.com/parks/map/
67 http://golftips.golfsmith.com/average-cost-round-golf-20670.html
Facility Description Type of Facility Street Address
City Park Pool Outdoor pool 1599 City Park Ave
Club Tico Community gathering place, for rent 1599 City Park Ave
Edora Pool & Ice Center (EPIC) Indoor pool, ice center, workout facilities 1801 Riverside Ave
The Farm at Lee Martinez Park Farm animals, museum, family fun 600 N Sherwood St
Mulberry Pool Indoor pool 424 W Mulberry St
Northside Aztlan Community Center Full service recreation center 112 E Willow St
Pottery Studio Community pottery studio 1541 W Oak St
Fort Collins Senior Center Full service recreation center for seniors 1200 Raintree Dr
Rolland Moore Racquet Complex Community tennis and racquet ball courts 2201 N Shields St
Youth Activity Center Full court gym 415 E Monroe Dr
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 56
Figure IV-13.
Park Locations and Poverty Concentrations
Source: BBC Research & Consulting. Park locations from City of Fort Collins web page.
There are also 42 natural areas that the City maintains and 23 natural areas that are wheelchair accessible. The
information about the areas is easy to find on the City’s website via the natural areas finder.68 By clicking on the wheelchair
icon on the site, all of the accessible natural areas are presented for easy viewing.
Northside Aztlan Community Center
The Northside Aztlan Community Center offers recreational programming for all community members, including at-risk
youth. One such program is Youth Nights, in which the North Aztlan Community Center offers youth activities for free every
Thursday from 3 to 9 p.m. Activities include arena football, dodgeball, indoor soccer, ping pong tournaments, teen weights,
field trips, dance, fitness, food, prizes, and more.
Boys & Girls Club
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Larimer County provides after school programs for youth, from 2:30 to 7 p.m. during the school
year. When school is not in session (summer and holiday breaks), programs are available for full days. The Clubs are
proven programs for at-risk youth that are built on five core program areas: the arts; character and leadership
development; education, technology and career development; health and life skills; and sports, fitness, and recreational
opportunities.
Miramont Lifestyle Fitness
Miramont offers limited free summer memberships to youth ages 14-17.
68 http://www.fcgov.com/naturalareas/finder
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 57
PROGRAMS THAT ADDRESS FOOD INSECURITY
As discussed above, CanDo Fort Collins works to improve health indicators. This section instead discusses the core
programs that address food insecurity.
Food Bank for Larimer County
Fort Collins has two soup kitchens, 17 food pantries, and 13 residential/day programs that serve meals.
The largest provider, the Food Bank of Larimer County, provides free food to nearly 13,000 people every month. In fiscal
year ending in June 2013, the Food Bank provided 28,652 individuals with food at their food pantries. The Food Bank
partners with many nonprofits in the county to deliver food supplements at pantries, shelters, through childcare programs,
and to persons who are frail and elderly and have disabilities.
The Food Bank also has a program for children called Kids Café, which provides children ages 3 to 18 who are at risk of
hunger with meals after school and during the summer months. They served more than 70,000 meals per year through this
program. The program focuses on providing nutritious, healthy meals to low income children, whose rates of obesity are
higher than others. The Food Bank’s goal is for 50 percent of its food to be fresh produce and fresh healthy foods. They
currently have a dietician on staff who works to create healthy recipes for families using the food pantry. In the future, the
Food Bank hopes to have an expanded focus on healthy eating and obesity prevention.
Sales Tax Rebate Program
The City offers a rebate to low income residents for sales tax paid on food. Qualification for the rebate is based on annual
household income. The maximum amount received through the rebate program is currently $54 per household member.
Applications for the rebate can be downloaded from the City’s website.
Food Stamps
Figure IV-18 presents the increased reliance on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP or food stamps) by
Larimer County residents from 2006 through 2011. During that period, participation in the program increased by 81
percent. This is due to both increased need as well as expansion of benefit eligibility qualifications. It is important to note
that qualification for SNAP and food stamp benefits are changing, due to federal budget cuts. It is likely that fewer Larimer
County households will have food stamp benefits in 2014.
Figure IV-18.
Total Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participants, Larimer County, 2006-2011
Source: United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, 2013.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 58
Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL)
According to Compass of Larimer County, approximately 8,000 children in the Poudre School District (PSD), or 29 percent
of all children in the district, were enrolled in the FRL program during the 2012-13 school year. Two elementary schools
also provide free breakfast to all classes.
The number of students enrolled in the program has steadily increased during the past 10 years, rising by 2,840, or 12
percent, since the 2003-04 school year. The largest increase occurred in 2009, when 1,200 more children enrolled in the
program; this was followed by a slight decline the following year, as shown in Figure IV-19.
Figure IV-19.
Free and Reduced Lunch
Enrollment and Eligibility,
Poudre School District,
2003-04 to 2012-13
Source:
Larimer County Compass,
http://www.larimer.org/compass/schoollunch
_ec_inc.htm.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 59
ANALYSIS & GAPS
PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH
Physical Health
The assessment of residents’ physical health in this report is limited
by the breadth of this topic; a comprehensive analysis or gaps was
not possible for the many indicators of physical health. Instead, this
section reviews several of the most commonly used indicators,
including community rates of obesity, sexually transmitted diseases,
access to medical care and access to healthy food.
One clear area of need identified through this overview is the higher obesity rates in children compared to adults, and the
higher rates for Hispanics. Access to healthy food appears to be largely an economic and personal health issue, rather
than one of geographic limitations.
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Disorders
Indicators of mental health and mental wellness
reviewed for this study included suicide rates, untreated
mental health and alcohol and drug abuse.
Incidence rates suggest that as many as 26,000
residents suffer from alcohol abuse and 11,000 have
drug addictions—about 17 percent and 7 percent of the
population, respectively. The City has a higher rate of
suicides than the State of Colorado, at 22.5 per 100,000
residents. As many as 28,000 adults and 8,000
adolescents in Fort Collins have some form of mental
illness—with 6,500 of these adults and 1,500
adolescents having severe forms of mental illness.
Based on national treatment incidence rates, as many as
2,700 of these adults, 600 adolescents and 3,200 of
children of all ages have mental illnesses that are
untreated. These residents have the most critical unmet
health care needs.
Gaps in health care services, especially mental health
care, are difficult to estimate because it is difficult to
identify those who have needs but are unaware and
undiagnosed. Another complicating factor is those
residents who need treatment but desire not to obtain it, even if available. Efforts to mitigate gaps in health care provision
should involve easy access to care, especially for residents who are low income and transit dependent, and for residents
who have severe mental illnesses and substance abuse and are incapable of planning in advance to receive care, but
instead need walk-in or emergency access to clinics.
For mental health and substance abuse services, consistency and depth of care is critical for treatment and recovery.
Cost-constrained organizations may not be able to adequately treat residents due to large caseloads or restrictions on
insurance reimbursements. Like many of the gaps identified in this study, the mental health and substance abuse gaps are
not a factor of lack of services--but limits on services and/or lack of capacity to provide the level of services to all who need
them. For example, the community has outpatient mental health services, suicide prevention resources, and approximately
50 inpatient treatment beds for behavior health needs. These services could be enhanced, however, by easier and more
timely access to mental health services (e.g., 24/7 intake), more comprehensive mental health services (e.g., frequent
visits, longer followup), respite and mental health care for families, and, for substance abusers, a detox center and sober
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 60
living facility for women. Expansions of services in these areas could potentially lower the rates and consequences of
untreated mental health and substance abuse.
RECREATION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
In the case of fitness and recreation, the gap is not necessarily in service provision or lack of infrastructure, but in
participation and adoption of a healthy lifestyle. Fort Collins is already seen as an active community, with bountiful
recreation opportunities, trails, and parks. Stakeholders have noted the importance of maintaining existing parks,
recreation, and trails facilities to support active lifestyles, and expect the City to continue to plan and build these amenities
as the community grows. One noted gap is the lack of a large City park/recreation facility on the south side of the
community, although plans are already underway to develop a large regional park in this area.
Despite the community’s amenities, rising obesity rates indicate that residents are not as active as they could be.
Continued focus on increasing the safety and ease of active transportation modes such as walking, bicycling, and transit
use can help ensure that residents have opportunities to incorporate physical activity in their daily lives. This is especially
important for children, whose obesity rates are rising quicker than adults. Continued focus on programs such as Safe
Routes to Schools and physical education classes are important elements in helping youth lead active lives, as are
opportunities for affordable, formal and informal play and recreation options outside of schools.
Additionally, ensuring that lower-income and Hispanic/Latino residents have affordable options for recreation programs
and activities, especially during the winter months when weather may prohibit outdoor recreation, is important in reducing
some of the health disparities among different socioeconomic groups in Fort Collins. Recreation scholarships, community
fitness programs, and adequate sidewalk and transit infrastructure are some ways to reduce these gaps.
FOOD PROVISION
Access to food, except for the economic ability to purchase healthy food, appears to be less of a gap in food provision in
Fort Collins than in adopting and maintaining healthy eating habits. This may change in the next year, however, when the
food stamp program’s funding is reduced and fewer Fort Collins’ residents qualify. Food pantries may find increased
demand for food supplements from both low and moderate income households. Expansion of the City’s sales tax rebate
program may be one option to address growing needs in terms of food affordability.
Community stakeholders noted that a growing gap in healthy food provision in Fort Collins is the lack of knowledge about
cooking methods, and the price and convenience of fast food options. Meals cooked at home tend to be healthier than
those purchased away from home, though many households do not have the skills, confidence, or time to prepare meals at
home. While healthy food such as fresh produce can be as affordable as fast or processed food options, factors such as
time, convenience, and spoilage also shape food decision-making, and often lead to unhealthier food choices.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
The most significant gaps, based on observations of data, service provider inventory and agency interviews, include the
following:
• There is lack of capacity and consistency for the provision of mental health and substance use disorder treatment
(e.g., walk in sites), particularly for low income residents lacking private insurance.
• The community lacks long-term residential treatment programs (especially for women with either mental health
difficulties or substance use disorders, only one is available for men).
• There are no residential treatment facilities available for children under age 10 with behavioral or mental illness.
• The City lacks a detox center for substance abusers.
• The City has a strong infrastructure for physical education and recreation—yet growing obesity rates among the City’s
youth and a need to integrate more physical activity into daily life.
• Gaps in food provision are generally economic and inability to afford healthy food may increase with food stamp
reductions.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 61
Section V. At Risk Youth and Education
OVERVIEW
This section discusses the sustainability of the City’s youth. A significant portion of the section is dedicated to educational
opportunities and challenges since educational systems are an integral part of improving outcomes for youth. It should be
noted that this section is not all inclusive of children with needs but instead focus on children who are at-risk of poor
educational outcomes and economic difficulties. Other types of children with special needs—e.g., children with
disabilities—are covered in other sections. The section begins by defining and discussing the youth most vulnerable in Fort
Collins, those who are considered “at-risk.”
DEFINING AT-RISK YOUTH
Statistics on at-risk youth can be difficult to obtain due to the protection of information about children, as well as varying
definitions of “at-risk.” The National Center for Educational Statistics focuses on students who are at-risk of “educational
failure” and has documented the relationship between at-risk youthand family socioeconomic status.
As such, poverty and/or low economic status is one of the most common variables used to indicate at-risk youth. It is an
imperfect measure in some ways—e.g., the poverty threshold is fixed and does not accurately represent differences in cost
of living among cities—but is easy to obtain, track, and use in research.
Children eligible for free and reduced lunch (FRL) is another economic indicator of risk that is used by educational
departments to identify at-risk youth and target educational reform programs. Similar to the federal poverty threshold, the
FRL threshold is fixed and does not vary by state or jurisdiction. Currently, children are eligible to receive free lunches if
their families earn less than 130 percent of the federal poverty threshold and reduced lunch prices if earning between 130
and 185 of the poverty threshold. This translates into income levels of roughly $30,600 for free lunch eligibility and $30,600
to $43,600 for reduced lunch eligibility, both for a family of four.69
Statistics on educational challenges of youth abound and many can also be used to identify children at-risk. These data
include high school drop-out rates, mobility and stability rates (children remaining in school during the entire year),
suspension and expulsion, and standardized test scores.
Another category of youth at-risk is children left at home alone because their parents cannot find the care they need. The
number of children left at home alone on a regular basis is unknown. Providers believe these children include children from
low as well as moderate income families, who don’t qualify for subsidies and can’t afford market rate afterschool and/or
summer camp costs.
Finally, some health statistics—teen pregnancies, children who have been abused and neglected—are available to the
public and can be used to identify the number and proportion of children with high risk.
69 Paul Tough, in his recent book “How Children Succeed,” argues that FRL is a weak measure of children in need because of the wide eligibility income range,
an argument that could be applied to many definitions of low income and socioeconomic status. Children living in families earning $10,000, for example, likely
have much greater needs and potentially higher risks of academic failure than those living in households at the higher end of the threshold ($44,000). These
higher risk factors, according to Tough, include no adult in the household who is consistently employed, mental health, substance abuse in the household, and
potential child abuse and neglect.
Tough further argues that children living in high poverty households also have psychological challenges, many related to poor parenting, that make the learning
environment very challenging. The experience of stress and trauma as a child can lead to poor executive functioning, difficulty handling stressful situations, poor
concentration, difficulty following directions, and social impairment. These children, therefore, require different interventions and reforms than those at the “middle
class” end of the FRL spectrum.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 62
DATA & TRENDS
AT-RISK YOUTH
This section uses a variety of available data to assess the range and types of at-risk children in Fort Collins.
Youth with economic challenges
Youth who live in families facing economic challenges can be identified through data on families living below the poverty
level, children living in single parent households who are also poor, and children enrolled and/or eligible for free and
reduced lunches and child cares subsidies.
Living in Poverty
The 2010 ACS reported 1,881 young children (under age 5) and another 1,825 children ages 5 to 17 living in poverty
in Fort Collins—a total of 3,700 children or 13 percent of all children.
The 2012 ACS reported a slightly higher number of total children living in poverty (3,939) but about the same
proportion, 14 percent. Yet there is a big difference between the 2010 and 2012 estimates in age distribution: In 2012,
far less young children lived in poverty (1,243 young children or 14%, compared with 1,881 and 23% in 2010).
Figure V-1 shows the level and trends in child poverty in Fort Collins. The data suggest that the increase in poverty
was initially due to babies born into families living in poverty in the middle part of the last decade, who are now
reflected in the 5 to 17 age range of child poverty numbers and rate.
Figure V-1.
Child Poverty Trends, Fort Collins, 2000, 2010, and 2012
Source: U.S. Census Bureau and BBC Research & Consulting.
Children in Single Parent Households
Although living in single parent home, per se, is not a contributor to risk status, single parent households—especially
those that are female-headed—have disproportionately high poverty rates.
The 2012 ACS estimates that 12 percent of the City’s families are single parents with children, a total of 3,984 single-
parent families. This is up from 7 percent in 2012. The vast majority of these households (2,982 or 75%) were female-
headed, with the balance male-headed (1,002 or 25%).
Of these households, 1,355 or 34 percent were living in poverty in Fort Collins. This compares to just 8 percent of
married couple households with children. Poverty rates were much higher for female- (36%) than male-headed (28%)
households.
Analysis conducted for the recent Fort Collins’ Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (AI) found just one
block group in the City with a concentration of female single parents. This block group, located on the northern border
of Fort Collins just west of 287, is also an area of concentrated poverty and thus, likely an indication of an area with at-
risk youth.
Age Range
< 5 years 830 12% 1,881 23% 1,243 14% 1,051 413
5-17 years 1,386 8% 1,825 9% 2,696 16% 439 1,310
Total children 2,216 9% 3,706 13% 3,939 14% 1,490 1,723
2000-
2010
change
2000-
2012
change
# of Children
Below Poverty
% of All
Children
2000
# of Children
Below Poverty
% of All
Children
2010
# of Children
Below Poverty
% of All
Children
2012
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 63
Children Enrolled in Free and Reduced Lunch Program
According to Compass of Larimer County, approximately 8,000 children in the Poudre School District (PSD) were
enrolled in the FRL program during the 2012-13 school year. This represented 31 percent of all children in the district.
The number of students enrolled in the program has steadily increased during the past 10 years, rising by 3,200, or 68
percent, since the 2003-04 school year. The largest increase occurred in 2009, a high of 8,200 children were enrolled
in the program; this was followed by a slight decline the following year. These trends are shown in Figure V-2.
Figure V-2.
Free and Reduced Lunch
Enrollment and Eligibility,
Poudre School District,
2003-04 to 2012-13
Source:
Larimer County Compass,
http://www.larimer.org/compass/schoollunch
_ec_inc.htm.
Even with these increases, FRL enrollment in PSD is lower than other districts in the county (37% of children for
Thompson and 35% for Park) and the state (42%).
