Denver Mayor Mike Johnston officially filed his paperwork Monday to run again for Denver’s mayoral office next year.

The filing comes weeks after Johnston confirmed to The Denver Gazette that he would seek reelection as he focuses the final year of his current term on utility costs, childcare and other affordability challenges.

“The job’s not finished. The cost of living is too high, owning a home remains out of reach for too many and childcare is too expensive — if you can find it at all,” Johnston said in a statement.

“We’ll solve these issues together and we’ll continue fighting to make Denver safer, more vibrant and more affordable for all,” the mayor added.

Denver bridged a $200 million deficit last year by adopting a hiring freeze and implementing layoffs and furlough days. Its budget will be flat in the next fiscal year, the mayor’s office said.

When it comes to Denver’s homeless strategy, the mayor told The Denver Gazette that he has no regrets about the nearly $200 million the city has spent on a variety of initiatives to house immigrants, clear encampments and establish shelters for those living on the streets.

“I think if you said, ‘Would we make the investment to deliver the largest reduction in street homelessness of anything in American history? Yes, we would do that,’” Johnston told The Denver Gazette. “That’s what we signed up to do. That’s what we got elected to do. That’s the results we’re delivering. And I would focus on that now. What we are doing is spending less per person now than we spent before.”

Johnston faces several other candidates in the race, including City Councilmember Shontel Lewis, progressive Lisa Calderón and six others. He will have a formal campaign kickoff in the fall.

Editor’s note: This story was updated after initial publication with a statement from Johnston about why he will seek reelection.

Denver Gazette reporters Deborah Grigsby and Mark Samuelson contributed to this story.