An influx of Venezuelan migrants to Carbondale that received national attention has prompted state legislators to authorize $5 million in emergency funding to support local efforts across the state to aid migrants.
Local nonprofit Voces Unidas de las Montañas in early November discovered about 80 adult migrants living under a bridge in the mountain town northwest of Aspen; that number has grown to about 150 people and now includes families with children, according to the organization. Local efforts to house all the newcomers have been met with financial and physical challenges.
To support this and other communities receiving migrants across the state, the Colorado Joint Budget Committee in a four-to-two vote on Wednesday approved $5 million in emergency supplemental funding community groups can access through state Department of Safety grants, an effort spearheaded by Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, D-Glenwood Springs.
Many of the migrants came to Carbondale to find work at ski resorts and in construction, the Washington Post reported, and Velasco said in a Denver Post interview it’s important to aid these newcomers who are trying to be part of the community.
“It’s in our interest to support them because they’re going to be part of our history, part of the fabric of what it means to be Coloradan,” Velasco said. “We have labor shortages in many areas, so it’s also an opportunity to give a leg up to new members of the community who can help support our economy.”
In Carbondale, Voces Unidas reported Friday they have begun trying to house the group of migrants, but their temporary shelter at the Third Street Center community building can only house 50 people.
In a Wednesday news release, Carbondale officials said they have opened a community room in the town hall to shelter 20 people and are exploring other partnerships to open temporary shelters.
“We have actively explored additional sheltering options, including outreach to entities that manage shelters,” Town Manager Lauren Gister stated in the release. “The number of people arriving in Carbondale has exceeded available resources. We are grateful for the nonprofits, faith organizations, businesses and individual volunteers who have stepped forward to help provide everything from winter clothing to dinners.”
While Carbondale town officials and Voces Unidas are working to house as many migrants as they can, Velasco said most of the town’s newcomers are living in vehicles or still under the bridge in tents.
Velasco said rural communities like Carbondale don’t always have the resources to provide basic needs to new groups of migrants, and unique situations like a COVID-19 outbreak at one of the town’s temporary shelters put even further strains on existing efforts.
“Our new neighbors have short-term, urgent needs, and long-term needs,” Velasco said. “Our local nonprofits have been offering hot meals, access to health care, access to rent and housing support, and these funds are available to nonprofits to get reimbursed for those efforts.”
Many areas across the U.S. and the world are seeing a large wave of migrants escaping Venezuelan political turmoil and a humanitarian crisis. The United Nations Refugee Agency estimates over 7.7 million refugees and migrants have left Venezuela, and nearly 550,000 were in the U.S. as of August 2023.
Velasco said although this is a global crisis, it’s up to local communities to support the migrants.
“There are many things we cannot control, but we can control how we respond,” she said. “I am proud of our communities and look forward to the state continuing to do more to support (migrants).”
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