Pierce County Council Adopts Regional Solution To Homelessness

TACOMA, WA — The Pierce County Council has formally adopted its "Comprehensive Plan to End Homelessness", which the lawmakers say they hope will create a functioning roadmap to tackle homelessness from all angles and across the region.

"The county has worked with community partners in the past to help address the needs of our homeless population, but we've never had a true plan to end homelessness," said Pierce County Council Chair Derek Young in a statement announcing the adoption. "This is a unified approach created by people with lived experience, experts in the field, and service partners dedicated to finding homes for everyone."

Under the plan, the council has two immediate next steps: create a regional office on homelessness to tackle the issue long-term, and quickly spend $9 million on short-term aid strategies while the long-term solution is hammered out. According to the council, that spending will include:

• Creating a pilot bus pass program.
• Funding case management services to help up to 1,000 people transition permanently out of homelessness.
• Establish a new shelter to provide temporary housing and services, with the goal of transitioning inhabitants into permanent housing.
  • The shelter's location has not been determined, but will likely be in an "underserved unincorporated area".

The end goal, the council said, is to create a state of “functional zero," where any person who has lost their home and is about to become homeless can find space in a local shelter and receive support as they try to find permanent housing once again. To achieve that, the council has outlined six goals for their comprehensive plan:

1. Create a unified homeless response system.
2. Ensure interventions are effective for all populations.
3. Prevent homelessness.
4. Ensure adjacent systems address needs of people experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness.
5. Meet immediate needs of people experiencing homelessness.
6. Expand the permanent housing system to meet need.

The comprehensive plan builds on previous homelessness efforts by the council, which included public input and investments in rapidly expanding shelter spaces. Just last year, the council used $65.6 million from Pierce County's American Rescue Plan Act funding to supplement and enhance local homelessness resources.

"Council took bold steps at the end of 2021 when it adopted the biennial budget that included significant allocations aimed at increasing affordable housing options and reducing homelessness," Young said. "We dedicated $253 million to fund housing and homelessness programs, including a $19.9 million set aside for affordable housing development in the county and $22.3 million for development of a future micro-home village for supportive housing."

To keep the comprehensive plan on track, the county's Human Services Department has been directed to create a plan implementation advisory board, which will report back to the council on the program's process, with the goal of creating a new strategic funding plan by Oct. 31, 2022.