Figure V-3 shows the location of schools by FRL enrollment overlaid with family poverty. Schools with the highest FRL
enrollment are located in the northeast portion of the City, some just beyond City boundaries. Some, but not all of
these schools, have low academic proficiency rates (discussed below in the education section)—yet it does not
appear that FRL and low performance are highly correlated.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 64
Figure V-3.
Children Enrolled in Free and Reduced Lunch Program and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2012-13
Source: 2010 Census, Larimer County Compass, BBC Research & Consulting.
Children Receiving Child Care Subsidies
The number of families enrolled and/or eligible in the State of Colorado Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP),
administered in Larimer County by the Department of Human Services, is another indicator of young children whose
families have limited resources. The program subsidizes child care cost for qualifying families who are working,
searching for a job (30 days/year) or teen parents enrolled in school or a job training program. The current CCAP
qualifying income limit for a family of four is $34,572—roughly in between the federal poverty level and the upper
bound for the FRL program. Like the FRL, qualifying income limits are tied to the poverty threshold.
According to Larimer County, the CCAP program currently provides subsidized care to 1,032 children in Larimer
County—about 80 percent of the number of young children living in poverty in Fort Collins during 2012. This is down
from a decade high of 1,480 children in 2004. It is important to note that trends in the use of the CCAP are not always
suggestive of changing demand for need because they incorporate changes in eligibility thresholds (e.g., the eligibility
threshold varied from between 140% and 185% of the poverty level in the past decade).
The Colorado Preschool Program (CPP) is a state program that subsidizes early childhood education services,
including those delivered through public schools and Head Start. The program focuses on children who have identified
risk factors that could impair their success in school. In 2012, 370 children in PSD received assistance. The number of
children who receive subsidies is determined through the state’s school finance formula.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 65
Children with Educational Challenges
This section discusses the educational data available to identify at-risk students in Fort Collins, including drop-out
rates, suspension/expulsion statistics and low performance on standardized tests.
Dropped Out of School
The Colorado Department of Education’s (CDE) statistics report that 191 7th-12th graders in PSD dropped out of
school during the 2011-12 school year, for a drop-out rate of 1.4 percent. According to Compass, drop-out rates have
declined substantially since the 2006-07 and 2007-08 years, when there were 2.5 and 2.6 percent, respectively. The
2011-12 drop-out rate was slightly higher for the Thompson School District (1.8%) and about the same for Park
District(1.5%). Dropout rates for the 2012-2013 school year for all three districts are: PSD – 1.5 percent, Thompson
District – 2.0 percent, and Park District – 1.7 percent, reflecting a slight increase over the 2011/2012 school year.
Figure V-4 shows drop-out rates by gender and race/ethnicity. Although still mostly low, the drop-out rates are highest
for African American females and American Indian/Alaskan Native and Hispanic females and males.
Figure V-4.
School Drop Out Rates by Gender and Student Race or Ethnicity, Poudre School District,
2011-12 School Year
Source: Colorado Department of Education.
Low Performance
Data from state standardized tests (CSAP/TCAP) from the Colorado Department of Education report the numbers and
proportions of children who have unsatisfactory knowledge of a subject area or are partially, but not fully, proficient. In
PSD, the number of students with unsatisfactory performance in 2013 ranged from 1,161 (writing) to 3,290
(mathematics). Students scoring partially proficient ranged from 4,352 (reading) to 9,314 (writing). The portion of this
section discussing education provides more detail on school performance, particularly in relation to poverty
concentrations.
Youth with Challenges to Stability
Household stability—particularly as it relates to consistency in schools—has been shown to be an important factor in
educational achievement. In a recent brief, the Center for Housing Policy reports on the two different types of moves
that research has shown affect a children’s education: residential mobility (moving to a new house, with or without
changing schools) and school mobility (changing schools with or without changing residences). Research has
consistently demonstrated that children who change schools often or at critical points in their education experience
(kindergarten and high school) show declines in educational achievement. Research has shown that schools also
suffer from children experiencing “hyper-mobility” due to the diversion of school and teacher resources.
This section discusses Fort Collins youth who are experiencing instability as measured by homelessness, educational
statistics on mobility, and those living with someone other than their parent.
Female Male
Total 90 101 1.4 % 1.5 %
African American 3 1 3.5 % 0.9 %
American Indian/Alaskan Native 1 3 2.5 % 7.3 %
Asian 1 4 0.5 % 1.9 %
Hispanic/Latino 36 42 3.4 % 3.9 %
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0 0 0 % 0 %
White 46 47 0.9 % 0.9 %
Two or More Races 3 4 1.5 % 1.9 %
Female Male
# of Children Dropping Out % of All Children
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 66
Homeless Youth
Under the McKinney-Vento Act, school districts are required to report the number of students age 21 and younger
who “lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence.” Students meeting this definition are considered
homeless.
In the 2010-2011 school year, PSD reported 1,021 homeless students. Figure V-5 demonstrates that the number of
homeless students in PSD schools has increased significantly in recent years. The number of homeless youth
reported by PSD greatly exceeds the number of homeless youth observed in the Fort Collins Point-in-Time Homeless
Count. In that study, 49 persons under the age of 18 were counted as homeless—33 found in emergency shelters, 12
in transitional housing and four unsheltered. This suggests that many of the homeless youth observed by PSD may be
“couch surfing,” temporarily staying with relatives, or “doubling up” with other families.
Figure V-5.
Number of Homeless Students Enrolled in
Poudre School District, 2010-2011 School
Year
Source:
http://www.psdschools.org/student-support/federal-
programs/homeless-students.
Youth Changing Schools
During the 2011-12 school year, 4,808 students moved into or out of PSD, for an overall student mobility rate of 16.6
percent. This is much lower than the mobility rate for the state of 24.7 percent. Approximately 668 students moved in
and out of the district more than once, as indicated by the duplicated number of moves of 5,476.70
The student mobility rate differed by race and ethnicity, with African American students having the highest mobility
rate and White and Hispanic students with the highest number of more than one move, as shown in Figure V-6.
Figure V-6.
School Mobility by Student Race or Ethnicity, Poudre School District, 2011-12 School Year
Source: Colorado Department of Education.
70 5,476 duplicated moves – 4,808 unduplicated moves = 668.
Total 4,808 17 % 5,476 668
African American 107 26 % 128 21
American Indian/Alaskan Native 38 23 % 50 12
Asian 217 22 % 254 37
Hispanic/Latino 996 20 % 1,199 203
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 6 17 % 6 0
White 3,269 15 % 3,637 368
Two or More Races 175 19 % 202 27
# of Children
Moving In/Out
of PSD
% of All
Children # of Moves
# of Children
with More than
One Move
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 67
Grandparents Caring for Children
The 2010 Census reported that 224 children in Fort Collins had grandparents as their primary caregivers.71 These
children live with their grandparents without a parent present and represent about 1 percent of all children in Fort
Collins. Another 567 children, or 2 percent of all children, live with their grandparents with a parent present. The City’s
Grand Families organization estimates the number of grandparents caring for their grandchildren at a much higher
3,000.
Children who Experience Neglect or Abuse
Statewide, in 2012, 5,064 children were served by child advocacy centers that assist abused children. According to
the National Children’s Alliance, the umbrella organization for child advocacy centers, 67 percent of children were
female; 33 percent were male.
The number of alleged offenders (3,693) was less than the number of children abused, indicating that offenders often
victimized more than one child. Offenders were most likely to be an “other known person” or relative (both 26% of
cases), followed by a parent (22%).
The most common type of abuse was sexual (73% of all abuse types). Children who are minorities were
disproportionately victims of abuse.
The Child Advocacy Center in Larimer County serves 300 children annually—about 1 percent of all children in the
county.
Childsafe—a nonprofit in Larimer County that provides therapy to children who have been victims of sexual abuse—
serves about 600 victims annually, 68 percent of whom reside in Fort Collins. The organization accepts private health
insurance and Victim Compensation. A sliding fee scale based on income is used.
Teen Pregnancies
Health care statistics on sexual activity can also be used to indicate at-risk status among older youth. Teens that
become pregnant are much more likely to drop out of high school and face long-term educational and employment
challenges.
Teen births in Larimer County have been declining since 2009, as has the teen fertility rate. Larimer County’s 2012
teen fertility rate, 8.8 per 1,000 women ages 15 to 17, is lower than Colorado’s rate of 11.9.
Figure V-7.
Teen Births and Fertility Rate, Larimer
County, 2008-2012
Source:
Colorado Department of Health
Teens with Mental or Emotional Disorders
According to the Institute on Mental Health data, mental or emotional disorder among adolescents is much higher, for
both serious mental illnesses and any mental or emotional disorder. According to the data, as many as 1,500
adolescents have a serious mental illness (8% of adolescents) and 8,000 have any type of mental or emotional
disorder (43%).
71 About 900 grandparents have grandchildren living in their homes, but most have parents present.
Year
2008 71 12.9 21.6
2009 72 13.2 20.1
2010 66 12.3 17.4
2011 53 9.9 14.0
2012 47 8.8 11.9
# of Births
to Teens,
Larimer County Colorado
Teens ages 15 to 17 Teen Fertility Rate (per 1,000)
Larimer
County
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 68
The Alliance for Suicide Prevention in Fort Collins reports that, during 2012, 273 adolescents referred friends to the
organization for help or sought help themselves for mental illnesses that were severe enough to warrant concerns
about suicide.
EDUCATION
A quality and supportive learning environment is not only important to at-risk youth. A robust body of research shows that
quality education, including early learning, leads to better long-term outcomes for all children.
The vast majority of Larimer County children attend public school (92%).72 And for those who graduate from high school,
economic outcomes are much better than for those who do not. As shown in Figure V-8, Fort Collins’ residents with a high
school degree have much lower poverty rates than those who do not. As to be expected, poverty rates are lowest for those
who have graduated from college.
Figure V-8.
Poverty Rate for the
Population 25+ Years, by
Educational Attainment
Level, 2012
Source:
American Community Survey, 2012.
Therefore, delivery of a quality public education program is a very important component of the community’s sustainability.
This section provides an overview of the educational environment in Fort Collins, beginning with ECE, a critical component
in the system.
Early Childhood Education (ECE)
How to improve educational outcomes for very low income children is a subject of much research and debate and the
answer remains unclear, except for the impact of ECE programs. A growing and robust body of research shows very
strong outcomes of early childhood education programs, especially for disadvantaged youth.
Some of the more convincing arguments for funding ECE programs are put forth by economists. The prominent economist
James Heckman has found that the Perry Preschool program—a pilot ECE program in Michigan targeted to low income
children—produced between $7 and $12 of “tangible benefit to the American economy” for every $1 invested.73
Studies of similar programs—the Abecedarian Project in North Carolina and the Child-Parent Center program in Chicago—
have found very large, positive returns for taxpayers. Benefits across programs included increased tax revenue from
program participants (who are more likely to attain full employment), reduced costs to the criminal justice system, reduced
costs to school systems for special programs, and reduced welfare costs. For example, a startling finding from the Chicago
program was a 70 percent reduction in the risk that a child would be arrested for violent crime in their teens for those
participating in the program.74
Similarly, Jack Shonkoff of Harvard argues that an effective program of support for parents of low income children while
their kids are young would be much less expensive than our current approach of paying for remedial education and job
training.75 Similarly, Gabriella Conti and James Heckman state in a recent paper, The Economics of Child Well-Being, that
“prevention is more cost effective than remediation…most adolescent and adult remediation programs are ineffective and
have much lower returns than early childhood programs that prevent problems before they occur.”76
72About 7 percent attend independent (private) schools, .8 percent are home schooled and .4 percent take classes online, according to Larimer County
Compass.
73 Paul Tough, “How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character,” Mariner Press, 2012.
74 The Minneapolis Federal Reserve has dedicated an entire webpage to the topic: http://www.minneapolisfed.org/publications_papers/studies/earlychild/
75 Ibid.
76 National Bureau of Economic Research, working paper 18466.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 69
Early Childhood Education Demand
The 2012 ACS reports that there are 28,450 children in Fort Collins. One-third, or 8,900 children, are under the age of
5 years and an estimated 3,500 are ages 3 and 4—preschool-aged. The Census estimates that 2,700 children in the
City are enrolled in a preschool program. This represents 77 percent of all preschool-aged children, an impressive
proportion.77 The vast majority of these children (82%) attend a private preschool program, leaving about 500 children
enrolled in public early learning programs.
It is unclear if the 23 percent of preschool-aged children in the City are not enrolled in a formal program because of
costs, wait lists, or parental preferences and if these children would take advantage of preschool programs if the
programs they desired were available. The Census estimates that 1,284 children under the age of 12 live in
households with parents who work full time and earn less than 50 percent of the AMI. These families likely need child
care.
K-12 Education
As mentioned above, most children in Fort Collins attend public school. Many of the public schools in the City are strong,
based on standardized reading and math proficiency test scores. In a handful of schools, proficiency rates are quite low.
Specifically, a little more than half (56%) of public schools in the City have 2013 4th grade student reading proficiency rates
exceeding PSD’s overall (79%). In three schools, 4th grade reading proficiency rates are less than 50 percent.
Reading proficiency rates in the nine middle schools located in the City are much better in 7th grade, with just three
reporting rates below PSD’s overall rate (two of these exceed 70%; one is 53%). Four of the nine high schools in the City
have 10th grade reading proficiency rates higher than 79 percent; two have rates that barely exceed 50 percent.
High school math proficiency scores show a wide variance. For example, just one high school in the City has math
proficiency above 70 percent (and this school is a high performer at nearly 97% proficiency). In some high schools,
proficiency rates are in the single digits and most are below 50 percent. Beginning with middle school, math proficiency
rates begin to lag reading proficiency for many schools: For example, the median 10th grade math proficiency score for
Fort Collins high schools is just 41 percent, compared to a median reading score of 78 percent.
Figure V-9 shows the number of 3rd through 10th grade students in PSD (not just Fort Collins) who scored unsatisfactory or
partially proficient on the 2013 state standardized tests for math, reading and writing. Based on standardized test scores,
the numbers of students who struggle academically total 9,800 in math, 6,200 in reading, and 10,500 in writing.
Figure V-9.
Number of 3rd-10th Grade
PSD Students Scoring
Unsatisfactory or
Partially Proficient on
State Standardized
Testing, 2013
Source:
Colorado Department of Education.
Figures V-10 through V-15 show reading and math proficiency rates by school overlaid on family poverty rates. As the
maps demonstrate, some, but not all, of the lower performing schools are located in neighborhoods with higher rates of
poverty.
77 Census data suggest Denver’s preschool enrollment, by comparison, is about 70 percent.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 70
Figure V-10.
Percent 4th Graders Scoring Proficient and Advanced in Math and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2013
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 71
Figure V-11.
Percent 4th Graders Scoring Proficient and Advanced in Reading and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2013
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 72
Figure V-12.
Percent 7th Graders Scoring Proficient and Advanced in Math and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2013
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 73
Figure V-13.
Percent 7th Graders Scoring Proficient and Advanced in Reading and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2013
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 74
Figure V-14.
Percent 10th Graders Scoring Proficient and Advanced in Math and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2013
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 75
Figure V-15.
Percent 10th Graders Scoring Proficient and Advanced in Reading and Poverty Concentrations, 2010 and 2013
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 76
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
AT-RISK YOUTH
This section provides an overview of the organizations in Fort Collins which assist at-risk youth and/or families with
children at risk. This discussion is not meant to be all inclusive of the City’s program; instead, it highlights organizations
that specialize in working with at-risk youth. These are often the “go to” or frontline organizations that youth and families
contact or are referred to when in need.
CASA and Harmony House
CASA, or Court Appointed Special Advocates, provides advocacy for children who have been abused and neglected as
their cases move through the court process. CASA volunteers are appointed by a juvenile judge. CASA of Larimer County
is part of a national network of CASA organizations.
According to CASA, the majority of their clients are low income, with 50-60 percent earning less than 30 percent of the
area median income (AMI). Mental illness and substance abuse is common among their clients. During 2012, CASA
served 228 children and Harmony House served 585 children.
The Harmony House, a program of CASA, is a visitation center that allows supervised visits of family members and
children. Some, but not all, of these meetings are court-ordered. The house also operates as a safe exchange site for
families/guardians.
Poudre School District Programs
Poudre School District (PSD) provides several programs that provide services to at-risk youth, including: the Teen
Pregnancy Program at Fort Collins High School, and the Mental Health Team that provides early intervention as well as
services during time of crises.
Child Advocacy Center
The Child Advocacy Center (CAC) works with children who have been abused to provide them and their non-offending
family members access to needed supports and services. CAC is part of the National Children’s Alliance. The
organization provides “forensic interviews” of children after allegations of abuse to assist the county human services
department and law enforcement in child abuse investigations. Non-offending parents/caregivers receive counseling and
support referrals. The organization also conducts education and outreach to teach children how not to become vulnerable
in situations that could lead to more sexual abuse.
