City of Lakewood addresses Colorado migrant crisis and "incorrect community information" being shared
There is confusion and controversy about Lakewood's role in helping Denver during the migrant crisis, and it's prompting an emergency meeting that has been called by the community.
A flyer and letter from a group calling themselves, "Concerned Citizens in Lakewood" is claiming Lakewood City Council will be voting on becoming a sanctuary city. Meanwhile, the city says the group is spreading false information.
On Friday afternoon, the letter was sent to the mayor of Lakewood, chief of police, and city counselors.
Some of the other claims in the letter say the city plans on housing migrants in vacant Jefferson County schools, and that Denver plans to transport thousands of migrants to Lakewood.
"Lakewood has hundreds of citizens that are very concerned with this. We invite you to come and listen to concerns, share what you know about these plans, and how you see this playing out in our city," the letter read.
On Monday, the city of Lakewood issued a statement ahead of Tuesday's meeting, saying none of what has been posted online or by some news media outlets is true. The statement also said the city council is not considering designating Lakewood as a sanctuary city, and council members have not made this proposal or will be considering this in the near future.
The City of Lakewood also said in its statement that the city does not own or manage JeffCo Public Schools, and migrants will not be housed there.
The city did acknowledge the only action they've taken is having the Lakewood city manager meet with Denver to better understand the migrant crisis, its impacts, and their needs -- in the spirit of "being a good neighbor."
A briefing of the meeting between the Lakewood City Manager and Denver has since been posted online.
City council members said they've advised the city manager to provide a report of their meeting with Denver during the scheduled city council meeting on Feb. 12 to determine the next possible steps.
The City of Lakewood added the focus of the request is to address the crisis, and Denver never asked Lakewood to house migrants.
Instead, the city of Lakewood said Denver requested two things: to refer people to resources on the city and county of Denver website and invite the Lakewood community to volunteer their time or donate items.
In their statement, the city of Lakewood also said: "The focus of this request is to address the humanitarian crisis through such avenues as mobilizing nonprofit organizations in Lakewood to support Denver's needs, and are not an attempt to offer housing in Lakewood. The city's role in this example could be providing access to information and resources or connecting individuals in need with nonprofits and volunteers in our community."
Meanwhile, the group said in its letter, "It is time for us citizens to start letting our elected officials that we Do Not agree with this possible situation of them making Lakewood a Sanctuary City, and it time for them to listen to their constituents... In addition to the serious concern of Denver making their problem ours, there are significant concerns about the ramifications and impacts this will create in our neighborhoods and greater community."
The town hall meeting was originally supposed to take place at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Dunstan Middle School but on Tuesday afternoon, it was changed to 1626 Cole Boulevard in Lakewood.
