By Thomas Gounley – Business Den

The Denver Housing Authority has closed on the purchase of a northeast Denver hotel that the city plans to lease for use as a homeless shelter.

The organization’s $25.95 million purchase of the 194-unit former Best Western at 4595 Quebec St., which it announced in late July, closed on Wednesday, records show.

The city said in a news release last month that it would lease the property from the Denver Housing Authority and contract with an organization to operate as a non-congregate shelter with supportive services. In a few years, the property will be converted to supportive housing; more than half the units already have kitchenettes.

Mayor Mike Johnston touted the deal last month as a critical part of his effort to house 1,000 homeless individuals by the end of the year.

“This acquisition is the first key piece of that puzzle and puts us on a solid path to achieving our goal, connecting our unhoused neighbors to housing and low-barrier shelter, and improving quality of life in neighborhoods across our city,” Johnston said in a statement.

The city said the purchase was made with approximately $11 million in DHA Delivers for Denver (D3) bond funds and a bridge loan of $16 million through Northern Trust. The city intends to pay off the bridge loan using federal funds made available through the American Rescue Plan Act.

The property was sold by Denver Hotels LLC, which paid $11 million for it in February 2018, records show. Nupen Patel signed the paperwork on behalf of the seller.

This is the second such hotel deal to close this month.

The former Stay Inn at 12033 E. 38th Ave. was purchased directly by the city on Aug. 11, more than two years after the planned purchase was originally announced. That property will be used as supportive housing once rezoned.

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