CAC serves approximately 300 children per year. All income levels are served. The organization notes that children are 46
times more likely to be abused if they are below the poverty line. Mental illness and domestic violence are also common.
Childsafe
Childsafe assists children who have experienced sexual abuse. Services provided include therapy (group, individual,
family), parenting classes, and referral to supplemental programs. Bilingual services are available. The organization was
founded initially to provide services to group of teens who were being treated through individual therapists and has
expanded to serve more than 600 children annually.
The organization’s Child Sexual Abuse Treatment program was, in the organization’s words, “developed to repair the
damage done to young victims and their families.” The outpatient program serves victims ages 2 to 18 in a combination of
individual, group, and family therapy. Most clients have very low incomes.
Community Life Center
The Community Life Center, a part of The Matthews House, provides family services, education, and recreation programs
to support children and families. The Family Services program provides system navigation, ongoing supportive services,
and proactive parenting education programs. The Education program focuses on improving student academic and social
skills to better meet their educational needs through educational partnerships and collaborations as well as after-school
programming.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 77
Crossroads Safehouse
The Safehouse, which is discussed in more depth in the section on Victims of Domestic Violence, offers a youth program
that helps children and teens increase self-esteem, develop and practice coping and communication skills, and learn
alternatives to aggressive behaviors.
Programs offered to children in the broader community include: 1) Youth Advocacy, which provides therapy to children and
teens affected by domestic violence (one-on-one sessions as well as meeting with family members); 2) The Elementary
Education program to help 4th and 5th grade PSD students cultivate healthy relationships as part of their character
development; and 3) The Teen Dating Violence Institute, which is a peer-education approach to teaching young people
about dating violence (presented by high school seniors to PSD middle and high school students).
La Familia/Family Center
This organization’s mission is to provide affordable, accessible, high quality early childhood education (ECE) and family
strengthening services. These services are delivered through the organization’s licensed ECE program; home visitations;
youth programs; health and wellness initiatives; and adult education/ESL/computer services.
Larimer County Workforce Center
The Workforce Center offers youth services, has a website dedicated to programs for youth and maintains a Facebook
presence to connect with youth looking for job training and employment. The YouthLINK Fast Track Scholarship and
Employment Program for High School Seniors helps seniors transition from high school to gainful employment or
continuing education through job search assistance, internships and scholarships. Seniors must be eligible to work in the
U.S., live in a low income household or have a disability or be living in foster care and have an active interest in pursuing
employment following graduation.
Larimer County Hub Juvenile Assessment Center
The Hub Juvenile Assessment Center, a collaboration between Larimer County Department of Human Services , law
enforcement, and mental health services, is a a coordinated multi-agency, single entry point for services to Larimer County
youth (ages 0-18) and their families. The Hub is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by a team of intake specialists who
provide services such as child protection screening, comprehensive child and family assessments for at-risk youth,
detention screening, early intervention and referral to appropriate community services and individual and/or family
counseling.
Realities for Children
This nonprofit provides emergency services, organizational support, community awareness and youth activities to abused
and neglected children in Larimer County. Emergency funding is available on a case-by-case basis for children who have
no other resources to meet their needs. The goal of the youth activities program is to enable children to “enjoy being a
child,” as well as to provide creative outlets to work through the difficulties experienced by the children in the program.
The Center for Family Outreach
The Center for Family Outreach serves youth and families struggling with substance abuse, disruptive or high-risk
behaviors, and/or family conflict. The organization offers a 90-day voluntary program to assist youth and families with
substance abuse challenges and/or disruptive or high-risk behaviors. Services offered include counseling and therapy,
GED and academic tutoring, art enrichment, community service, and substance abuse monitoring. Parent classes to
strengthen parenting skills are also offered. The Center also runs a diversion program and more intense intervention
programs for teens who have received a legal summons.
The Matthews House
The Matthews House is a youth empowerment program that assists youth between the ages of 16 and 21 with life skills.
Many of the youth assisted by the organization have been part of the human services, foster care, or juvenile/justice
system, live below the poverty level, and have experienced abuse; some are homeless. Youth are referred to the
Matthews House by county human services, the school district, the justice system, and other nonprofits that work with at-
risk youth. The Matthews House reports a very high success rate for juvenile offenders who are referred to them: 92
percent of the youth who have completed their program have not re-offended. The programs at the Matthews House have
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 78
also been shown to reduce the number of youth receiving residential treatment and, instead, living independently with
supportive services.
The Matthews House programs assist youth in finding safe and affordable housing; obtaining needed physical and mental
health care; finding employment or receiving job training; pursuing their education; and development independent living
and social skills.
Touchstone Health Partners—Namaqua Center
The Namaqua Center within Touchstone Health, a mental health provider, assists children who have experienced trauma,
have severe behavioral challenges, and/or have a diagnosed emotional disturbance. Programs include a Family Support
Program for families with children who are severally behaviorally challenged; support to grandfamilies in the form of
classes, networking and family events; Wondercamp, a skill building program for children with severe emotional
disturbances who need structure and support during school holidays; a mentor program for court-appointed family clients;
and respite care for families.
Turning Point
The Turning Point Center for Youth and Family Development provides therapeutic services to youth and families through
individual therapy sessions or in a residential treatment facility. The organization utilizes “evidence based practices”—
those for which research has proven their effectiveness—in its programs. Services include therapeutic coaching; therapy;
a 45-day substance abuse recovery program; crisis intervention; a DUI/DWAI class; and special community courses (e.g.,
CPR).
Children are referred to their program by schools, the Larimer County Department of Human Services, and similar state
departments. Health insurance covers many of the services provided by Turning Point; the organization also accepts
Medicaid.
Turning Point’s education programs include schooling alternatives for at-risk and expelled students. The goal of the
educational programs is to prepare youth for return to the public school system or a post-secondary education. Career
exploration—helping students find a career path that will motivate them to stay in school and continue on to secondary
education—is a key focus.
EDUCATION
Child Care and Early Childhood Education Subsidies
The following programs and initiatives provide childcare and early childhood education subsidies.
Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP)
As discussed in the at-risk section above, the CCAP is a child care assistance program administered through the
Larimer County Department of Human Services and funded by the state. According to Larimer County Human
Services, the CCAP program currently serves 1,032 children in Larimer County during 2012.
Because of high demand for the program, enrollment was stopped in March 2010 and the wait list capped in
December 2011. Future budget cuts will require that the program lower eligibility from 150 percent of the poverty level
to 130 percent, meaning that families earning more than 130 percent of the poverty level will no longer quality. The
City of Fort Collins Consolidated Plan estimated that $1.3 million of supplemental funding is needed to support the
program.
Colorado Preschool Program (CCP)
CPP is another state program that subsidies early childhood education services (v. child care, the focus of CCAP),
including those delivered through public schools and Head Start. The program focuses on children who have identified
risk factors that could impair their success in school. In 2012, 370 children in PSD received assistance. The number of
children who receive subsidies is determined through the state’s school finance formula.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 79
Early Childhood Council of Larimer County (ECCLC)
The ECCLC is one of 30 early childhood councils that work to improve early learning and care services for Colorado
children and families. This includes improving availability and quality of early care and education; health care;
parenting; and social and emotional health of families and children.
The ECCLC has recently conducted a number of studies demonstrating need for services in the county, including a
decline in the number of centers that accept CCAP payments (from almost 300 in 2007 to 200 in 2012) and a drop in
the centers who offer temporary/emergency care, 24 hour care, evening care, and care for children on rotating
schedules. Just 12 centers are open before 6 a.m.; 24 are open until 10 p.m.; and nine offer care 24 hours/day. The
centers that are open late have limited acceptance of CCAP. Fewer than 20 centers are open on weekends. The vast
majority of centers have traditional hours—opening at 7:30 a.m. and closing at 5:30 p.m.—which do not accommodate
families who work alternative schedules or are in service occupations.
La Familia/Family Center
This organization, also discussed in the at-risk youth section, provides child care for infants, toddlers, and
preschoolers. The child care provider is unique in that it offers a sliding scale tuition, is bilingual, and offers parent
support services. Capacity at the center is 65, with about 70 percent of children participating in the sliding scale tuition
program. At the time this report was being repaired, about 120 families were on the wait list for care.
In September 2013, La Familia conducted a survey of their families to determine the greatest challenges they
currently face, understand which resources they value most at the Center and identify what else they would like
offered. The two top challenges reported were lack of time management and not knowing or having the ability to learn
English. The most utilized program at the Center is the parenting support program.
Teaching Tree
The Teaching Tree Childhood Early Learning Center provides child care, early leaning and school readiness for
children 6 weeks to 8 years old. Teaching Tree serves about 185 children in a year, and has the capacity to serve 101
at any time. As of November 2013, there were 103 children on the wait list for care; the majority were young children
(54 children were on the wait list for spots serving infants, 6 weeks to 1 year old). About 40 percent of their families
are low income. Teaching tree serves an unlimited number of CCAP families and offers sliding fees for families who
don’t quality for CCAP.
Teaching Tree reports high demand for “immediate” or “emergency” care—e.g., when a parent gets a job and needs
care with short notice. Often low income parents, these families cannot afford to keep their children in care while job
hunting. The organization would like to be able to offer an “emergency” rotating spots for 1-2 children in each class,
which would require independent funding.
Poudre School District Early Childhood Education (PSD ECE)
Fort Collins has ECE and parental support programs available to the public through elementary schools in PSD.
These range from Early Head Start qualifying families (serving children birth to age 3) to subsidized preschool
programs.
Twenty-one schools in PSD offer early learning programs; six schools do not. These programs are available citywide,
except for three schools just west of CSU, which are adjacent to neighborhoods with relatively high family poverty
rates.
ECE location can be a barrier to access, especially for families who rely on public transit. Figure V-16 shows the
location of PSD ECE programs overlaid with residents who are Hispanic. Locations overlaid with families living in
poverty appear in Figure V-17. This map suggests a need for early learning programs in closer proximity to areas of
high poverty.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 80
Figure V-16.
ECE Program and Before and After School Enrichment (BASE) Program Locations with Hispanic
Concentrations, 2010 and 2012-13
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 81
Figure V-17.
ECE Program and Before and After School Enrichment (B.A.S.E. Camp) Program Locations with Poverty
Concentrations, 2010 and 2012-13
Source: 2010 Census, Colorado Department of Education.
Before and After School Programs
In Fort Collins, two organizations provide much of the before and after school care serving low income children: B.A.S.E.
and the Boys & Girls Club.
Before and After School Enrichment Camp (B.A.S.E. Camp)
B.A.S.E. Camp provides before and after school care, summer camps, and out of school care. The program includes
homework assistance, arts and crafts, sports, science, and music activities. Staff are expected to coordinate with their
host school to reinforce classroom learning.
The organization mainly serves Fort Collins, although children from surrounding areas also participate in the program.
B.A.S.E. Camp has programs in 32 elementary schools in the Fort Collins area. The organization serves about 3,000
children ages 3 through 14. The majority of client-families in summer months are low income, as these families have
the fewest resources for care during the summer (market rate camps are cost prohibitive). During the school year,
about one-third of families are low income. Families pay tuition on a sliding scale program that varies with income
levels; these families are assisted through some federal assistance and donations.
The organization aims to help all children who need the program. B.A.S.E. Camp has a goal to take any children
during the school year and summer who need care.
As shown in Figure V-17 above, B.A.S.E. Camp is available in schools located across Poudre School District.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 82
Boys & Girls Club
The Boys & Girls Club in Larimer County has three dedicated clubhouses open daily afterschool until 7 p.m. and
during the summer from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Club has three main goals for the children it serves: 1) Academic
Success, 2) Making sure the children have good character and citizenship, and 3) Making sure the children lead a
healthy lifestyle. Seventy percent of children served receive FRL; most of the children live below or are on the edge of
poverty. The organization would like to have more resources to serve additional children who could benefit from their
programs.
ANALYSIS & GAPS
ADDRESSING NEEDS
Addressing the needs of children is important to improve economic stability in any community. Because the educational
performance and needs of children are regularly measured, there are many indicators that can be used to assess needs:
the number of children living in poverty, children who are homeless, children who have been removed from their homes
and are living in foster care and/or are neglected and abused and children who struggle in school.
The graphic below summarizes these indicators and includes both social measures (poverty, homeless) and educational
measures (children with behavioral challenges, poor educational performance). At least 1,000 children have significant
needs, living without stable homes and suffering from neglect or abused. Four thousand live in poverty and, as such, their
growth may be limited by inadequate food and academic supports. Three thousand need mental health intervention, and
up to 10,000 need enhanced academic supports.78
As discussed above, the most successful programs in addressing needs of youth begin in preschool and continue
throughout their growth. There is no one program that is critical for a community to provide; instead, a range of offerings is
needed and should include ECE, before/after school programs and summer camps to prevent the “summer slide,”
parent/caregiver support and education programs, youth safehouses for runaway and neglected and homeless youth,
subsidized housing for low income and homeless families, therapy for abused and emotionally disturbed children, and
substance abuse treatment.
Although Fort Collins provides programs to address all of these needs, gaps in services exist, primary due to lack of
funding. The gaps in services for at-risk youth and education can be separated into two, broad categories: 1) Unmet
demand, or the inability to provide services to all who need them; and 2) Gaps in delivery of quality services, or the inability
to deliver the right amount or type of supports needed. This section discusses both.
78 Cumulating the indicators is likely to lead to double-counting, since many at-risk children show up in more than one
category. Instead, the graphic should be interpreted as showing a range of needs.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 83
Unmet Demand
Unmet demand is the gap between needs and
resources that can be measured quantitatively.
Unmet demand is evident in wait lists,
extensive delays in accessing needed
services, and residents who are unserved or
unaware of services.
For the purposes of this report, quantitative
data allowed estimates of gaps in child care
subsidies and ECE programs. An estimated
200 families in Fort Collins need subsidies for
child care, which are unfunded. An additional 800 children could benefit from the educational supports delivered through
ECE programs. As shown in the prior graphic, as many as 3,200 children in PSD are untreated for mental health issues.
Service Delivery
Service delivery means making sure that the right types and amount of services reach residents in need in a timely
manner. Evaluating the delivery of services by the organizations that youth in Fort Collins was beyond the scope of this
study. Yet the indicators of needs suggest that services could be enhanced to help children neglectful and abusive
situations, those at risk of dropping out or being expelled from school and those with mental health issues. Interviews with
providers elicited information on gaps in service delivery and recommendations for improvement. These include the
following:
• Youth and families cannot always access programs because of limited transit services in the community. For example,
some children receive bussing to access the Boys & Girls Club through PSD, but others, who live in Fort Collins and
don’t attend PSD schools, do not have bus transportation provided.
• New or expanded facilities and programs are needed to reduce unmet demand in ECE and child care. Many service
providers are limited in their current spaces and need to expand to reduce wait lists and/or serve more youth in need.
For child care, “immediate” or “emergency” care is needed, especially for infants, for parents who find jobs without
much notice.
• Low salaries for staff who work with at-risk youth—combined with the challenges of the job—can cause high turnover,
which can adversely affect at-risk youth who are in need of consistent, stable environments and care.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
Most children in Fort Collins benefit from the City’s strong educational institutions, cultural offerings and safe and stable
environment. Some children are not as fortunate and need strong community and school supports to ensure that they
succeed. These children include an estimated:
• 4,000 children who live below the poverty level;
• 1,000 who are homeless;
• 300 who are neglected and abused;
• 3,200 who have untreated mental illness;
• 1,700 who leave school because of dropping out or are asked to leave (suspended/expelled; and
• As many as 10,000 who school at a less than proficient level on standardized tests.
Addressing the needs of the community’s children begins in preschool and, for some children, continues throughout their
growth. Although Fort Collins offers many programs and a strong educational environment, not all children are receiving
the supports they need. As many as 200 children need childcare subsidies and 800 could benefit from early childhood
education. As many as 3,000 need mental health treatment. In addition, many could benefit from enhanced and continued
programs to stabilize their educational environments.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 84
Section VI. Diversity and Equity
OVERVIEW
This section discusses the sustainability of diversity and equity in the City by exploring a wide variety of indicators in the
community, specifically those related to race/ethnicity, gender, religion, culture, and sexual orientation. It should be noted
that this section does not focus on overall population characteristics of the community; the analysis is not all inclusive of all
types of diversity and equity, but rather examines where discrimination can be the most common.
MEASURES OF DIVERSITY AND EQUITY
The City’s Diversity Plan, which was first adopted in 1992, serves as a guide for the City’s efforts, goals, and actions in the
area of diversity. In the plan, the City Council committed the City to the “eradication of prejudice and harmful discrimination
against any person because of race, color, gender, age, religion, national origin, ancestry or disabilities. The City is also
committed to the establishment of a community that fosters, promotes and enforces an environment of mutual respect for
all people, regardless of individual differences.”79
Indicators of diversity can be difficult to find, other than racial and ethnic diversity, which is reported by the Census. This
section discusses a variety of measures including the availability and accessibility of information in native tongues other
than English; the availability and locations of different types of religious institutions; equitable provision of assisted housing;
and the availability of resources to foster diversity and inclusiveness.
