Jamie Rife, the executive director of Denver’s Department of Housing Stability (HOST), will leave the office at the end of the month.
Rife is leaving to be a vice president with Housing Connector, a nonprofit that provides housing for homeless people in several cities across the United States.
Her last day with Denver will be Nov. 30.
“It has been the honor of my professional career to serve our community and work alongside so many dedicated colleagues committed to creating affordable housing and addressing homelessness,” Rife said in a press release.
As the director of the city’s housing stability department, Rife was tasked with overseeing Mayor Mike Johnston’s ambitious goal to end street homelessness in four years. The department supervises homeless shelters, contractors hired to run them, and the development and management of the city’s affordable housing program.
The city says that under Rife’s tenure, the All In Mile Initiative brought about 7,700 people into shelters and moved 6,500 more into permanent housing.
“Tonight, thousands of Denverites will sleep in their own beds and not the streets because of the work of Jamie Rife,” Johnston said in a statement.
All In Mile High has recently entered a new phase, as the mayor says encampments are far less common in the city. Now, the initiative is focused on housing vouchers to move more people from shelters to permanent housing.
The city is looking for the next director of HOST. In the meantime, HOST Deputy Chief Operating Officer Molly Urbina will lead the department on an interim basis.
