[URGENT Call-to-Action at Bottom]
“They took it out on the dog later and kicked me out because of him. It was just because I complained—my kids were getting covered in water mixed with feces dripping on them, and the room smelled terrible—and that’s why they targeted me.”
Tomas Martinez*, his wife Maribel Martinez*, and their three daughters and one son have been living at family shelter Tamarac, contracted by the City of Denver and managed by BayaudWorks, which was recently acquired by national conglomerate AC Disaster Consulting. For about a year, Tomas and his family were ideal tenants: doing chores, picking up trash in the parking lot, with no previous rule infractions – and without having received any sort of housing assistance from case management. Things remained peaceful, for the most part. It wasn’t until the family started complaining about a rancid liquid leaking from their ceiling and smoke detector nearly a month ago that they noticed a shift in behavior towards them.
*names have been changed for anonymity
“On June 15th, I went to the front desk to complain because dirty water was leaking into the room where I sleep with my children, but the reception staff refused to help me move to another room. I went back down later and told them that a lot of water was pouring in again—foul, sewage-contaminated water. They just laughed at me and said they wouldn’t give me a new room until Monday, when the person in charge arrived. So, I went back down again and told them that if they didn’t help me, I would ask the city authorities for assistance the next day; I told them what they were doing to me was unfair.”
June 15th was a Monday, meaning the shelter was telling Tomas and their family that they would have to survive the leak for a week before being offered a different room, exposing their children to a potential biohazard for a week. It wasn’t until Tomas escalated the situation that they finally moved his family to a new room – 3 days later, at 3 o’clock in the morning. On June 20th, staff noticed that Tomas had adopted a puppy for their youngest son, who had been dealing with severe depression ever since an incident of attempted kidnapping in the parking lot of a King Soopers in July of 2025. Tomas showed Housekeys Action Network Denver (HAND) supporting police reports of the kidnapping. Still, Tamarac shelter staff put up further barriers for them.
“On June 20th, they started giving me trouble. They told me I had to find a place for our dog because she couldn’t stay there with us. I started working on that; I told them I was looking for a place to take the dog. We began the process, and they said, ‘Okay, sure’. They gave me some phone numbers for pet services that could take her in for safekeeping. We started working on it, but I kept them updated every day, explaining that the dog was still there because I hadn’t found a place yet—though I was actively looking, as the current situation wasn’t good for her. I had to get her out as quickly as possible… Well, on the 25th, I found someone named [REDACTED] who works here at the hotel. I gave him the pet so he could take her and keep her at his place. He helped me out, but then they called [REDACTED] and told him he had to bring the dog back to me, or else they would kick him out of the shelter. He works here and can confirm this—that it actually happened—because they threatened to fire him from his job if he didn’t bring the dog back. He brought the pet back and told me, ‘Tomas, I can’t keep the dog because Mr. Á told me I wasn’t allowed to have her, or else he’d fire me.’”
Given that the family wasn’t allowed to give the dog to the shelter employee until they figured out another plan, and since being informed the pet had to be certified as an emotional support animal to be accepted, they made an appointment with their doctor to officially certify the animal. HAND was shown official medical notes signed by the provider regarding the six year old’s documented diagnosis of “feeling of sadness”, describing his incessant crying, and noting the stark positive impact the puppy has had on their son’s mental health. By Colorado legal standards, Tomas did his due diligence to get a letter from a medical professional that satisfies all the legal requirements. As recently as May of this year, Colorado Governor Jared Polis officially signed House Bill 26-1045 into law to further strengthen Colorado’s protections for emotional support animals. In a Denver7 article titled Colorado lawmakers enshrine protections for emotional support animals amid federal rollback, they state:
As defined in the new state law, reasonable accommodation is an exception or adjustment to a rule, policy, practice, or service that enables a person with a disability to have equal housing opportunities. Under the Fair Housing Act (FHA), reasonable accommodations must be provided to individuals who live with disabilities to ensure equal access to housing. In addition, tenants with disabilities may have pet deposits or monthly fees waived. HB26-1045 defines an ‘assistance animal’ as both an emotional support animal and a service animal. The legislation added those definitions to the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA). (https://www.denver7.com/news/politics/colorado-lawmakers-enshrine-protections-for-emotional-support-animals-amid-federal-rollback)
However, when HAND reached out to Denver City officials and BayaudWorks shelter management regarding the family’s right to have an animal due to disability accommodations, the City’s response made clear their stance surrounding protections for disabled people in shelters. Emily Cervantes, Community Engagement Officer for the Department of Housing and Stability (HOST), wrote:
Tamarac is an emergency shelter, and families do not reside there under a lease; as such, the Fair Housing Act protections that apply to emotional support animals in rental housing do not extend to emergency shelter settings.