Additionally, data from the Hate Crime Statistics Program includes annual statistics for hate crimes in the following
categories: race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and disability. The hate crime data is compared to neighboring
communities of similar size in Colorado.
DATA & TRENDS
RACIAL AND ETHNIC DIVERSITY
The vast majority of Fort Collins residents identify their race as white (89%) and ethnicity as non-Hispanic (90%), as shown
below. The largest minority group in Fort Collins is persons of Hispanic descent at 10 percent of the City population. This
compares to 11 percent for Larimer County and 21 percent for the state as a whole. Figures VI-1 and VI-2 present the race
and ethnicity composition of the Fort Collins population in both 2000 and 2010.
Between 2000 and 2010 the fastest growing minority groups were African Americans (43% increase), Asians (43%
increase), those identifying as two or more races (47% increase), and Hispanics (40% increase). The number of non-
Hispanic white residents increased by 18 percent over the same period. Despite these high growth rates for many minority
populations the City’s overall diversity changed little between 2000 and 2010, as shown in the graphics above. This is
because the minority populations are very small in numbers relative to the City’s white population.
79 City of Fort Collins Diversity Plan, Resolution Number 134.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 85
Figure VI-1.
Race and Ethnicity in Fort Collins, 2000
Source: 2000 Census.
Figure VI-2.
Race and Ethnicity in Fort Collins, 2010
Source: 2010 Census.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 86
Figure VI-3 shows the racial and ethnic distribution of Fort Collins in 2000 and 2010 along with growth rates between 2000
and 2010.
Figure VI-3.
Race and Ethnicity, City of Fort Collins, 2000 and 2010
Source: 2000 and 2010 U.S. Census.
CSU attracts a student body from all over the U.S. and abroad, although its racial and ethnic diversity is similar to that of
the City overall. Figure VI-4 presents the racial and ethnic proportions of CSU students from 2010 to 2013. The data are
not directly comparable to those in the above table, which considers ethnicity separate from race and does not classify
international students (following the Census classification).
Figure VI-4.
Total University Enrollment, by Race and Ethnicity, Fall 2010-2013
Source: Colorado State University Institutional Research, Census Date Enrollment.
Total population 118,652 143,986 21%
Race
American Indian and Alaska Native 715 1% 933 1% 30%
Asian 2,948 2% 4,222 3% 43%
Black or African American 1,213 1% 1,740 1% 43%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 143 0% 128 0% -10%
White 106,347 90% 128,211 89% 21%
Some other race 4,281 4% 4,339 3% 1%
Two or more races 3,005 3% 4,413 3% 47%
Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino 10,402 9% 14,572 10% 40%
Non-Hispanic White 101,384 85% 119,695 83% 18%
2000-2010
Percent
Number Percent Number Percent Change
2000 2010
Total Student Population 24,982 100% 25,167 100% 25,116 100% 25,501 100%
Hispanic/Latino 1,881 8% 2,066 8% 2,254 9% 2,401 9%
Non-Hispanic/Latino
Asian 481 2% 468 2% 468 2% 528 2%
Black 457 2% 508 2% 515 2% 511 2%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 46 0% 42 0% 36 0% 22 0%
Multi-Racial 656 3% 718 3% 808 3% 873 3%
Native American 110 0% 108 0% 104 0% 96 0%
White 20,311 81% 20,124 80% 19,705 78% 19,564 77%
International 1,040 4% 1,133 5% 1,226 5% 1,506 6%
Number Percent
2010
Number Percent
2011
Number Percent
2012
Number Percent
2013
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 87
Geographic Concentrations
Figure VI-5 shows geographic concentrations of the City’s largest minority group, persons of Hispanic descent. As the map
demonstrates, the City has several concentrated areas in north Fort Collins.80 These areas of concentration, all located in
North Fort Collins, are a reflection of the Buckingham, Andersonville, and AltaVista neighborhoods that have historic roots
for the Hispanic community.
Figure VI-5.
Percent of Block Group Population that is Hispanic, City of Fort Collins, 2010
Source: 2010 U.S. Census.
80 For the purposes of the map, concentrations represent areas where persons of a particular race or ethnicity comprise a larger proportion of the population than
the community overall. To align with HUD’s definition of “disproportionate need,” concentrations occur when the percentage of residents of a particular racial or
ethnic group is 20 percentage points or more than the community-wide average. Since the overall Hispanic population in Fort Collins is 10 percent, a block group
that is at least 30 percent Hispanic contains a concentration.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 88
ECONOMIC DIVERSITY
According to the 2006-2010 ACS (the most recent income data available by race/ethnicity), non-Hispanic whites have the
highest median household income ($52,055). One-third of both Asian and Hispanic households earn less than $25,000 per
year, as shown in Figure VI-6.
Figure VI-6.
Household Income Distribution
by Race/Ethnicity, City of Fort
Collins, 2006-2010
Source:
ACS 2006-2010 5-year estimate.
Poverty
In 2010, nearly 25,000 Fort Collins residents were living in poverty; this had risen to more than 27,000 to 2012. Poverty
rates were highest for African American residents (38%), followed by residents of some other race (34%) and Hispanic
residents (27%).
Figure VI-7.
Poverty by Race/Ethnicity,
City of Fort Collins, 2006-2010
Source:
ACS 2006-2010
5-year estimate.
Less than $25,000 25% 31% 33% 33%
$25,000 to $34,999 10% 7% 9% 14%
$35,000 to $49,999 13% 21% 9% 19%
$50,000 to $74,999 17% 6% 11% 18%
$75,000 to $99,999 12% 12% 8% 7%
$100,000 to $149,999 14% 17% 16% 4%
$150,000 or more 8% 6% 13% 4%
Median Household Income $52,055 $44,482 $45,104 $35,989
Non-
Hispanic
White
Black
or African
American Asian
Hispanic
or Latino
Total Population 133,374 23,960 18%
Race
American Indian and Alaska Native 938 120 13%
Asian 3,948 823 21%
Black or African American 1,379 526 38%
White 119,266 20,313 17%
Some other race 3,474 1,185 34%
Two or more races 4,282 937 22%
Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino origin 13,109 3,546 27%
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino 111,425 18,495 17%
Total
Below
Poverty
Percent
Below
Poverty
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 89
LANGUAGE DIVERSITY
As shown in Figure VI-8, 9.5% of the City’s residents speak languages other than English in the home. The most prevalent
language other than English is Spanish with 5 percent of the population speaking it at home. Speakers of other Indo-
European, Asian and Pacific Island, and other languages account for 4 percent of the City’s population.
Figure VI-8.
Language spoken at home, City of Fort Collins, 2012
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2012 ACS.
Figure VI-8 also presents data on the proportion of non-English speakers that speak English less than “very well.” This
smaller subset of the population represents 2 percent of the City, more than half of which are Spanish speakers. This
group represents the portion of the population that is most isolated from services when resources are not available in their
native tongue. As many as 3,000 Fort Collins residents may have challenges accessing services due to their limited
English-speaking ability.
RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY
Larimer County offers diverse opportunities to worship. There are 7.3 religious congregations per 10,000 people in Larimer
County. Figure VI-9 presents the distribution of religious congregations in Larimer County by religion. As shown, the
greatest proportion of congregations is Evangelical Protestant (43% of congregations).
Figure VI-9.
Religious Congregations in Larimer County
Source:
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Health
Indicators for Larimer County.
In Fort Collins, the existing religious organizations or places of worship mainly represent four major religions: Buddhism,
Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. The vast majority of religious organizations are Christian, as shown in Figure VI-10.
Total Population 5 years and over 139,722
Speak only English 126,387 90.5%
Speak a language other than English 13,335 9.5% 3,024 2.2%
Spanish or Spanish Creole 7,211 5.2% 1,556 1.1%
Other Indo-European 2,595 1.9% 306 0.2%
Asian and Pacific Island languages 2,654 1.9% 1,112 0.8%
Other languages 875 0.6% 50 0.0%
Percent
Language Spoken
at Home
Total
Speak English less
than "very well"
Total Percent
Evangelical Protestant 43%
Other religions 27%
Mainline Protestant 17%
Roman Catholic 4%
Latter-day Saint (Mormon) 3%
Jehovah's Witnesses 3%
Jewish 2%
Orthodox Christian 1%
% of
Congregations in
Larimer County
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 90
Figure VI-10.
Religious Organizations in Fort Collins
Source:
Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce, FortNet—The
Community Information Network,
http://www.fortnet.org/FortNet/comm/rel.html.
The map below displays the locations of religious places of worship in Fort Collins, with the three non-majority religions
located in the vicinity of CSU.
Figure VI-11.
Religious Organizations in Fort Collins
Source: Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce, Religious Organizations, and FortNet, The Community Information Network,
http://www.fortnet.org/FortNet/comm/rel.html.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 91
HOUSING EQUITY
In 2012, Fort Collins conducted a survey examining housing discrimination in an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing
Choice (AI) study as required by HUD. The most common claims of discrimination were for being a student or low-income
individual with poor credit; disability; familial status; and gender and sexual orientation.
The study also examined access to housing by race and ethnicity in Fort Collins. Figure VI-12 depicts the race, ethnicity,
gender, and disability status of heads of households who received assisted housing vouchers. The overwhelming majority
of recipients of assisted housing vouchers self-identify as “White Only” by race. Ethnically Hispanic or Latino residents are
overrepresented in FCHA housing programs. They hold approximately 40 percent of vouchers given out by the Authority.
Figure VI-12.
Distribution of Public
Housing/ Voucher
Program Participants
and Residents in
Poverty
Source:
Public housing and voucher
program data: BBC Research &
Consulting from FCHA data.
Poverty data for female head of
household and disability from 2010
1year ACS, poverty data by race
and ethnicity from 2010 5-year
ACS.
As demonstrated in Figure VI-12, public housing and the voucher program provide housing to protected classes at higher
rates than their representation of persons in poverty overall for female heads of households, persons with disabilities and
persons of Hispanic descent. This may be an indicator of the limited ability or willingness of the private sector to provide
affordable housing for these populations.
HATE CRIMES
In 1990, Congress enacted the Hate Crime Statistics Act requiring the Department of Justice to collect data on crimes
which “manifest prejudice based on race, religion, sexual orientation, gender or gender identity, disability or ethnicity.”
Local law enforcement agencies report these crimes to the Department of Justice and the data are publicly available on
the FBI’s website.81 Once a local agency deems a crime a hate crime against a protected class designated by the Hate
Crime Statistics Act, that crime is reported to the FBI and is included in the data.
In 2011, the Fort Collins law enforcement agency submitted six hate crime incidents to the FBI. Nationally, law
enforcement reported 2.18 hate crime incidents per 100,000 people, compared to 4.10 in Fort Collins.82 When compared to
its neighboring communities, the rate of reported hate crime incidents in Fort Collins is lower than Greeley, but higher than
Loveland and Boulder, as shown in Figure VI-13.
81 http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/hate-crime/2011/hate-crime.
82 The FBI compares hate crime statistics across states by adjusting per 100,000 population.
Female Head of Household with Children 54% 37% 2%
Disability 44% 55% 7%
Head of Household's Race
American Indian or Alaska Native Only 2% 3% 1%
Asian Only 0% 1% 3%
Black/African American Only 3% 4% 2%
White Only 94% 92% 85%
White, American Indian/Alaska Native 1% 0%
White, Black/African American 1% 0%
Head of Household's Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino 42% 24% 15%
Not Hispanic or Latino 58% 76% 77%
All
Vouchers
Programs
Residents
Living in
Poverty
Public
Housing
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 92
Figure VI-13.
Hate Crime Incidents per
Capita, 2011
Source:
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Hate Crime
Statistics.
Figure VI-14 presents the motivation reported for hate crimes from 2007 to 2011 for Fort Collins. The majority of the hate
crimes committed within that period were race-related, while the second most common reason was related to sexual
orientation. No hate crimes against persons with disabilities were reported.
Figure VI-14.
Hate Crime Incidents in Fort Collins, by Bias Motivation, 2007-2011
Note: At the time of this report, the data were missing for the year 2009 on the FBI website.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Hate Crime Statistics.
U.S. Total 286,010,550 6,222 2.18
Colorado 4,992,496 186 3.73
Fort Collins 146,494 6 4.10
Loveland 68,024 1 1.47
Greeley 94,507 10 10.58
Boulder 99,081 2 2.02
Total Number of
Reported Incidents,
per 100,000 People
Total
Number of
Incidents
State Population Reported
Race Religion
Sexual
orientation Ethnicity Disability
2011 3 1 1 1 0 6
2010 2 0 4 1 0 7
2009 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
2008 5 0 0 0 0 5
2007 5 0 2 1 0 8
Year
Number of incidents per bias motivation
Total
incidents
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 93
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
This section discusses the many resources in the City and community intended to foster diversity and inclusiveness.
CITY OF FORT COLLINS RESOURCES
The City of Fort Collins has two commissions—the Women’s Commission and the Human Relations Commission—that are
specifically dedicated to furthering diversity in the community. The Northside Aztlan Community Center offers community
space to many different types of residents for cultural events.
Women’s Commission
The Women’s Commission was created for “the purpose of enhancing the status of and opportunities for all women in the
City” with the ability to document women’s issues; conduct educational and public awareness programs; cooperate with
other organizations regarding women’s issues; review proposed legislative or policy changes that could potentially affect
the status of women; and make recommendations to the City Council of legislation or policies that could enhance the
status of women in the City.
Human Relations Commission
The Human Relations Commission was created to “promote the acceptance and respect for diversity through educational
programs and activities, and to discourage all forms of discrimination based on race, religion, age, gender, disability, etc.”
The Commission also oversees the Citizen Liaison Program and presents an annual Human Relations Award.
Northside Aztlan Community Center
The Northside Aztlan Community Center’s mission is to ensure its success “by advocating for accessibility, effective
programming and multicultural inclusion.” The Center offers programs such as a children’s meal program, youth nights,
senior meals, and after-school activities.
COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY AND POUDRE SCHOOL DISTRICT RESOURCES
Diversity initiatives and programs through Colorado State University and Poudre School District (PSD) include the
following.
CSU Vice President for Diversity
CSU has a vice president dedicated to diversity initiatives, “including assessment, evaluation, and accountability;
developing strategic partnerships, alliances and collaborations; organizing the annual Diversity Symposium; helping to
coordinate activities among on-campus units, commissions, committees, and task forces; and representing the university
through networking and collaboration with outside communities, schools, and organizations.”
The Office of the Vice President for Diversity holds an annual Diversity Symposium at the University to celebrate diversity,
and an annual High School Diversity Conference where high school students can challenge stereotypes and develop an
appreciation and understanding of diversity.
CSU Student Diversity Programs & Services (SDPS)
CSU offers a selection of programs and services to support students and a diverse campus environment.
• Asian Pacific American Cultural Center—provides resources for Asian/Pacific American awareness and education.
• Black/African American Cultural Center—promotes a diverse, inclusive campus environment and serves as a
resource to the campus and surrounding communities, through academic, professional, cultural and personal
development programs that embrace Black and African American experiences. Its primary goal is to enhance the
overall college experience so that students achieve academically and are able to compete in a global society.
• El Centro—aims to increase the outreach, recruitment, retention, graduation, and cultural pride of Latinos/Hispanics at
CSU.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 94
• Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning Resource Center—is committed to providing support
services, educational and cultural programs as well as a safe gathering place for GLBT people, other sexual
minorities, and allies of the campus and Fort Collins community.
• Native American Cultural Center—focuses on ensuring a successful educational experience for Native American
students by providing advocacy and support services, primarily recruitment, retention, graduation and community
outreach. The office embraces and encourages a supportive environment based on the traditions and cultures of
Native Americans.
• Resources for Disabled Students—collaborates with students, staff, instructors, and community members to create
useable, equitable, inclusive and sustainable learning environments for disabled students.
• Women and Gender Advocacy Center—provides programs and resources focusing on all genders, social justice, and
interpersonal violence prevention. It also provides advocacy and support for victims of sexual violence, stalking,
sexual harassment, and relationship violence.
PSD Office of Equity and Diversity
PSD is committed to understanding the diversity that the children, staff, and families bring to their schools. The Office of
Equity and Diversity supports diverse student leadership programs, community members, groups, and events; encourages
professional development opportunities for staff, culturally relevant curriculum and other activities and culturally responsive
and inclusive school and community engagement practices; and hears and supports individual concerns regarding equity
and diversity in the PSD community.
OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AND RESOURCES
Other diversity-focused organizations that are not formally affiliated with City government, CSU or PSD include the
following:
Fort Collins International Center
The Fort Collins International Center is a nonprofit community organization that provides intercultural education programs
about the world’s cultures in an effort to create a community that is “a model for creating cultural understanding, inclusive
of diversity and able to understand cultural difference.” The Center’s programs include: International Friends, which pairs
community members with foreign students to provide hospitality during an international newcomer’s stay in Fort Collins;
Friday Afternoon Club, a weekly social gathering to connect with the international community and learn about activities and
volunteer opportunities; Global Ambassadors Program, an international speakers’ bureau through which CSU international
students may share their culture, heritage, language and history with local school classrooms and other community
groups; International Night at the Library; Outdoor Programs; and Conversational English Classes.
The Center – Northern Colorado Location
The Center, founded in Denver, was created to “engage, empower, enrich, and advance the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and
transgender community of Colorado.” The Northern Colorado location was opened in July 2012. The Center offers a safe
place for the GLBT community to connect to counseling, social activities, and health and legal resources. The Northern
Colorado location serves about 100 clients a month through phone referrals and another 300 who walk in.
The primary concerns of clients include discrimination in employment; access to resources by seniors who aren’t always
comfortable discussing their GLBT status; and lack of understanding and bias against children with GLBT parents and
parents with GLBT kids. The Center reports that the majority of the children they see are in PSD transfer schools (mostly
Centennial) to avoid bullying and challenges with transgender status in traditional school settings. The Center also works
with Front Range Community College and University of Northern Colorado, providing services to students, as well as
community outreach and awareness.
Fort Collins Not in Our Town Alliance (NIOTA)
NIOTA is a “community-based effort to create and support collaboration among individuals, agencies, organizations and
local governments to address the causes and effects of prejudice, discrimination and hate motivated behavior” by
evaluating community diversity concerns, creating strategies to prevent discrimination, and appropriate and timely
response to hate motivated incidents. NIOTA holds a regular book club meeting on every 4th Tuesday.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 95
India Association of Northern Colorado
IANC is a volunteer-run nonprofit that promotes Indian culture, social, and spiritual activities in the community, and
membership is open to all people interested in Indian culture. Members include CSU staff and employees in the high
technology fields.
Fuerza Latina
Fuerza Latina is an organization in Northern Colorado of immigrants and allies for immigrants. Fuerza Latina works for
human rights, justice and dignity for immigrants and is dedicated to educating, informing, organizing, and promoting
change to facilitate an improved quality of life for immigrants in the community.
Northern Colorado Intertribal Pow-wow Association (NCIPA)
The Northern Colorado Intertribal Pow-wow Association (NCIPA), a non-profit organization, was created in the summer of
1992 to provide opportunities for the Northern Colorado communities to share and participate in Native American cultures.
In addition, NCIPA provides information, social networks and educational support to Native Americans in Northern
Colorado. Membership in NCIPA is open to any nationality, race or creed. In order to share the diverse Native American
cultures with the community, they present an annual pow-wow in the Fort Collins area. Each year they have attracted
thousands of visitors each day, including hundreds of dancers and singers, many arts and crafts vendors, and spectators.
LANGUAGE RESOURCES
English conversation and language learning programs are available through a variety of providers in Fort Collins, including
but not limited to Poudre School District, Front Range Community College, the Fort Collins International Center, Colorado
State University, and others. A cursory review of community resources available in languages other than English found
resources for many essential services such as public education and health care.
City and County Services
The City of Fort Collins’ website can be translated into several different languages, from Afrikaans to Yiddish, powered by
Google Translate through a drop down selection menu on the top right of every web page. Larimer County’s website is
available in Spanish as well as English through the use of Google’s free language tools. In addition, both the City and
County have numerous materials translated into Spanish that are available from multiple departments, as well as
translation services available for community and neighborhood meetings.
Poudre School District
Poudre School District (PSD), along with many individual schools in the district, offers access to its website in Spanish, as
well as several information resources. For example, Early Childhood Transition Services, a division of the Early Childhood
Program, which helps parents transition their children into kindergarten, offers on their webpage many resources in both
English and Spanish, such as “Parent Tip Sheets” and the Transition to Kindergarten Handbook.83
PSD also offers translation services for students whose primary language is not English. Spanish and Arabic are the two
most readily available translation services, although Mandarin Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean translators are also
available. The Newcomer Academy programs at Lincoln Middle School and Poudre High School provide extensive support
to English Language Learners (ELL).84
Health Care Services
Websites for the health care sector in Fort Collins tend to be available in English only, including those of Family Medicine
Center, Touchstone Health Centers, and the Health District of Larimer County. Salud Family Health Centers’ website is
available in both English and Spanish.
83 http://center.serve.org/TT/fp_tips.html.
84 http://www.psdschools.org/school/poudre-high-school.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 96
ANALYSIS & GAPS
The primary challenge in analyzing “gaps” in diversity is defining an benchmark, which is a subjective assessment.
Instead, this section used a qualitative review of how well the environment in Fort Collins accommodates diverse
populations.
SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE AND TOLERANCE
Perception of the City to Outsiders and Residents
Online discussion groups and social media are frequently used to gauge social acceptance and inclusiveness of outsiders.
A review of online blogs and discussions about diversity in Fort Collins was conducted for this study. The general
perception from bloggers is that although Fort Collins is a mostly white community with little diversity, it is also generally an
inclusive and welcoming place to minorities.
The following quotes are excerpts from public comments made on the online comment boards city-data.com and
Sperling’s Best Places:
Moving to Fort Collins, how is racial diversity and safety? (4/7/13)
I'm planning on moving to Fort Collins…I have no family connections in that region and I'm African American and
female. I'm curious about race relations here towards African Americans in particular? I'm interested in how people
treat others that are of different racial backgrounds. I would love my experience in Fort Collins to be amazing…
• “We've been in Fort Collins for 11 years. I lived in Detroit for 4 years, then San Francisco for 6, before moving
here. The utter lack of diversity was a huge shocker for me. (I'm a white female, but I was rather used to
being in the minority.) It's starting to change.
• I live in Old Town (north of campus) and I think the folks around here are very tolerant and welcoming. My kids
attend Lincoln Middle School which is the most diverse middle school in town. (The largest population is hispanic,
followed by white, then asian and black. And because they have the "newcomer" program, there are students
from all over the world whose parents are here as CSU students.) Because our kids attend Lincoln, we have had
some negative experiences in terms of racial profiling. ("You send your kids THERE?!!!" "Isn't that a dangerous
school?" etc.) So I know there's racism in Fort Collins. It's often against the hispanic population. And it's not
generally overt.
• I'd recommend living near campus (It doesn't have to be in Old Town.). I don't think Fort Collins is dangerous at
all. But in terms of comfort, I think you'll probably find a more welcoming community closer to the school. That's
not at all to say that other parts of town are definitively less welcoming, because they're not. I think it's just more
likely you'll find folks around the fringes that simply aren't used to anything but their all white neighbors.”
• “I used to live in Fort Collins and still have friends there. The area is somewhat conservative and most likely the
only discrimination or profiling you will experience there would be based on religious or political views. As for the
activities you enjoy, plenty of that around the area, especially over by Horsetooth and Larimer Park..”85
Thread title: Ethnic diversity in Colorado? (2/7/07)
From the stats I've been reading it seems that Colorado is mostly white with some areas having small Hispanic or
Latino populations. My question is how are Asians treated there? Is there discrimination? Does it depend on the area?
We are possibly relocating to Ft. Collins area and we are a multi-ethnic family. Hubby & me are white and we have 3
adopted children who are Asian. How would we/they be received?
• “I wouldn't imagine you'd have any problems with racism in fort collins... Though there is definitely not much of an
asian community here, if any at all. There seems to be a small middle eastern community, a small indian
community, and a sizeable hispanic community though. This area is sometimes jokingly referred to by the locals
as 'vanilla valley' because it's so white.
85 http://www.city-data.com/forum/fort-collins-area/1835756-moving-fort-collins-how-racial-diversity.html#ixzz2jQnmAJ4d.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 97
• The ethnically asian people I know in fort collins are generally very americanized, and as far as I know they're not
subject to any particular prejudice. I would be shocked if your children were treated any differently to other
children here by anyone.
• The only serious racism I've even heard of in this area are second-hand stories…about a church in Laporte with
some nazi-like values, and a significant KKK congregation in Loveland. I have no way of verifying these things
and they are just rumors as far as I know.”86
Thread title: What are race relations like in FC? Are people tolerant? (5/1/12)
I'm African-American and am looking at a career opportunity in FC, which may lead to a relocation for me and my
family. Can someone tell me whether FC is a racially tolerant city? Is there a separate African-American community or
is the city integrated? Where would you find the most racially diverse schools?
• “Totally integrated. I do not see many African-Americans but I do welcome you and I do wish to see more
diversity in the city. I am a retired person and cannot address the schools.”
• “The schools closest to the university are likely to be the most diverse, as that is where many of the international
students and faculty live with their families in university housing. The International Baccalaureate Program at
Poudre High School is as ethnically diverse as any place in town and has the added benefit of being
academically rigorous. There is also a "school of choice" program that allows you to apply to some schools
outside of your neighborhood if they offer programs you're interested in IB, Core Knowledge, bilingual, etc.”
• “There isn't many African American people up here, But its not usually a problem. Fort Collins has lots of
churches and stuff in it. People are normally friendly as far as I can tell.”87
Thread title: Do any Asians live here?
I want to go to college here after I get out of the Marine Corps and was curious how rare is it to see an Asian walking
around. I know there aren't many, and being from California, I'm used to diversity. Are they looked at differently, or
treated differently than white people? Does anyone personally know any Asians in the area, or better yet, ARE Asian?
(International students don't count) How much would I stick out?
• “I'm a CSU alum. The Asian population in Fort Collins is pretty low, but the town is laid back and tolerant. There's
a student services center for Asian students and several student organizations. So it will be very easy to get
connected to other Asians if you attend CSU.”
• “Asian here. People are definitely very tolerant along the Front Range, although if you are used to diversity and
are seeking it, you won't find it here =)”
• “I am Asian (Thai to be exact) and I grew up here in Northern Colorado. 20 years ago, the chance of seeing
another Asian minority was slim but with the growth of the front range and the work of the local universities, many
of the exchange students have stayed after college allowing the asian population to grow. Being asian, I never
felt out of place and even more so now, it is VERY tolerant here.”88
Comment title: Cohesive community (7/18/11)
• “I'm one of a bajillion non-natives who adopted Fort Collins as home and never, ever felt dissed or snubbed by
the natives... as if I could even figure out who is native and who isn't. Who cares, is a better response to all that.
To the contrary, Ft. Collins welcomes visitors, students, and diversity of all sorts. This is a small city that has a
center and a cohesive sense of community - something so many places have lost in the sprawl of the second half
of the last century, and something, I might add, we will all need again as the problems we have created in the
world come home to roost and we have to again turn to each other for support and resources.”89
86 http://www.city-data.com/forum/colorado/43480-ethnic-diversity-colorado-denver-fort-collins.html#ixzz2jQhSsI7Z.
87 http://www.city-data.com/forum/fort-collins-area/1564485-what-race-relations-like-fc-people.html#ixzz2jQp9MCeo.
88 http://www.city-data.com/forum/fort-collins-area/1754859-do-any-asians-live-here-fort.html#ixzz2jQsKWxYl.
89 http://www.bestplaces.net/backfence/viewcomment.aspx?id=AC592A6C-4C27-4A2C-AF1D-7C2C3826A45A&city=Fort_Collins_CO&p=50827425.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 98
Inclusiveness of Sexual Orientation
Members of the GLBT community can face challenges in finding acceptance and support in their city. Inclusiveness of
sexual orientation is particularly important for youth: A study in Oregon high schools found a significant association
between a having a positive social environment and lower rates of GLBT suicide attempts.90 Measures included in
examining the social environment of a given county included, but were not limited to:
• Proportion of schools with gay-straight alliances;
• Proportion of schools with anti-bullying policies specifically protecting GLBT students; and
• Proportion of schools with antidiscrimination policies that included sexual orientation.
One indicator of inclusiveness is the number of organized GLBT groups in a community, especially those in schools. Of the
seven public high schools in PSD, three have registered Gay-Straight Alliances with the Colorado GSA Network. Those
with GSA programs include Fort Collins High School, Rocky Mountain High School, and Poudre High School. Many high
schools in the district have “Report a Bully” policies, but they do not include provisions specifically protecting GLBT
students. Antidiscrimination policies were not available on individual school websites, although the PSD website does
provide its policies and procedures about bullying prevention and education. The 2013-14 Student Rights & Code of
Conduct defines bullying as:
“…Any written or oral expression, or physical or electronic act or gesture, or a pattern thereof, that is intended to
coerce, intimidate or cause any physical, mental or emotional harm to any student. This includes but is not limited to
such expression, act or gesture directed toward a student on the basis of that student’s race, color, religion, national
origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, disability or academic performance.”91
PSD requires all district employees to attend an hour-long diversity training in order to familiarize themselves with diversity,
equity, and the district’s non-discrimination policy.
Colorado State University has a Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning Resource Center, which
offers support and resources to the GLBT student population. The university also explicitly includes sexual orientation in its
non-discrimination policy. Maintenance of current programs supporting GLBT students and the development of such
programs where they are lacking is essential in sustaining a positive and supportive environment for GLBT youth.
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
The review of diversity and equity in Fort Collins found many positive elements of an inclusive, tolerant and diverse
community. In general, Fort Collins is viewed by outsiders as an accepting community, perhaps a bit ignorant, but not
overtly hostile. Unfortunately, tensions among cultures still occur as evidenced by the 6 hate crimes (4.1 per 100,000
people ) reported in the City in 2011—a higher incidence rate than Loveland, Boulder and the state, but much lower than
nearby Greeley.
While the City cannot control racial diversity, there are some inequities and gaps related to equity and accessibility for
different races and ethnic groups across the community. These include the following:
• One third of both Asian and Hispanic households earn less than $25,000 per year, compared with just 25% of non-
Hispanic white households.
• Poverty rates are highest for Black/African American Residents (38%), and lowest for non-Hispanic white residents
(17%).
• 9.5% of the City’s residents speak languages other than English at home.
The community has many resources, both on and off the CSU campus, to support diversity and further inclusiveness.
Moreover, the community has various places of worship for different religious affiliations and options for non-English
speakers. To further diversity and tolerance in the community and enhance social sustainability, continued efforts should
be made to build understanding of diverse cultures and lifestyles, accommodate non-English speakers, and reduce
discrimination and inequities.
90 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10323629.
91 2013-14 Student Rights & Code of Conduct, District Policies and Regulations. A guide to Student Rights and the Code of Conduct for students in Poudre
School District. http://www.psdschools.org/webfm/3874.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 99
Section VII. Targeted Populations
OVERVIEW
This section discusses the supportive services and housing needs of three targeted resident groups in Fort Collins
including:
• Persons with Disabilities
• Seniors
• Victims of Domestic Violence
These targeted populations were chosen because they often face some of the greatest challenges to accessing the
housing and services they need and may require public support and subsidies.
The needs of other targeted population groups—residents who are gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender individuals (GLBT),
veterans, and at-risk youth—are addressed in other sections where their needs were best represented. The needs of
GLBT residents are discussed in the Diversity/Equity section. The needs of veterans are discussed in the section on
Homelessness. Similarly, the needs of at-risk youth are discussed in the Education section.
DEFINITIONS
Persons with Disabilities
The Census defines a person with a disability as having a “long-lasting physical, mental or emotional condition, which can
make it difficult for a person to do activities such as walking, climbing stairs, dressing, bathing, learning or remembering.”
Moreover, “this condition can also impede a person from being able to go outside the home alone or to work at a job or
business.”92
Persons with disabilities may require housing that has accessibility features, is near public transit and has supportive
services, and is affordable, if their ability to work is limited. Persons with disabilities are also at greater risk of experiencing
housing discrimination, often times due to a lack of knowledge about laws governing accommodations for persons who are
disabled.
Seniors
This report uses the Census age rage to define seniors, which is those age 65 and older.
Victims of Domestic Violence
For the purpose of this report, victims of domestic violence are those residents who have experienced, in the terms of the
CDC, “intimate partner violence or IPV”—which includes rape, physical violence and/or stalking. IPV data were the most
recent, statistically valid data available at the time this report was prepared. Because IPV includes stalking, the number of
women and men who have experienced IPV is higher than those who have experienced domestic violence. For the
purposes of this section, victims include adults who have been subjected to IPV (youth are covered in the section on At-
Risk Youth).
DATA & TRENDS
PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Approximately 10,000 Fort Collins residents aged five years or older have a disability, according to the 2010 Census.
Disability rates are highest for seniors: one-quarter of residents age 65 to 74 have a disability, and half of residents age 75
and older have a disability.
