“Homelessness” is a misnomer – or at the very least a deceiving oversimplification – for the crisis Denver and Colorado face. Though it is absolutely true the folks living along the streets of our capital city are indeed without a home, such a term obscures their journey to a life of cold nights and hunger.

Our brothers and sisters living within tents are not there simply because their homes disappeared one day. Most of them struggle daily with either mental health issues or addiction. As such, simply moving them out of thin, polyester walls and into the confines of timber and drywall does little to ensure their survival. Therefore, we must establish the definition of success when it comes to any measure to combat “homelessness.”

Denver Mayor Michael Johnston’s efforts are laudable, if for no other reason than the fact he is actually taking action in comparison to his predecessor who seemed resigned to the status quo’s insurmountability. Getting more than 1,000 of these individuals off the streets in half a year is a first step worthy of optimism, but as Kyle Clark put it well earlier this week, it is “a first step that would be remembered as a misstep if the city can’t manage to keep those people sheltered and to move most of them into housing.”

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Johnston’s program comes with a monumental cost, as well. The cost of taking this first step for 1,135 individuals thus far tops $39,000 per person ($45 million this year), and the mayor’s plan is to spend another $50 million on an additional 1,000 people this year. As I pointed out on PBS12’s Colorado Inside Out last year, we spend about $14,000 per year on our K-12 students in school per year for their education. As a conservative, such expenses always give me pause, but I can see no other expenditure worthwhile if it accomplishes its goal.

That begs the question: what is the goal?

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The possibility of this issue becoming a case of “out of sight, out of mind” once folks are moved off the streets is real, and as much as I want the streets of Denver cleaned up, I desire more to see the lives of thousands saved through a comprehensive program that sees it through. We’re not talking about simply taking thousands of folks off the streets – we’re talking about saving their lives.

What I want to see from this program is measurable success in treating mental health and addiction issues, and I hope that is what Mayor Johnston wants to see as well. A mailing address is nice, but the opaque walls of a refurbished hotel room or apartment can rapidly provide shelter for not just a person, but for their untreated struggles as well.

Thus far, only one individual has moved from temporary housing to “intensive care treatment” under Johnston’s House1000 program, and the bulk of the population has been sheltered under a month (734 people). The program does provide “in-house” mental health and addiction services, though it is unclear the utilization rate of such services, and only time will show their success.

I’m rooting for Mayor Johnston to find success with his initiative, but more than that, I’m rooting for the thousands of lives that can be saved through it. If anything, constant scrutiny of such an expansive program will keep it relevant for the residents of Denver, even as perhaps the individuals within it exit their daily visibility.

Sage Naumann is a conservative commentator and strategist. He operates Anthem Communications and was previously the spokesman for the Colorado Senate Republicans. Follow him on Twitter @SageNaumann.