Denver has issued a temporary zoning permit that could allow 14 homeless people to move into a proposed tiny home development in the RiNo Arts District.

The city’s Department of Community Planning and Development issued the temporary zoning permit for property at 38th and Walnut streets, on March 30. “The way it is approved, we will have to be moving every six months,” said Terese Howard, an organizer with Denver Homeless Out Loud.

“Obviously, that’s a problem, so we are working to create a permanent zoning,” Howard said. “This is a step in that direction. This is a pilot project that will prove the viability of tiny home villages.”

Similar tiny house projects are already providing shelter for homeless people in Seattle, Austin, Texas, and Portland, Ore.

The Colorado Village Collaborative — an organization that includes Denver Homeless Out Loud, the Interfaith Alliance, Bayaud Enterprises and other groups — requested the zoning permit to build the project.

Plans call for 11 8-foot-by-12-foot shelters, as well as communal kitchen, bathroom and shower facilities, on land leased from the Urban Land Conservancy.

Once the 11 homes are built, they can be placed on flat-bed trucks and moved elsewhere, if necessary, Howard said. The unlisted, temporary use permit can be used in any commercial, mixed use, zoning district, where the group can get land.

Residents will be people who face barriers to staying at shelters that have regulations that they find difficult to comply with, such as a bar against couples staying together, or keeping pets, Howard said.

“This will not be a shelter provider situation where people tell people how to lead their lives. They will be independent,” Howard said.

The group is applying for a building permit needed for construction, and expects it to be approved shortly.

Funding for construction of Beloved Community Village — expected to cost about $130,000 — comes from foundations, and private donors. A GoFundMe page has so far brought in $20,000, but more is needed, Howard said.

Another tiny-home village is planned for land owned and occupied by St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church at 2015 Glenarm Place.