This sentiment is exactly why HAND, with the support of Disability Law United, Newman | McNulty, LLC, and Brooklyn Law School’s Disability & Civil Rights Clinic, is suing the City of Denver for rights violations against disabled people staying in shelters, resulting in losses of access to shelters and returning many disabled people to the streets with no support.
Shelters and facilities under contract with and funded by Denver systemically fail to provide accessible services to disabled people. From shelters that are inaccessible to wheelchair users, to inadequately trained shelter staff who confiscated necessary medical supplies or prevented individuals with disabilities from utilizing existing resources earmarked for accessibility, the six named plaintiffs were left without shelter, experienced significant medical complications and emotional distress, and lost personal property with no recompense. As a result, HAND was forced to expend its valuable resources helping these individuals survive being cast into the streets with nowhere to shelter, at times paying for hotel rooms for houseless individuals in crisis. (https://disabilitylawunited.org/2025/02/26/disability-advocates-sue-denver-allege-systemic-discrimination-failure-to-provide-accessible-shelter-services-to-disabled-houseless-people/)
Tomas found a new home for the ESA by the June 29th deadline given in order to remain in good standing at the shelter. Unfortunately, it didn’t matter to Tamarac management. Tomas received official discharge from the Tamarac shelter for false claims that he “threatened to incite a riot”, “threatened shelter staff” and “violated the pet policy” even when he rehomed the pet before the given deadline. All of these claims are completely fabricated and false. His family has been given notice to vacate their room under threat of police action by this Saturday at 5pm. On July 10th, the lead case manager went as far as to threaten Tomas and Ana’s housing by invoking their migratory status, stating “…if law enforcement is contacted and you are trespassed, returning to the site could result in arrest, which may adversely affect your immigration process…” Tomas has been hospitalized multiple times since June 29th due to heart issues related to stress and anxiety thanks to the threats and harassment of the BayaudWorks employees.
It is of urgent concern that the people of Denver speak out against this injustice to hold BayaudWorks and the Tamarac Family Shelter accountable, and prevent yet another disabled family from facing houselessness in our city.
“My children are crying and worried, and my wife is too; we haven’t slept at all, and God knows that’s the truth. I’m worried about what’s coming because we don’t have a home; they’re treating us unfairly. They’re being unfair to us because we haven’t misbehaved here; we don’t have vices, we’re Christians, and we’re a family that has been through a lot.”
CALL TO ACTION:
Community, the Martinez family needs your voices & your support now more than ever.
EMAIL:
- Bayaud Executive Director: Tammy.Bellofatto@bayaudenterprises.org
- HOST Executive Director: Jeff.Kositsky@denvergov.org
CALL: The Mayor’s office
- Tel: 720-865-9000
CALL: District 4 Representative Diana Romero-Campbell
- Tel: (720) 337-4444
EMAIL: district4@denvergov.org
SCRIPT:
My name is _____, I’m a constituent of Denver contacting you about the family evicted from the Tamarac Family Shelter yesterday, Saturday, July 11th at 5pm.
The City of Denver & its partners must support this family in collaboration with HAND to provide fair, accessible shelter in a timely manner, including with their certified emotional support animal. The Tamarac Family Shelter must also be held accountable for their discrimination towards people with disabilities, & harassment & retaliation towards tenants who advocate for themselves – including threats based on immigration status.
Disability protections MUST apply to all residents of Denver, including persons residing in emergency shelters.
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