DENVER (KDVR) — Renters in Denver’s Capitol Hill neighborhood say they are fed up with people trespassing into apartment buildings to do drugs.
“This is a recurring issue and it doesn’t ever seem to stop,” John Calhoun said.
Calhoun said he is a Colorado native and has seen the area change a lot over the past few years. Recently, however, he says living in Cap Hill has started to feel unsafe.
“I think that where this building is located, right in the heart of Cap Hill, it’s like a hub for homeless to come in and out,” he said.
He declined to share the identity of the building where he is experiencing problems but said he regularly finds people, who do not live there, in the stairwells.
“I had to physically kick someone out at 4 in the morning before a job interview,” he said.
While the unwanted guests are a nuisance, he said the real problem is the illegal activity.
“Inside the building, there were pieces of foil that were burnt, so clearly it was meant for smoking some type of, I presume, hard drug,” Calhoun said.
He said he also regularly finds needles steps outside the front door.
“They’re just sprayed out everywhere, just left after they’re used, left for people to step on, dogs to step on,” he said.
Calhoun said he feels like property managers need to do more to keep residents safe.
“I just think that owners of buildings and property management groups need to take accountability,” he said.
Apartments upgrade security, but issues persist
“I think when you have a dense population of people, that’s when you’re going to find the most problems,” Tamera Greene said.
Greene is a board member of the Apartment Association of Metro Denver. She also owns and manages properties across the Front Range.
“I think it’s been an ongoing issue that we’ve been managing through the years, probably the last five to 10 years,” she said.
Greene said property managers and building owners have made major investments in security enhancements to protect residents and their dwellings from unwanted visitors.
“Most of the buildings are fob access operated, so not everyone can just walk in off the streets, so controlled access. A lot of the properties do have cameras all over the place,” she said.
However, she said current security standards do have flaws.
“Some people, when they walk their pets, they prop a door open because they might have forgot their fob, so then someone comes in. Or, someone comes in right behind someone without even asking if they live there,” Greene said.
She said as more people move into Colorado, it is important for property managers and residents to work together to keep communities safe. She encourages anyone having security concerns to reach out to their property management company.