East Colfax Neighborhood Trust
With East Colfax Community Collective
We met East Colfax Community Collective (EC3), a neighborhood organization deeply rooted in Denver and Aurora’s East Colfax neighborhood, in 2022, and partnered through 2023 and 2024 on launching the East Colfax MINT (EC MINT). EC3 is a tenant organizing and advocacy organization supporting the East Colfax neighborhood, which is referred to as the last affordable neighborhood in Denver. This neighborhood is located close to downtown and key job centers and adjacent to higher income neighborhoods. East Colfax is the proud home of many immigrant and refugee populations, who experience displacement pressures from both predatory and negligent ownership as well as dramatic early gentrification. EC3 is a community group focused on supporting local residents and business owners as they face the pressures of outside investment and gentrification. They uniquely focus on supporting its diverse community, with EC MINT meetings often held in 3-4 languages. EC MINT began its acquisitions with an apartment building where it had organized residents, and has been building on that work as EC MINT aims to own 100 units within the next year, and 1,000 units over the next decade.
To learn more about EC MINT’s first acquisition, 1371 Xenia St in Denver, check out this Case Study by Enterprise Community Partners!
KEY PRIORITIES
Improve housing quality
Protect affordable housing at risk of flipping in the speculative market
Build multi-lingual, multi-racial community power
Replace negligent ownership