92 Definition taken from the Census glossary.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 100
Figure VII-1.
Disability Status for the
Population 5 Years Old
or More, City of Fort
Collins, 2010
Source:
ACS 2010 1-year estimate.
Figure VII-2 presents the number of Fort Collins residents with physical and cognitive disabilities by age cohort. The most
common type of disability for seniors is a hearing difficulty, followed by ambulatory difficulty. For children, cognitive
difficulties are the most common. Adults between the ages of 18 and 64 are most likely to have a cognitive or ambulatory
disability.
Figure VII-2.
Number and Share of Fort Collins Residents with Disabilities, by Age Cohort, 2012
Source: 2012 ACS.
Children with Developmental Disabilities
Figure VII-3 shows the estimated number of children in Fort Collins with a developmental disability, based on prevalence
data from a 2011 PEDIATRICS study. Learning disabilities and ADHD are the most common developmental disabilities.
Overall, an estimated 4,000 Fort Collins children have some form of developmental disability, about 15 percent of children
ages five to 19.
Figure VII-3 shows the estimated number of children with a development disability based on the 2011 PEDIATRICS study.
It is important to note that the number of children with disabilities in Figure VII-3 exceeds the Census estimate in Figure
VII-2 because of different definitions of disability (e.g., the American Community Survey (ACS) “cognitive” disability
definition does not appear to include ADHD or learning disabilities, but the PEDIATRICS definition does).
Population 5 years or older 134,009 10,100 8%
5 to 17 years 20,904 388 2%
18 to 34 years 54,237 1,662 3%
35 to 64 years 46,454 3,437 7%
65 to 74 years 6,999 1,838 26%
75 years and over 5,415 2,775 51%
Percent
with a
disability
With a
Total disability
Hearing difficulty 70 0.4 % 1,083 1.0 % 1,809 15.0 %
Vision difficulty 39 0.2 868 0.8 540 4.5
Cognitive difficulty 275 1.4 2,284 2.1 1,169 9.7
Ambulatory difficulty 35 0.2 2,543 2.4 1,528 12.7
Self-care difficulty 139 0.7 % 786 0.7 551 4.6
Independent living difficulty 1,592 1.5 % 1,241 10.3 %
% of Age
Cohort
Ages 5 - 17 Ages 18 - 64 Ages 65+
# with a
Disability
% of Age
Cohort
# with a
Disability
% of
Age
# with a
Disability
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 101
Figure VII-3.
Estimates of the Number of Fort Collins Children with Developmental Disabilities, 2012
Note: The age cohorts from the PEDIATRICS study and 2012 ACS do not align perfectly. As such, the estimate for children ages five to nine omits children
ages three and four. Similarly, the estimate for children ages 10 to 19 includes 18- and 19-year-olds. This suggests that the number for younger
children is a lower bound estimate while the number for older children is an upper bound estimate.
Source: BBC Research & Consulting from 2012 ACS and “Trends in the Prevalence of Developmental Disabilities in US Children, 1997-2008” Boyle, et. al.,
PEDIATRICS, Volume 127, Number 6, pp 1034-1046, June 2011
Geographic Concentration
Figure VII-4 uses 2000 Census data at the Census Tract level to examine geographic concentrations of persons with
disabilities in Fort Collins.93 Concentrations are based on the 2000 incidence of disability for Fort Collins, which was 12
percent. As the map shows, there are no concentrations of people with disabilities in Fort Collins, based on 2000 data.
Figure VII-4.
Percent of
Residents with
Disabilities, City of
Fort Collins, 2000
Source:
2000 U.S. Census.
93 Data by Census block group were not available for all block groups in the city. Disability data from the 2010 ACS is not available by Census tract or block
group.
Any developmental disability 11.78 % 16.24 % 1,033 3,063
ADHD 4.72 8.93 414 1,684
Autism 0.56 0.37 49 70
Blind 0.10 0.16 9 30
Cerebral palsy 0.36 0.37 32 70
Moderate to profound hearing loss 0.44 0.46 39 87
Learning disabilities 5.07 9.27 445 1,748
Intellectual disabilities 0.59 0.84 52 158
Seizures in past 12 months 0.72 0.61 63 115
Stuttered or stammered in past 12 months 1.99 1.15 175 217
Other developmental delay 3.86 % 3.41 % 339 643
Total children in the FC population 8,772 18,859
Ages 3 to 10 Ages 11 to 17 Ages 5 to 9 Ages 10 to 19
Prevalence in the
age cohort in the
United States
Number of Children in Fort
Collins
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 102
Income Levels
Some persons with disabilities are limited in their ability to work and rely on Social Security and disability payments as their
primary source of income. The 2012 ACS reports that 47 percent of Fort Collins residents with disabilities are employed.
Sixteen percent of residents with disabilities are unemployed and 36 percent are not in the labor force.
The median earnings of persons with disabilities are lower than for those without disabilities: in 2012, male workers with a
disability earned $21,334 per year compared to earnings of $26,886 for men without a disability. For women, pay was
$12,040 for workers with a disability v. $16,922 for workers without a disability. Although all levels of earnings are quite
low, those of persons with disabilities are extremely low.
The Social Security Administration reports that the average monthly amount received by an eligible person with a disability
in 2013 was $1,129. This income, Social Security Disability Income (SSDI), is available only to people who have had a
work history, and is equivalent to about $13,500 per year. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is available to people who
do not have a work history or who don not qualify for SSDI. These payments average $710 per month, equating to about
$8,520 per year.
Persons with disabilities who are awaiting approval for social security payments are eligible to receive a small amount of
cash assistance from the State of Colorado (Aid to the Needy Disabled program). This assistance is just $175/month,
which equates to just $2,100 annually.
SENIORS
The 2012 ACS reported 12,458 seniors in Larimer County, making up 8 percent of the City’s population. The majority of
the City’s seniors are between the ages of 65 and 74 (7,100 or 5% of the City’s population). About 14,000 residents are
“near seniors”—between the ages of 55 and 64. Fort Collins has a much lower proportion of seniors as a proportion of its
population (8 percent) than Larimer County (13 percent) as shown in Figure VII-5.
Figure VII-5.
Population of Seniors
and Near Seniors, Fort
Collins and Larimer
County, 2012
Source:
2012 ACS.
The Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) estimates population growth by age cohort at the county level. By 2025,
seniors are expected to make up 18 percent of Larimer County’s residents, up from 13 percent currently. By 2030, the
proportion will increase to 19 percent.
In total, the county is expected to have 30,600 more seniors by 2025 and 39,600 more by 2030. If Fort Collins’ seniors
grow at the same rate, the City could add 10,000 seniors by 2025 and 12,500 by 2030. This represents a doubling of the
senior population over the next 10-15 years.
Total Population 148,634 100% 310,487 100%
Under 55 121,998 82% 230,470 74%
Near Seniors (55 to 64 years) 14,178 10% 40,362 13%
Seniors 12,458 8% 39,655 13%
65 to 74 years 7,136 5% 22,744 7%
75 to 84 years 3,587 2% 11,592 4%
85 years and over 1,735 1% 5,319 2%
Number % of Population Number % of Population
Fort Collins Larimer County
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 103
Figure VII-6.
Projected Growth in Seniors, Larimer County, 2025 and 2030
Source: Colorado Department of Local Affairs.
Characteristics
The City’s seniors are less likely to be living below the poverty line than other age cohorts. According to the 3-year ACS,
the senior poverty rate is 5.6 percent.
The majority of the City’s seniors are retired and, as such, are less likely to work.: Of 65-74 year olds, 29 percent work, 70
percent do not work and less than 1 percent are unemployed (desire to work but cannot find work). Five percent of 75 year
olds+ work, none are unemployed and 93 percent are retired.
Figure VII-7.
Labor Force Status of
Seniors, 2012
Source:
2012 ACS.
But seniors are much more likely to be disabled than other age cohorts, with 26 percent of younger seniors and 51 percent
reporting a disability. Altogether, more than 4,500 of the City’s 12,500 seniors have one or more disabilities. The most
common disability types are hearing and ambulatory, followed cognitive disabilities.
Housing
According to a 2011 national report on older Americans conducted by the federal Administration on Aging, 29 percent of
seniors overall live alone and almost half (47%) of senior women over the age of 75 live alone. Figure VII-8 shows the
living arrangements of seniors in Fort Collins as of the 2010 Census. About 40 percent of Fort Collins seniors live alone; 60
percent live with someone else, mostly a family member.
Figure VII-8.
Living Arrangements of Fort Collins
Seniors, 2012
Source:
2012 ACS.
Very few seniors live in institutional settings (e.g., nursing homes), and the number has been declining. Nationwide, just
one percent of 65-74 year olds and 3.5 percent of 75-84 year olds live in institutional settings. Nursing homes are largely
occupied by 85+ year olds, 13 percent of whom live in institutional settings.
Total Population 310,065 100% 394,234 100% 27% 424,834 100% 37%
Under 55 230,771 74% 284,327 72% 23% 304,734 72% 32%
Near Seniors (55 to 64 years) 39,916 13% 39,885 10% 0% 41,094 10% 3%
Seniors 39,378 13% 70,022 18% 78% 79,006 19% 101%
65 to 74 years 22,850 7% 39,551 10% 73% 39,920 9% 75%
75 to 84 years 11,372 4% 23,198 6% 104% 29,221 7% 157%
85 years and over 5,156 2% 7,273 2% 41% 9,865 2% 91%
Growth in number of seniors 30,644 39,628
Percent
Growth,
2012-30
2030
Number
% of
Number Population
% of
Number Populatio
% of
Population
2012 2025 Percent
Growth,
2012-25
Age
65-74 years old 2,108 29.5% 60 0.8% 4,968 69.6%
75+ years old 378 5.3% 0 0.0% 4,944 92.9%
In Labor Force Unemployed Not in Labor Force
Living Arrangement
3,471 40%
5,114 60%
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 104
Similarly, despite a growing trend toward assisted living facilities, a very small proportion (2.4% nationwide) of seniors live
in senior housing with at least one supportive service available to their residents.
The City’s Consolidated Plan provides an inventory of senior housing options, including 534 subsidized housing units or
units that have reduced rents for the elderly, which are also available to persons with disabilities; 1,081 independent living
spaces, and 1,253 nursing home beds in Fort Collins. The Consolidated Plan reports that most of the nursing homes in
Fort Collins accept Medicaid clients; most of assisted living facilities do not.
The Larimer County Office on Aging maintains an updated inventory of senior housing options, including Assisted Living
Residences; Independent Living Facilities; Nursing Facilities; Senior Affordable Housing; and Senior Retirement
Communities (age-restricted).
As mentioned in Section I of this report – Housing – Fort Collins currently has a very tight housing market, with very low
vacancy rates for rental housing, and a limited supply of for-sale housing that is affordable to many residents. While there
is a number of low income housing units for seniors in the community, there is currently a shortage and this situation will
likely worsen as the senior population increases. There are between 150 and 200 elderly households on Housing Authority
wait lists.
Some of the more notable sources of affordable housing for seniors in the City include: The Legacy Senior Residences (72
units), The Northern Hotel (47 units), and DMA Plaza (126 units).
VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Local data on the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) are generally difficult to find due to privacy rights and
reluctance of some victims to discuss or report IPV. The volume of calls to help lines, women and men receiving
counseling and victims seeking shelter provide an indication of a point in time estimate of need. Surveys are necessary to
estimate lifetime prevalence rates and the long term effects of such IPV.
National Prevalence
At the national level, the CDC collects national data on lifetime prevalence of IPV through the National Intimate Partner
and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS).94 This ongoing, nationally representative survey collects information about the IPV
experiences of English- or Spanish-speaking men and women age 18 years and older. The most recent survey data are as
of 2010 and include state prevalence rates. These data are used to estimate the number of IPV victims in Fort Collins.
Victims of domestic violence are disproportionately likely to be women—but it is a misconception that all victims are
women. A 2010 national survey by the CDC reported that 25 percent of women nationwide have been the victim of severe
physical violence by an intimate partner, compared to 14 percent of men. Gender differences are smaller when all types of
physical violence and psychological violence are factored in. For example, nationally 36 percent of women and 29 percent
of men have experienced rape, other physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime according to
the CDC survey. In Colorado, the lifetime prevalence is similar by gender: 33 percent for women and 29 percent for men.
National estimates on number of people in the U.S. who have experienced physical violence by an intimate partner at
some point in their life are reported in Figure VII-9. These estimates of IPV may appear high upon a first read—yet the
prevalence of domestic violence has been well documented nationally, especially for women. Studies consistently find the
prevalence of physical violence against women to range from approximately one-quarter to one-third of adult women.1,95
94 “National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey,” Center for Disease Control, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2010.
95 “Full Report of the Prevalence, Incidence and Consequences of Violence Against Women,” Findings from the National Violence Against Women Survey, U.S.
Department of Justice, 2000.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 105
Figure VII-9.
Number of Victims and Prevalence of Violence by an Intimate Partner, U.S. Women and Men, 2010
Source: National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, Center for Disease Control, 2010.
Race and Ethnicity
The reported prevalence of domestic violence is highest for female victims who are multiracial (54% according to the
NISVS), American Indian/Alaskan Native (46%) and African American (44%). These compare to rates for white
women of 35 percent and, Hispanic women, 37 percent.
For men, the rates are highest for American Indian/Alaskan Natives (45%), Multiracial and African American (both
39%). White and Hispanic men report the lowest rates of victimization at 28 and 27 percent, respectively.
Fort Collins Prevalence
Approximately 20,000 women and 16,800 men in Fort Collins are estimated to have experienced IPV violence at some
point in their lives. These numbers are based on State of Colorado lifetime prevalence rates from the CDC applied to the
Fort Collins population of women and men 18 years and older.
Statewide prevalence rates also suggest that in any given year, an estimated 3,600 women and 2,900 men in Fort Collins
experience IPV.96
It should be noted that the number of women experiencing IPV in Fort Collins at a point in time may be higher than that
nationally because the City’s age distribution is skewed towards 18-24 year olds, the age range during which IPV most
commonly occurs for the first time. 97
Benchmarking data from the Fort Collins Police Department show that the City’s domestic violence offenses per 1,000
citizens—3.1 for 2012—is half of the average of peer communities. Still, domestic violence offenses are some of the most
frequent reasons for calls, according to officers. In 2012, 442 offenses were domestic violence related, 44 were sex
offenses (not rape) and 38 were rapes—compared with 232 aggravated assaults, 2 homicides, 590 burglaries, 41
robberies, 1,147 acts of vandalism and more than 2,000 thefts.
96 These rates are based on national 12 month prevalence rates (state 12 month rates are not available).
97 For example, the NISVS survey reports that 48 percent of bisexual women who had been raped were ages11 to 17 when it occurred; 33 percent were
between the ages of 18 and 24. Similarly, 28 percent of heterosexual women were first victimized when they were between 11 and 17 years old; 38 percent were
victimized when they were 18 to 24 years old.
Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence
% Experiencing Rape, Physical Violence and/or
Stalking 36% 29% 6% 5%
# of Victims 42,420,000 32,280,000 6,982,000 5,691,000
Type of Violence Experienced
Slapped, pushed or shoved 34,943,000 27,989,000
Severe physical violence (e.g., kicked, beaten) 27,882,000 14,915,000
Rape 21,840,000 1,581,000
Psychological aggression 55,447,000 54,091,000
# of Women
Victimized
# of Men
Victimized
Women Men
Lifetime Prevalence 12 months
Women Men
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 106
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
This section discusses the resources available in Fort Collins for persons with disabilities, seniors, and victims of domestic
violence. Where appropriate, the services are organized by type of client targeted.
RESOURCES FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Disabled Resource Services (DRS)
DRS is a non-profit agency that provides a variety of services to persons with disabilities in Larimer and Jackson counties..
DRS administers 15 housing choice vouchers and provides case management services to more than 6,000 clients per
year. On average, 200 of these clients are assisted with rental deposits.
DRS provides a range of services from housing location assistance to assistance accessing health care services to
advocating for fair housing—e.g., denial of service animals by landlords and accessibility accommodations, as well as
employment modifications and upholding civil rights laws. In the past year, the most common needs of clients were
financial-related (e.g., assistance with SSDI applications/renewals/appeals, rent and transportation assistance), followed
by information and referral needs. DRS’ clients’ needs are discussed in more detail below in the Gaps section.
Accessible Space Incorporated (ASI)
ASI is a St. Paul, Minnesota nonprofit organization dedicated to creating supportive housing and assisted living options for
persons with disabilities and persons with traumatic brain injuries (TBI). The organization builds housing developments that
are accessible, affordable and offer a cooperative supportive services model. ASI developed and manages the Harmony
Road Apartments in Fort Collins. The complex includes 23 accessible one- and two-bedroom apartments, wheelchair
accessible kitchens, roll in showers, raised electrical outlets and lowered light switches, a controlled-access entry system
and community room. Approved pets are accepted.
