Loveland Defends Order to Close Recovery Housing; Nonprofit Disputes Claims

City cites months of code enforcement, fire hazards and occupancy violations; SuPEERior Connections says officials rejected proposed safety measures and required disability accommodations.

LOVELAND, Colo. — The City of Loveland says its order requiring a recovery housing facility to vacate by July 22 follows months of discussions, inspections and code enforcement efforts aimed at addressing serious life-safety concerns. SuPEERior Connections-Loveland, which operates the facility, disputes the city’s account, arguing officials rejected proposed interim safety measures and failed to meet obligations under federal disability laws.

The dispute centers on the property at 914 W. Sixth St., where SuPEERior Connections provides peer-led recovery housing and support services for individuals recovering from substance use disorders, mental health conditions and involvement with the criminal justice system.

City outlines months-long enforcement process

In a statement provided to North Forty News, the City of Loveland said it first met with the property’s tenant in February 2026 and advised that the building, which remained configured as a medical office, could not legally be occupied for residential purposes without completing required building and safety processes.

According to the city, residents moved into the building despite that warning.

In June, city officials said they learned that the property was being operated by SuPEERior Connections as a nonprofit recovery residence offering life-skills and peer-coaching programs funded through Colorado Medicaid. The city said it asked whether the organization held the required state license to operate such a facility and was told it did not, but that it intended to apply.

The city maintains that operating the building as a recovery residence requires a building permit, a certificate of occupancy, compliance with applicable zoning requirements, and appropriate state licensing.

Officials said the nonprofit later asserted the building should instead be considered a single-family residence. The city rejected that characterization, stating that a 36-bedroom facility requires commercial-grade fire and life-safety protections regardless of its classification.

The city issued an initial Notice and Order on June 18.

A joint inspection by a city building inspector and the Loveland Fire Rescue Authority Fire Marshal on June 29 identified what officials described as multiple serious hazards, including unpermitted electrical, gas, mechanical and plumbing work; inadequate emergency exits; the absence of fire sprinklers, smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors; and inadequate ventilation.

“The combination of those life-safety concerns poses a serious fire hazard, rendering the building unsafe and unfit for human occupancy,” the city said.

Based on those findings, officials issued a final Notice and Order on July 6 requiring the building to be vacated by July 22.

“The City cannot, in good conscience, allow people to continue staying there, even with interim remedial measures,” the statement said.

The city said that protecting residents remains its highest priority and that the nonprofit’s proposed temporary measures would not adequately address the conditions found during the inspection.

While acknowledging the impact of the order, officials said they have directed residents to licensed recovery housing resources and other community services, including Colorado Certified Recovery Residences and the city’s homelessness resource network.

Nonprofit says it sought collaboration

SuPEERior Connections disputes the city’s description of the events leading to the vacate order. Jennifer Ames, director of operations, and Kenneth Murriel, executive director, say the organization repeatedly attempted to work with city officials to address safety concerns while avoiding the displacement of approximately 45 residents.

According to the nonprofit, city officials never provided a written list of violations, code citations, a corrective action plan, or a reasonable timeline for bringing the building into compliance before issuing the order to vacate.

The organization says it proposed an Interim Life Safety Plan that included a certified 24-hour fire watch, installation of a wireless smoke and carbon monoxide detection system, and a plan to pursue emergency funding for sprinkler and egress improvements while residents remained housed. It contends those proposals were rejected without meaningful consideration.

“We are not asking to be permanently exempt from fire safety requirements,” the organization said in its response. “We are asking for a temporary waiver of the July 22 vacate deadline and a reasonable extension of time to resolve the identified safety features without displacing 45 residents in the process.”

Legal disagreement emerges

The dispute has expanded beyond questions of building safety to include competing interpretations of federal housing and disability law.

SuPEERior Connections argues many of its residents are protected under the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act because they are recovering from substance use disorders or living with diagnosed mental health conditions. The nonprofit says it submitted a formal request for a reasonable accommodation and believes the city was required to engage in an interactive process before issuing the vacate order.

The city disagrees that those protections alter its responsibility to address dangerous building conditions.

“We cannot, in good conscience, allow operators to house anyone — including people protected by the Fair Housing Act and Americans with Disabilities Act — in dangerous buildings,” the city said.

SuPEERior Connections also disputes the city’s position on zoning and licensing, arguing that the property functions as a residential recovery household protected under federal fair housing law and that licensing questions should be resolved through the compliance process rather than through an immediate vacate order.

Future remains uncertain

SuPEERior Connections estimates about 45 residents could be displaced if the July 22 deadline remains in effect. The organization says Northern Colorado lacks sufficient recovery housing to accommodate that number of residents and warns that the order could disrupt treatment, medication-assisted recovery, Wellness Court participation, and mental health services.

The city maintains that the building’s condition leaves no safe alternative but to vacate the property while the required improvements are completed.

Whether the dispute is ultimately resolved through negotiation or legal action remains to be seen. For now, both sides agree on one point: the well-being of the residents is paramount. They, however, sharply disagree on how best to protect it.

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Source: Statements provided to North Forty News by the City of Loveland and SuPEERior Connections-Loveland. The legal positions described in this story reflect the parties’ respective claims and have not been adjudicated by a court.

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