On a recent weekday afternoon, residents of the safe-camping site set up in a church parking lot at 16th Avenue and Pearl Street sat in chairs placed in a semi-circle, cracking jokes, telling stories and smoking cigarettes.
The group varied widely in age, but its members shared a positive energy. One came out of her tent wearing a Cat in the Hat costume; others played fetch with a pet dog. While they chatted, a few talked about working on their sobriety, while others related how their feelings of anxiety had dropped since they'd been sleeping at the safe-camping site next to the Denver Community Church.