Denver-area officials and immigration experts blamed the federal government’s broken immigration system for the massive wave of undocumented migrants who have crossed the southern border and made Colorado their home, but differed on ways to address it.

“I do think it was an important moment for those of us who do not live in border states to understand what border states like Florida and Texas are dealing with,” Violeta Chapin, a law professor at the University of Colorado, said during the Denver Gazette/9News town hall on Tuesday night. “It is very very challenging. …We have an extraordinary amount of unlawful migration to the United States because there are very few ways for people to come here lawfully. That’s why we still have 11 million undocumented people living here illegally for so long. There are few ways for people to normalize their status.”

COST OF THE MIGRANT CRISIS: WHY DENVER’S NEIGHBORS HAVE HAD ENOUGH

Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman (R), who was a former U.S. House lawmaker, said the topic of immigration has turned into a political lightning rod with few in Washington, D.C. willing to make concessions. 

Douglas County Commissioner Abe Lydon (R) had some tough criticism for neighboring Denver and its recent embrace of illegal immigrants. Denver city officials have patted themselves on the back for their empathy in taking in thousands of undocumented migrants. 

Lydon drew a comparison of Denver, which has repeatedly pitched itself as a “welcoming city” for migrants to a struggling restaurant. 

“There’s a welcome sign in the restaurant where there is no food and no seats and by the way, you’re going to freeze when you come in,” Lydon said. “This is not compassion. That is not welcoming.” 

He added that Douglas County, which has taken steps to prevent officials from using funds for undocumented migrant services, is a “common sense approach.” 

“We’re not going to cut police services or recreational services for youth in order to address a crisis we didn’t create,” he said, referring to a plan floated by Denver’s mayor to cut city services in order to pay for the illegal immigrants. Following quick backlash from voters, the mayor scrapped the plan.

Denver has become one of the country’s flashpoints in the debate over illegal immigration. 

As of Tuesday night, more than 41,530 undocumented migrants have arrived in the city in the last 16 months. Caring for them has become a full-time job for the self-described “welcoming city” with officials projecting a cost of $90 million alone this year, down from about $180 million.

Adam Paul, director for regional affairs for the Denver mayor’s office, defended his boss, Mayor Mike Johnston (D) who Paul said started his term with “truly a crisis and one that Denver had never seen before.”

He said the mayor’s office often grappled with how to come together and help those most in need and “make sure that when we go to bed at night we don’t leave folks sleeping on the streets whether you are experiencing homelessness or new to our community.” 

“That’s been the challenge we have been tasked with in Denver,” he said. “How best to find that balance and truly serve. “

He added that unless the federal government throws them a lifetime, they they know they are in this alone. 

“We are tasked with a challenge that absent the federal government no body is coming to help,” he said. “But that’s the spirit the mayor leads with. We are going to try to fix it.’ 

Denver’s crisis has nearly depleted city resources and forced several departments, including police and fire, to slash their budgets to free up funds for the influx. The new arrivals have sparked backlash and prompted nearby cities and counties like Douglas to rescind welcome offers preemptively. 

Denver officials, similar those in other Democratic-run cities, made splashy headlines about how undocumented migrants should be shown compassion and not the door, arguing they should be allowed to stay after arriving en masse at America’s southern border.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has bused more than 100,000 illegal immigrants to Denver, Chicago, and New York City in the past two years. 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

It took the mayors of those cities just a few months before publicly admitting their budgets were in danger of buckling due to the exorbitant costs of feeding, sheltering, educating, and providing healthcare for undocumented migrants who crossed the border In most cases, penniless and not speaking a word of English. 

In Denver, many nonprofits have stepped in, offering a patchwork of services which involves everything from being translators to opening their homes and wallets. But even some of them are being stretched to the limit.