Late at night on July 17, hours after Mike Johnston and City Council were sworn into office, District 11 Councilmember Stacie Gilmore received a text message that she was invited to stand behind the new mayor as he declared a homeless state of emergency.

At that press conference, Johnston created the appearance of consensus between City Council and his office — the idea that they were all in it together.

“Talk about a dog and pony show,” Gilmore told Denverite on Wednesday morning.

The Council members stayed quiet as he spoke. But Gilmore feared the administration’s homelessness policy was already going off the rails.

As days rolled by, it was clear Johnston was flying the plane while building it. Six months in, that’s still the case: Denver faces record evictions, shelters are full, busses of migrants are arriving nearly every day and many, including families with children, are sleeping in tents on the streets.

Gilmore, along with others in the city, believed Johnston was moving too quickly and without really knowing how he would actually house 1,000 people by December 31, as he pledged.

“I want to figure out how we can address the issues of people experiencing homelessness,” Gilmore said. “We have a migrant crisis. But you know what, I’m not here to fulfill somebody’s campaign promise.”

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