New Boulder addiction recovery home for homeless residents begins accepting clients
Hazelbrook Recovery, one of the largest sober living organizations in Colorado, began accepting clients earlier this month at a newly opened addiction recovery home on East Pearl Street.
The opening marks a return of one of the city’s strategies to address substance use among homeless people. More than a dozen homeless people died in 2025 from methamphetamine and fentanyl toxicity, according to autopsy reports.
“This is a much-needed service,” Geno Shvedov, co-founder and director at Hazelbrook, told Boulder Reporting Lab. “We want to be a positive member of the community and make the community a better place.”
The city first opened a similar residential program in 2023, but it closed in September 2025 after the previous vendor cited challenges with federal funding and a mission that diverged from the city’s goals. The new provider has been asked to provide services such as therapy, case management and peer recovery support, according to the city’s request for proposals.
Shvedov, a professional mixed martial arts fighter also known as “The Russian Concussion,” founded the company in 2016 after recovering from his own addiction and serving stints in prison. The Pearl Street location is Hazelbrook’s first in the City of Boulder.
A core part of the program is peer support from people with lived experience. On a recent afternoon, staff members were hanging posters in the recovery home with the motto “real people real recovery.”
Residents must submit to a urinalysis test before entering the home and undergo routine breathalyzer tests when returning, according to the company. When people are accepted, Erik Musselman, outreach coordinator, said the first thing they get is a hug.
“There’s no judging,” he said.
Adirondack chairs sit on the porch. A white picket fence lines the yard. On the windowsill upstairs is a box of Narcan. The home has 12 beds, a standard kitchen, three refrigerators, laundry facilities, board games, a couch lining the entire wall of the living space and a big screen TV. Residents typically stay one to three months but can stay longer, according to Shvedov.
Gerald Esparza, resident support specialist for Hazelbrook, said he helps people obtain Social Security cards or driver’s licenses, as well as enroll in Medicaid and apply for jobs.
Next door to the sober living home is a Boulder County-owned property where Shvedov said the goal is to provide outpatient services, including therapy, support getting documents and help signing up for benefits. He said Hazelbrook plans to partner with a provider to offer medication-assisted treatment, which is often used to help people transition off opioids.
The home is owned by the City of Boulder, which is leasing it to Hazelbrook for $1 per month. Hazelbrook is expected to pay for operations primarily through Medicaid billing and other means. Hazelbrook’s programs can cost up to $235 per week, according to application materials.
The program targets homeless adults with addiction, as well as people transitioning out of incarceration. Shvedov acknowledged that many of the people Hazelbrook is seeking to serve may not have the resources for program dues. He said services should be covered by health insurance benefits and that “community and judicial partners” offer financial assistance.
Employees with the program said a key goal is to provide a stepping stone for people transitioning out of jail or prison. They gauge success in part by continued sobriety.
Seth Eberly, 29, one of the first residents in the house, said he recently served a sentence and is still trying to adjust. He said he has been feeling some social anxiety. Coming back to a stable place helps.
“It’s putting me in a position where I can get better,” he said of the home.
Eberly said he has worked in landscaping but is planning to get a job setting up events. Once he has an income, he said he will start looking for an apartment in Boulder.
The closure of the recovery home last year followed the shutdown of Boulder’s only homeless youth shelter and a residential treatment home for young people.
Read more Sanitas Brewing closed. Its co-founder is opening a new Boulder brewery in the same space.