Foothills Gateway
Foothills Gateway is the local Community Center Board in Larimer County that serves Fort Collins. Foothills Gateway
serves approximately 1,600 persons with cognitive disabilities and their families annually through a broad range of
programs and services. Approximately 600 individuals are on their wait list for services.
• Residential program. Foothills Gateway’s residential program includes supporting individuals living independently in
apartments, in companion settings, host homes or staffed homes. The organization administers 111 housing choice
vouchers and has placed 52 clients in project-based Section 8 units under a State Division of Housing funded
program.
• Supported employment and skills development. The Supported Employment Services Program for adults with
cognitive disabilities includes screening, job placement, coaching and supportive services. The Community Skill
Development Program offers recreational, volunteer and employment opportunities with a focus on skills
development, activities of daily living, socialization and recreation. While the Supported Employment Services and
Community Skill Development programs are for adults, Foothills Gateway also offers prevocational services to
individuals under age 18.
• Adult Care Services and respite services. Foothills Gateway offers respite services to family caregivers for up to a
period of 14 days. In addition, they offer a Monday through Friday adult day program that is also available to persons
eligible under an Elderly, Blind and Disabled waiver.
• Early intervention services. Foothills Gateway is mandated by the State of Colorado to serve any Larimer County
child under age three with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The organization provides a variety of early
intervention services. More than one-third of the children who are enrolled in the program for one year are able to
mainstream into traditional preschool rather than special education.
Mosaic in Northern Colorado
Mosaic focuses on providing independent, host home and group living environments in Fort Collins for persons with
cognitive disabilities. The Children’s Extensive Services program provides respite care to children living with their family.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 107
Respite Care
Respite Care provides care to families who have children with development disabilities. According to the City’s
Consolidated Plan, Respite Care provided over 38,000 hours of care to 111 families in 2009. Respite recently moved from
a wait list approach to limiting care to a maximum of four days per week, except during vacation stays, to serve more
families. The organization also runs a Summer Day Camp and after school care programs.
Recreation Programs
Recreational opportunities for children with disabilities can be challenging, especially opportunities that afford such children
the ability to play alongside peers without disabilities. New federal requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) are forcing changes in the landscape of public playgrounds. The new requirements for parks include equipment,
materials and designs that provide children with disabilities access to the same play spaces as children without disabilities.
These new federal requirements create play spaces that are accessible—yet accessibility does not automatically translate
into inclusive. It is important to note the distinction between an ADA accessible playground, and one that is fully accessible
and “inclusive.” ADA compliant may mean that a child with a disability can “get to” playground equipment but may not
actually be able to “use” the equipment. Accessible and inclusive playgrounds are built such that children with disabilities
can engage in the play space in a similar manner as a non-disabled child.
Fort Collins opened its first fully accessible and inclusive playground in 2007. It was also the first such playground in the
State of Colorado and remains one of only five of these types of playgrounds in the state.98
Fort Collins’ playground includes safe, state-of-the-art, sensory-rich structures that encourage integration and the
development of cognitive, emotional, physical and social skills for all children. For example, sand centers are located
above ground and are wheelchair accessible, allowing a child in wheelchair to play in the elevated sandbox next to other
children. The playground is located in the southwest portion of the City.
The Adaptive Recreation Opportunities (ARO) department with the City of Fort Collins provides quality and equal
opportunities for recreation and leisure programs to persons with disabilities. There are a variety of specialized recreational
opportunities that provide inclusive participation support and transitional assistance via recreational therapy specialists.
RESOURCES FOR SENIORS
There are many resources for seniors in Fort Collins, as described below.
Larimer County Office on Aging (LCOA)
Many of the services for seniors in Fort Collins are coordinated through the Larimer County Office on Aging (LCOA). This
section provides a broad overview of those available. More detailed information can be found at the Larimer County Office
on Aging website and web links (http://www.larimer.org/seniors/).
• Adult Resources for Care and Help, or ARCH, provides resources, including short term case management, to seniors
to help them remain independent.
• The Family Caregiver Support Program supports family members who are caring for seniors in their homes. This
includes counseling, respite assistance and connecting the caregiver to support groups.
• The county also offers a Long Term Care Ombudsman program which matches professional advocates with families
to provide assistance and mediation with long term care facilities.
• The county’s Senior Tax Work-Off program allows low income residents age 60+ to work off up to $400 or their
property tax bill. Qualified seniors are placed in jobs within Larimer County government offices; they also receive a
stipend at the end of their service.
• LCOA also helps coordinate Project Visibility, which trains administrators of nursing homes, assisted living facilities,
home care agencies and other providers of services to older adults about LGBT seniors, their sensitivities and needs.
98 The newest accessible playground is in Colorado Springs, see http://gazette.com/side-streets-playground-lets-you-swing-high-even-if-you-cant-
walk/article/99469.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 108
Elderhaus
Elderhaus has two facilities that provide recreation and services to both special needs and “higher-energy” seniors.
Services include transportation assistance, nutrition services, programming for veterans, mobile health services and a
Medicaid Benefit Helper program.
Rehabilitation Visiting Nurses Association (RVNA)
RVNA is a home health care provider in northern Colorado. The majority of seniors served are very low income and many
have disabilities and/or mental illnesses. The organization serves more than 200 Fort Collins seniors.
Volunteers of America
Volunteers of America provides a variety of services to seniors including respite services, households assistance (grocery
shopping, handyman services), congregate dining and volunteer transportation.
SAINT
Saint Volunteer Transportation (SAINT) provides transportation, through volunteers, to seniors in Fort Collins and
Loveland. About two-thirds of seniors served are moderate to high income; 24 percent are low income. Many are
physically and developmentally disabled and/or have mental illnesses. The nonprofit provides an estimated 15,000 to 300
clients in Fort Collins.
Larimer County Special Needs Population Registry
A new program, known as the Larimer County Special Needs Population Registry, is a collaboration of seven local
agencies and the Cities of Fort Collins and Loveland. This program allows individuals or family members to register
persons who may need assistance to evacuate their residence, in times of emergencies.
City of Fort Collins Senior Center
The City’s Senior Center provides life-enhancing services to seniors and community members of all ages and income
levels. The Senior Center provides essential, convenient wellness and fitness services, social and creative activities, and
frequent outings that enable participants to explore Colorado's many outdoor recreation, arts and cultural offerings.
Accredited since 2003 by the National Council on Aging, the Center is only one of two currently accredited senior centers
in Colorado and less than 200 throughout the United States. It serves an average of neary 1,000 community members
daily with a diverse schedule of over 60 daily events. A major expansion to the Senior Center is currently underway.
RESOURCES FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Fort Collins has several resources available to victims of domestic violence, as discussed below. Many other organizations
in the City serve residents who have experienced IPV, including health care providers (both physical and mental health),
job training centers, assisted housing providers and the many programs that assist persons living in poverty.
Crossroads Safehouse
Crossroads Safehouse is Larimer County’s largest and oldest safehouse, and is one of the largest providers of domestic
violence services in the State of Colorado. The nonprofit has been in operation since 1980. Crossroads provides:
• An emergency hotline for crisis intervention, available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week with language translation services,
• A safehouse with emergency shelter (81 emergency beds that allow up to a 6 week stay and 21 longer-term beds,
with up to a 6 month stay)
• Transitional housing for up to two years (25 vouchers through the Fort Collins Housing Authority),
• Counseling services (202 unduplicated adults served in 2012),
• A unique program, Crosstrails, that provides emergency shelter/foster homes for pets belonging to Safehouse
residents.
Sexual Assault Victim Advocate Center (SAVA)
SAVA assists victims of sexual assault though crisis intervention, advocacy and counseling. SAVA also maintains a 24-
hour hotline for victims and has a large education and outreach component that includes educational programs in schools.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 109
SAVA reports that the greatest needs of their clients are mental health services, rental assistance, and—the most critical—
needs of their clients are mental health services, rental assistance, emergency/transitional housing and transportation to
the Medical Center of the Rockies. For the organization, sustainable sources of funding are needed to be able to increase
school programming, add staff (bilingual, therapist), provide on-site medical services and fund client transportation
services.
ANALYSIS & GAPS
This section summarizes the primary needs and gaps for the three targeted populations discussed in this section: Persons
with Disabilities, Seniors and Victims of Domestic Violence.
PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Approximately 10,000 persons in Fort Collins have one or more types of disabilities. Seniors make up about half of these
residents and have the highest disability incidence rate; their most common disabilities are physical (hearing and
ambulatory). Children represent just 4 percent of the population of persons with disabilities, with their most common
disabilities related to learning and focusing disorders.
Persons with disabilities can face challenges finding employment and working full time; as such, their incomes are usually
lower and poverty rates higher than non-disabled residents. Those living on social security alone receive only $13,500 per
year, which puts them below the poverty line.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 110
Key Needs for Persons with Disabilities
A wide range of supports are necessary to afford persons with disabilities equal enjoyment and participation in a
community. These include affordable housing, public transit, supported employment services, respite care, educational
supports, adaptive recreation and reasonable accommodations knowledge among residents, real estate providers and
businesses.
Fort Collins offers many of these supports, in addition to a strong nonprofit resource center for persons with disabilities. But
the tight housing market and budget cuts that have affected transit provision have recently increased the challenges that
persons with disabilities face in Fort Collins.
An analysis of needs of persons with disabilities conducted for this study quantitatively identified a need for 350 units of
affordable housing to serve persons with disabilities and as many as 60 new accessible housing units. Based on wait lists,
an estimated 600 persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities could use expanded supportive services.
Unemployment rates suggest 1,000 persons with disabilities would benefit from employment to accommodate their needs.
And, based on a housing survey conducted for the City, as many as 2,000 residents could use accessibility modifications
to their homes or apartments.
Interviews with service providers—some of whom were people with disabilities living in the community—also identified a
critical need for expanded transit, particularly to allow later work hours and to access the community on Sundays. These
stakeholders also identified faster access to medical care as a need in Fort Collins.
Affordable and Accessible Housing
It is challenging to quantify the housing needs of persons with disabilities because of the lack of data on the precise
needs of residents with disabilities, as well as the numbers of accessible housing units. Yet service and housing
providers agree that the need is very large. This is evidenced by the disproportionate representation of persons with
disabilities on wait lists of housing providers.
The 2012 AI surveyed Fort Collins households about their accessibility needs. Of the 25 percent of households who
reported having a household member with a disability, 23 percent said their current home or apartment did not meet
their family’s accessibility needs. The most common accessibility improvements needed were grab bars, ramps, wider
doorways and single-level residences.
Although the survey was not a statistically significant representation of all Fort Collins households, the data can be
used to get a general idea of the need for accessibility improvements. Assuming that 23 percent of the housing units
occupied by residents who have at least one household member with a disability and a household size of 1.5 (smaller
than the City’s overall to account for seniors), as many as 2,000 housing units in the City are lacking needed
accessibility improvements.
Wait lists for affordable, accessible housing can also be used to gauge the level of housing needs among persons
with disabilities. ASI’s wait list for Harmony Road apartments is two to three years long. Of the approximately 1,500
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 111
households on the Fort Collins Housing Authority’s wait list for public housing units, 391 have a disability. This is
about 26 percent of all wait-listed households, much higher than the proportion of the population with a disability for
the City overall. Similarly, 336 of the 1,200 households on the wait list for Section 8 vouchers have a disability, which
is equal to 28 percent of Section 8 wait-listed households. Because the wait list has been closed for some time, these
numbers are likely lower-bound estimates of need.
In general, it takes between two and three years for a person with a disability to find affordable housing in the City of
Fort Collins. Housing to serve persons with disabilities must be deeply subsidized (renting for less than $300/month)
due to the low levels of earnings and income transfer payments received by persons with disabilities.
Another analysis in the AI examined what proportion of households benefitting from public housing and housing
choice vouchers were disabled. At the time the study was conducted, 44 percent of public housing residents and 55
percent of voucher holders had a household member with a disability. These proportions are much higher than the
proportion of residents in poverty who have a disability (7%), suggesting that persons with disabilities have higher
rates of participation in publicly subsidized housing because their options in the private market are limited.
The types of disabilities residents in Fort Collins, as in any other community, vary considerably, as do the housing
needs of disabled residents. There is no “one size fits all” approach to providing housing opportunities to persons with
disabilities. For example, while a resident with a physical disability may desire and need to live in the City core with
ample transit and access to services, a resident with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) may have difficulty
sharing an apartment complex with others and may be better suited in a semi-rural area in a single family home.
Landlords who understand reasonable accommodations laws, especially regulations governing companion and
service animals, are also critical.
Enhanced Community Services
The community service needs of persons with disabilities can vary considerably depending on the disability. The
primary needs include:
• Employment, particularly jobs that pay a living wage. The State of Colorado Division of Vocational Rehabilitation
(DVR) assists persons with disabilities to find employment and live independently. DVR counselors help persons
with disabilities develop personal employment plans. In 2008, DVR implemented an Order of Selection (OOS)
process to help manage the demand for their services. Current wait lists for services are reportedly lengthy.
• Infrastructure improvements in Old Town and East Fort Collins to enable persons with disabilities the same
access to community amenities as persons without disabilities (e.g., front door access to restaurants, easy
access to restrooms, street curb cuts).
• Improved community knowledge about the variety of needs of persons with disabilities and how the community
can help accommodate residents with disabilities. (For example, lighting dimmers, contrasting table settings for
persons who are visually impaired).
• For low income residents, quick access (less than a month wait) to adequate health care, including the ability to
see specialists.
Limits on health care reimbursements also contribute to the supportive service needs of persons with disabilities. For
example, persons who are hearing impaired can receive free hearing exams if covered by Medicaid, but Medicaid will
not cover the cost of hearing aids, which can exceed $5,000.
Foothills Gateway has wait lists that average 300 adults and 200 children annually, which exceeds the number of
persons who receive services from the organization. The organization reports increasing demand with insufficient
resource levels to meet this demand.
Transportation Options
For many persons with disabilities, transit is their only source of transportation. A limited transit system—both in terms
of hours of operation and geographical reach—can limit housing choices for persons with disabilities and their ability
to work, as well as access to supportive services and amenities. There are many parts of the urban growth area of
Fort Collins that are not covered by the current public transit and para-transit systems. Persons with disabilities who
live in an area that is not covered by these systems do not have other options and are very isolated and dependent on
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 112
family and friends for all transportation needs. Not only does this have an impact of their ability to socialize and access
health care, it also impacts their ability for employment and their choice in housing options. In addition, if an individual
dependent on public transit needs to go outside of the Fort Collins transit area, connecting to transit systems in
adjacent communities can be time consuming, confusing, and/or unavailable.
The current transit system in Fort Collins runs from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is closed on Sundays. This schedule limits
the ability of persons with disabilities to find jobs, work, and access community activities during evenings and on
Sundays.
SENIORS
Fort Collins is home to 12,500 seniors—and this population is growing. By 2030, the senior population in the City could
approach 25,000.
Seniors have the highest incidence rate of disability in the City: 51 percent of seniors 75 years and older are disabled.
This, coupled with the high proportion of seniors who live alone—40 percent—means that home health care support and
disabilities services needs will increase significantly in the future.
Key Needs for Seniors
The vast majority of seniors age in place, due to both housing preferences and economic constraints. As such, key needs
for seniors in Fort Collins—especially for the growing number of seniors—include accessibility accommodations to their
homes, transportation accommodations for those who cannot drive, and social service supports such as aging resources,
nutrition, and household services.
Although there are a variety of services available to seniors in Fort Collins, gaps exist—and are likely to worsen as the
number of seniors doubles in the next 15 years. The primary gaps include the following.
Housing Options for Grandfamilies
As discussed in the At-Risk Youth section, as many as 900 grandparents in Fort Collins have grandchildren living in
their homes; 224 are the primary care givers to these children. Representatives of local grandfamily organizations
report that finding housing that will accommodate the needs of low income grandparents is very challenging: 60
percent of grandfamilies who qualify for housing subsidies do not receive them, according to a recent report on Best
Practices in Grandfamily housing conducted by CSU Extension in Larimer County. Subsidized senior housing facilities
are generally small (1 bedroom apartments) and do not allow children, nor do they offer the amenities children need
(playgrounds). The situation is more difficult for grandparents who have a disability and/or have a grandchild with
special needs.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 113
Visitable and Accessible Housing
Housing that is “visitable”—i.e., incorporates a zero-step entry, features that can be made accessible with little
modification—allows seniors to age in place with fewer challenges than traditional housing products, which have
stairs, bathrooms that are difficult to make accessible, etc.
As many as 2,000 Fort Collins households expressed a need for accessibility improvements in the survey conducted
for the City’s recent fair housing study; many of these households are seniors. The need for accessibility
improvements will increase in the next 15-20 as the relatively large cohort of “near seniors” ages.
