Mayor Johnston concedes narrow loss of affordable housing ballot measure 2R

DENVER (KDVR) — Denver Mayor Mike Johnston conceded Saturday that voters appear to have narrowly defeated a citywide ballot measure that would have advanced his affordable housing proposal.

Denver City Council voted to move forward with the ballot proposal in August, asking voters to approve a sales and use tax rate increase of 0.5% — from 8.81% to 9.31%. The additional taxes would then be used to build affordable housing in Denver.

The measure did have some exceptions, such as food, fuel and medical supplies. However, according to Saturday's unofficial vote tabulations for Denver, the measure lost by about a percentage point: 49.26% of votes were in favor, while 50.74% were opposed. Official results are set to be certified later this month following a canvass of the results.

Johnston addressed the ballot measure's rejection on Saturday.

“We are grateful to the council members, housing advocates and community leaders who took on the challenge of addressing our affordability crisis head on," he wrote. "We knew this would be a difficult struggle, but thanks to their courage, 2R fell short by the narrowest of margins, and Denverites continue to speak loudly about the need to confront rising housing costs across Denver."

However, Johnston didn't appear to be backing down from creating affordable housing and more affordable ways of life in the city and county.

"2R was one path to make Denver more affordable, but it’s not the only path forward," Johnston said. "I remain committed to finding new solutions to take on this challenge. We continue to believe that our toughest problems are solvable, and we are the ones to solve them - that will never change.”

The measure would have generated about $100 million to complement existing funding, according to the mayor's office, such as the Affordable Housing Fund and Homeless Resolution Fund.