Finally, between 150 and 200 seniors are in need of affordable rental housing, based on wait list information from the
Fort Collins Housing Authority. At the time this report was prepared, 182 seniors were on the wait list for public
housing and 149 were waiting for Section 8 vouchers. Because the wait list has been closed for some time, these
numbers are likely lower-bound estimates of need.
Affordable Rental Housing
Low income seniors also face a gap in affordable rentals, as well as Medicaid-supported beds in assisted living
facilities. As discussed in Section I, there is a shortage of more than 8,000 affordable rentals for low income
households in Fort Collins. This gap affects seniors as much as other low income households. Assisted living facilities
are generally too expensive for low income seniors unless they have some type of subsidy for the facility.
Social Service Supports and Transportation
As the senior population in Larimer County and Fort Collins more than doubles in the next 15 years, demands for
services will increase dramatically. The services more likely to be needed are in-home health care and household
supports (since many seniors age in place) and transportation assistance, including public transit. SAINT identifies
volunteer recruitment, as well as lack of paratransit between Fort Collins and Loveland and limited transit in greater
Larimer County, as a major barrier to transportation assistance for seniors in the county and person with disabilities.
VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Based on the 12 month prevalence of IPV and above service needs, if 3,600 Fort Collins women and 2,900 men
experience IPV annually, approximately 550 (300 women and 250 men) would need services on a monthly basis. This
compares to the 202 adults and 21 children who sought and received services through Crossroads Safehouse’s
counseling program.
Key Needs for Victims of Domestic Violence
For victims of domestic violence, quick access—to services, to housing and to income supports—is critical. Fort Collins
provides many of the critical services for victims of domestic violence, except for dedicated, permanent supportive housing.
It is important to ensure that quick access to emergency health care and longer term mental health support remains in
place. These include the following:
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 114
Emergency Health Care Services
Although the supportive and housing services needed by IPV victims vary, generally, all need health care and
counseling immediately following the event and continued mental health support to assist with the traumatic stress
disorder related to the event. Victims may also require assistance with substance abuse and mental health services,
both of which are common among IPV victims.
Safehouses/Emergency Shelters and Transitional Housing
The National Alliance to End Homelessness argues that a “strong investment in housing is crucial [to victims of
domestic violence]…so that the family or woman is able to leave the shelter system as quickly as possible without
returning to the abuse.” This includes permanently affordable rentals as well as transitional housing that can been
accessed quickly, when needed by victims
fleeing violence.
The Alliance also reports that studies on
homelessness have shown a correlation
between domestic violence and
homelessness.99
Fort Collins has both emergency beds and
transitional housing to assist victims—but no
dedicated permanent, supportive housing to
assist victims of domestic violence.
One of the most noticeable gaps in service is for victimized men. There are no domestic violence shelters in Fort
Collins who only serve men. Prevalence rates suggest that as many as 2,900 men experienced domestic violence in
the City in the past year
Counseling and Mental Health Support
Domestic violence can have lasting effects. The 2010 CDC survey found that IPV victims were more likely to report
frequent headaches, chronic pain, difficulty sleeping, activity limitation, poor physical health and poor mental health, at
rates higher than those who did not experience IPV violence.
Faster Access to Mental Health Services
The NIPSVS estimates that 29 percent of Colorado women experiencing IPV, or 547,000 women, have IPV-related
health impacts. These impacts include fear or concern for safety (28%), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (22%), and
injury or need for medical care (15%). This rate applied to Fort Collins’ population of women 18 years and older
suggests that as many as 5,800 female adult residents of the City have IPV-related health challenges.
The long term health costs of IPV is unclear, because it is difficult to separate out health care problems that are
directly related to IPV. It is likely, though, that the negative impacts of IPV are felt throughout the broader community
in health care costs, missed time at work and school and lasting psychological effects on children and victims.
Permanent, Affordable Housing
Finding affordable housing, especially quickly, as is the case of domestic violence victims, is especially challenging in
tight rental markets. Victims may be more reluctant to leave their situations if affordable housing is not perceived as
readily available. As mentioned above, Fort Collins has no dedicated permanent, supportive housing to assist victims
of domestic violence.
99 http://www.endhomelessness.org/pages/domestic_violence.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 115
SUMMARY OF FINDINGS
While the needs and gaps of the targeted populations examined in this section (persons with disabilities, seniors, and
victims of domestic violence) vary, there are some common themes among them, including, but not limited to the following:
• Affordable, accessible, and appropriate housing;
• Emergency support and rapid access to services;
• Ongoing and enhanced services and support; and
• A broader range of transportation options.
These needs are also apparent in the other targeted populations examined in other sections of this report (residents who
are gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender individuals (GLBT), veterans, and at-risk youth).
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 117
Section VIII. Conclusion and Next Steps
CONCLUSION AND KEY THEMES
As noted in the Summary of Findings contained on page 3 of this report, The City of Fort Collins and its many service
providers have created a solid infrastructure for social sustainability. The City has embraced many best practices for
housing and service programming and is recognized as a very valuable partner by providers.
A community is as much a social environment as a physical environment, and to be successful Fort Collins must be
socially sustainable. Yet, gaps do exist that prevent many in the community from realizing their full potential. Some of
these gaps are market driven (e.g., high demand for housing), many are economic (e.g., budget cuts for organizations, job
losses for residents), and some are driven by demographics or the unique needs of special populations.
During the preparation of this report, several key themes emerged that reinforce the need to take a comprehensive
approach towards a more sustainable future for the City. Each of these themes, described below, is cross-cutting-they
affect many different populations in Fort Collins, and begins to suggest some areas of focus towards a more socially
sustainable future.
• Housing Across the Spectrum of Needs - In order to ensure a successful future, Fort Collins needs a wider range
of housing that meets the needs of different households and economic groups. Lack of affordable housing affects
most of the target populations examined in this study—although some are impacted more than most, such as persons
experiencing or at-risk of homelessness, persons with disabilities and seniors and persons earning low wages and
living in poverty. But increasingly, housing availability is becoming a problem for the community’s workforce and
middle class, affecting our economic vitality as well as social well-being.
• Maintaining a Healthy Community - The City generally has a healthy, active population and has a strong
infrastructure for physical education and recreation—yet growing obesity rates among the City’s youth and others
reinforce a need to integrate more physical activity into daily life. The overall health of our community – including
mental health, a growing problem – is important to all segments of our population, from youth to seniors to elderly.
• Transportation Options - Although an analysis of transportation alternatives and how they affect the target groups
assessed in this report was not a specific part of this study, transportation challenges were raised by many of the
stakeholders. The most common barrier mentioned was lack of transit availability on weekday evenings and Sundays,
which limits persons with disabilities from taking jobs that require evening or Sunday hours—in addition to hampering
their full participation in the community. Other considerations include access to medical services, shopping, and
recreation for seniors. As our population ages, of necessity many in the community will become less able to rely on
cars for daily needs, and our transportation system will need to evolve to meet these changing needs.
• Income Disparity – Nearly 20 percent of the community are living in poverty, a factor that is particularly acute for
families. Over half of those in poverty are employed. For those not working or working in low wage jobs, there is a
growing disparity between them and others employed in higher-paying sectors. This impacts their ability to meet a
number of their primary needs such as housing, transportation, child care, health care, and others.
CREATING A SOCIAL SUSTAINABLE FORT COLLINS
It is very important to clarify that creating social sustainability is not the same as eliminating need. Rather, it is building a
safety net that will adequately assist residents who have short-term needs and ensuring that residents with long-term
needs have access to ongoing social and economic supports.
It is also important to note that needs are fluid. A numerical gap in resources only reflects needs for a temporary point in
time. It is difficult, therefore to develop a single gaps, or shortage, number and manage to this target. Instead, a socially
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 118
sustainability community should have a flexible menu of supportive services in place that residents are able to access as
their needs fluctuate.
To that end, we offer the following characteristics of a socially sustainability community toward which Fort Collins can aim:
Resources are in place to enable residents who are living below the poverty line to
become self-sufficient to the extent possible.
• Programs exist that allow residents to receive skills training, potentially through a community college system, job
searching and networking or employer mentoring/matching services. Support services—e.g., affordable and
immediate childcare—are in place to mitigate barriers to achievement.
• Employers receive training and support to successfully retain employees coming out of generational poverty.
The community provides access to services, health care, amenities, education and job
opportunities to all residents.
• Funding is stabilized, as much as possible, so residents can receive consistent levels and frequency of care. This is
necessary because when faced with budget cuts, organizations will first reduce the amount of services provided rather
than remove current clients from their programs. Clients may not receive the same depth of care or early intervention,
which can affect the pace of their recovery.
• Persons with disabilities can easily move throughout the community, are valued and accepted and are included in all
aspects of the community. Access to housing and transit do not restrict persons with disabilities to certain parts of the
community.
• Residents are able to rapidly access and receive the depth of treatment needed for mental health, physical health and
substance abuse needs.
• High quality health care is delivered across the continuum of care: therapy, outpatient care, inpatient care, residential
treatment for addictions, mental health care.
• Jobs exist that pay living wages for all types of residents. Residents can access training programs to build their skill
sets and education. Persons with disabilities have employment opportunities similar to their peers without disabilities.
• The City maintains a flexible and comprehensive transit system to provide residents without cars and non-drivers
(e.g., youth, persons with disabilities, persons with health challenges) equal access to services, health care facilities,
amenities and commercial establishments.
Programs are in place to increase sustainability for at-risk youth and improve the
educational environment for youth.
• The community has quality early intervention for at-risk youth and quality early childhood education programs—which
have been proven to have large, long-term payoffs—for all children. Scholarships and reduced tuition are available to
low income children.
• Funding exists to ensure that staff of the organizations that work with the City’s youth are paid livable wages and
receive benefits, as staff consistency is important for children.
• Before and after school, and summer care exists for any low-income family who needs care during work or job
training. Immediate and alternative schedule childcare is available to families who have emergency care needs due to
nontraditional work and job training schedules.
• Flexible and adequate transit systems allow children to access before and after school programs and needed services
(e.g., counseling, support programs for at-risk children).
• Affordable housing for families is available to mitigate frequent moves and disruption in schooling.
The community has a supply of affordable housing, including shelters that residents can
access as their circumstances change.
• The community has a housing continuum that enables residents to move from an emergency shelter to transitional
housing to permanent housing without delays or barriers. This includes housing for special needs populations
including youth transitioning out of foster care, persons with disabilities who need accessible housing and families who
have experienced domestic violence, to prevent victims from returning to their perpetrators to avoid homelessness.
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAPS ANALYSIS 119
• This system includes adequate resources for emergency and utilities assistance for households and families with
short term financial needs and to prevent homelessness.
Social sustainability is viewed as a cooperative venture among the City, residents and
service providers.
• The community fosters a collaborative, not competitive, environment of compatible services among the many quality
organizations that serve residents in need in Fort Collins. Service providers have regularly scheduled, formal
opportunities to share information about their resources and challenges and form partnerships.
• The community provides easy access to services. Referrals are accurate and timely.
• The City fosters a sense of community and encourages residents to help the City’s most vulnerable populations build
and sustain supportive networks of friends, neighbors and families.
• Service providers have appropriate, adequate space to accommodate clients.
• Nonprofits that provide critical supportive services are able to focus on service provision rather than fundraising. For
organizations that provide services that are difficult for the community to talk about (e.g., child sexual abuse,
HIV/AIDS), fundraising can be particularly challenging.
Health and wellness are seen as essential components in maintaining the community’s
high quality of life.
• Residents have opportunities to engage in active lifestyles through parks and recreation options, and transportation
choices.
• The City recognizes the role of sidewalks, safe pedestrian crossings, transit stops, and other elements of the built
environment in supporting active and healthy lifestyles.
• Healthy and nutritious food is available and accessible to all population groups, and they have the skills and time to
make healthy eating choices.
NEXT STEPS
The characteristics of a socially sustainable Fort Collins, identified above, represent a preliminary attempt to articulate
some of the emerging key themes and ideas resulting from this Gaps Analysis exercise. Over the coming months, the City
of Fort Collins will launch a strategic planning effort to more clearly define the City’s vision and goals related to social
sustainability, and to develop a targeted and clear action plan to achieve them.
In addition to drawing on the key findings of this report, the Social Sustainability Strategic Plan will also draw upon the
City’s recent organizational planning and Budgeting for Outcomes processes. The planning process will involve City staff in
the Social Sustainability department, as well as other City departments that are currently addressing issues related to
social sustainability. Moreover, the process will include ample opportunities for community participation and comments.
1
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY GAP
ANALYSIS
ATTACHMENT 2
2
SUSTAINABILITY SERVICES
Environmental
Social Economic
3
MASLOW’S HEIRARCHY
4
STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS
GAP ANALYSIS
SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
STRATEGIC PLAN
SUSTAINABILITY AREA
STRATEGIC PLAN
5
DEFINITION OF SOCIAL
SUSTAINABILITY
Social Sustainability is the practice of ensuring
healthy social systems so that people in our
community can thrive.
6
QUESTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION
Are there any focus areas missing in which Council
feels the City should participate?
Are there any areas in which the City should not be
involved?
Currently the roles the City of Fort Collins plays in
these issues are: Funder, Provider of incentives,
Convener, Strategic partner, Collaborator, Provider
of reduced program fees.
Ø What are Council’s thoughts regarding these roles
or others the City should consider?
7
GAP ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY
• Collection of existing data
• Interviews with providers
• Comparison of existing resources and capacity
levels with needs
8
FOCUS AREAS OF THE ANALYSIS
• Housing
• Homelessness
• Poverty
• Health and Wellness
• Education and At-Risk Youth
• Diversity and Equity—racial/ethnic, religious,
sexual orientation
• Targeted Populations-Persons with
Disabilities, Seniors, Veterans, Victims of
domestic violence
9
CURRENT CITY EFFORTS
• Affordable Housing Projects
• Human Service Agency Funding
• Reduced Fees for Recreation and
Cultural Programs
• Free Natural Area Programs
• Grocery Tax Rebate
• Utility Assistance
10
KEY THEMES
• Income Disparity
• Housing Across the Spectrum of Needs
• Maintaining a Healthy Community
• Transportation Options
11
INCOME DISPARITY
• 19.3% poverty rate
• 55% of persons in poverty and 30-40% of homeless
work
• Area median income down two years in a row
12
INCOME DISPARITY
• 8,200 households food insecure
• Child Care Assistance is inadequate
• Need additional sliding scale child care providers
• Before/after school and summer programs are
expensive
• Transit is a barrier to accessing programs
13
HOUSING
• Cost burdened > 30% of monthly income
• 59% renters, 28% homeowners cost burdened
• Shortage of approximately 4000 affordable rental
units for <$25,000/year earners
• Lack of security deposit assistance
14
HOUSING
HOUSING FOR HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS
• 100 chronic homeless, 1000 PSD
students per year
• Gaps in entire continuum of housing
• Needs for homeless youth and
families
• Previously incarcerated have few choices
15
HOUSING
ACCESSIBLE, AFFORDABLE HOUSING for DISABLED
•
• 2000 units need accessibility
improvements
• Need 350 housing units costing
less than $500 per month and
housing vouchers
• Can take 2-3 years
• Housing needed near transit
•
16
HOUSING
HOUSING AND SERVICES FOR RAPIDLY
GROWING SENIOR POPULATION
• Housing is becoming unaffordable
for fixed incomes
• Increased need for accessible
housing (walkable, near transit)
• Grandparents raising
grandchildren need appropriate housing
17
MAINTAINING A HEALTHY
COMMUNITY
• CICP hospital admissions
and patient visits increased
237% between 2000-2012
• Gaps in food provision are
economically based
• Obesity rate of 18.1% for
children ages 2-14
18
MAINTAINING A HEALTHY
COMMUNITY
• Approximately 2,700 have untreated mental
illness
• 35 suicides per year
• 4-6 week wait for psychiatrist
or psychologist
• Lack quality 24/7 mental
health services
19
TRANSPORTATION
Major gap is transportation options and availability
• Youth
• Seniors
• Disabled
• Low income
• Homeless
20
NEXT STEPS
• Begin Social Sustainability
Strategic Plan development
process
• Present Social Sustainability
Strategic Plan draft in July
21
QUESTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION
Are there any focus areas missing in which Council
feels the City should participate?
Are there any areas in which the City should not be
involved?
Currently the roles the City of Fort Collins plays in
these issues are: Funder, Provider of incentives,
Convener, Strategic partner, Collaborator, Provider
of reduced program fees.
Ø What are Council’s thoughts regarding these roles
or others the City should consider?
4,925 57%
189 2%
Living with others
Living with family member
Living with other than family member
Living alone
Number Percent
Housing Stock
Renter
Purchase
Gap
Renters Who Want
to Buy: Max
Affordable Home
to keep up with
increase in value
$80,916
Actual median
income
2000
OWNERS