Homelessness Response Blog

In response to freezing temperatures and significant snow accumulation, the City of Seattle, in partnership with King County, will open City Hall tonight, February 13, as a severe weather shelter with capacity for 75 individuals experiencing homelessness. The shelter opens at 8 p.m. and will remain open through Monday morning, February 15. The Shelter will be operated by the Salvation Army and Compass Housing Alliance, with additional support from the Human Services Department and King County.

King County’s severe weather shelter at Jefferson Day Center has shifted operations to support City Hall shelter. The Jefferson Day Center will remain open.

Including City Hall shelter, since Tuesday, February 9, the City of Seattle has opened four temporary severe weather shelters with a total capacity of 239 temporary beds. Other severe weather shelters that have opened include: 

• Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center 
• Bitter Lake Community Center 
• Garfield Community Center 

Yesterday, February 12, First Presbyterian Church opened as new permanent women’s shelter with capacity for 60 women experiencing homelessness. This shelter is operated by Women’s Housing, Equality and Enhancement League (WHEEL) and is operating 24 hours a day through Monday morning, February 15. 

The HOPE Team, in partnership with Seattle Parks and Recreation, has been performing welfare checks and transporting individuals experiencing homelessness to shelter during the winter storm. The HOPE Team is back in the field today and is coordinating with Health One and other City department partners for any critical transportation needs. Transportation is limited due to COVID-19 precautions and weather.

Since Wednesday the Hope Team has:  

• Shared information with 228 individuals about the temporary severe weather shelters  
• Provided 199 individuals winter supplies (hats, gloves, handwarmers, etc.)  
• Provided basic needs supplies (water, snacks, etc.) to 147 people and,  
• Transported 23 individuals to temporary shelter   

Areas visited by the HOPE Team include, but are not limited to: SODO, Georgetown, Beacon Hill, Ballard, Lake City, Downtown, Queen Anne, Capitol Hill, and University District. 

A new shelter for women experiencing homelessness will open today, February 12, and will operate at the First Presbyterian Church (1013 8th Ave., Seattle, WA 98104), creating 60 new COVID-safe shelter beds. Initially, it will operate as an overnight only shelter from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. but will become a 24/7 enhanced shelter in the coming weeks.

Women’s Housing, Equality and Enhancement League (WHEEL) will operate the shelter, which will include onsite case management and housing navigation services. The space includes showers, a dining area, nurse’s station, case manager’s office and storage. 

Referrals will be coordinated by the WHEEL network, Women’s Referral Center, and HOPE Team. The shelter will also accept self-referrals. The shelter spaces will meet COVID-19 safety protocols recommended by Public Health-Seattle & King County and the Centers for Disease Control which call for COVID-19 screening for guests, expanded space to allow physical distancing, hygiene access, and increased sanitation guidelines. 

As part of the Mayor’s 2021 budget, the City plans to invest $34 million in new shelter resources this year. These new resources will fund 300 temporary hotel rooms and 125 new units of enhanced 24/7 shelter. The Mayor’s proposal also includes an increase in funding for Rapid Rehousing and Diversion.  

In preparation for forecasted below freezing temperatures and snow over the coming days, the Human Services Department (HSD), in partnership with Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR), is opening Bitter Lake and Garfield Community Centers as 24-hour coed severe weather shelters on Thursday, February 11, at 8 pm. Both locations will remain open through the morning of Monday, February 15. The Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) will operate both locations with support from HSD and SPR staff. 

These two shelter locations will provide an additional 86 COVID-safe emergency shelter spaces for individuals experiencing homelessness. Bitter Lake Community Center (13035 Linden Ave N, Seattle, WA 98133) has shelter capacity for 45 individuals and Garfield Community Center (2323 East Cherry St, Seattle, WA 98122) will have capacity for 41 individuals. 

OSL will provide three meals a day and showers will be available for shelter guests. Service animals will be allowed at both community center locations.

The temporary shelter spaces will meet COVID-19 safety protocols recommended by Public Health-Seattle & King County and the Centers for Disease Control which call for COVID-19 screening for guests, expanded space to allow physical distancing, hygiene access, and increased sanitation guidelines. 

On Tuesday, February 9, the City opened Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center (305 Harrison St, Seattle, WA 98109) as a daily severe weather shelter though the morning of Monday, February 15. Fisher Pavilion has capacity for 78 adults, accommodates all genders and is operated by The Salvation Army and Compass Housing Alliance. Overnight guests at the shelter may remain during the day.

King County has opened the Jefferson Day Center (420 4th Avenue, Seattle 98104) as a men’s only severe weather shelter that can accommodate 25 men. The temporary shelter opened Tuesday, February 9 and will remain open through Saturday, February 13 and is operated by The Salvation Army. 

The Homelessness Outreach and Provider Ecosystem (HOPE) Team is coordinating outreach and shelter referrals into the City’s temporary severe weather shelters, and other City funded shelters, in partnership with our contracted outreach providers. 

SPR is lending passenger vans to the HOPE Team and staff members will work with the Seattle Fire Department’s Health One in conducting evening welfare visits to people living unsheltered and will help with transporting individuals to available shelter resources. Transportation will be limited due to COVID-19 protocols. The HOPE Team has a supply of weather supplies to distribute including handwarmers, emergency blankets, hats, and gloves. 

For general information about the temporary shelters, call 206-735-9461. If you are in need of shelter, call 2-1-1 or 1-877-211-9274. For families with minor children, call YWCA’s late night shelter 24-hour intake line at 206-461-4882. For an emergency, call 9-1-1. 

Download the Severe Weather Shelter Flyer – February 11, 2021 

UPDATE 2/10:

Fisher Pavilion has been confirmed as the shelter location for Wednesday, February 10, and will open at 8:00 PM.

Original Post 2/9:

In response to below freezing temperatures and snow forecasted for later this week, the City of Seattle is opening a severe weather overnight shelter daily from Tuesday, February 9, through the morning of Monday, February 15.

The severe weather shelter schedule is as follows:

Tuesday 2/9 – Fisher Pavilion – 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM 

Wednesday 2/10 – Location To Be Determined  Fisher Pavilion – 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM

Thursday 2/11 – Fisher Pavilion – 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM 

Friday 2/12 – Fisher Pavilion – 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM 

Saturday 2/13 – Fisher Pavilion – 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM 

Sunday 2/14 – Fisher Pavilion – 8:00 PM to 8:00 AM 

The daily shelter at Fisher Pavilion (305 Harrison St, Seattle, WA 98109) will be operated by The Salvation Army and has capacity for 80 individuals experiencing homelessness. 

The shelter location for Wednesday, February 10, has not been confirmed and will be announced at a later time. Individuals will be served on a first come, first served basis each night. Seattle Center will provide housekeeping and security at Fischer Pavilion. 

The temporary shelter spaces will meet COVID-19 safety protocols recommended by Public Health-Seattle & King County and the Centers for Disease Control which call for COVID-19 screening for guests, expanded space to allow physical distancing, hygiene access, and increased sanitation guidelines. 

In partnership with City contracted providers, the HOPE Team will coordinate shelter referrals into the temporary cold weather shelter and other City funded shelters. 

Recently, the shelter at Fischer Pavilion (which was a de-intensification site for City Hall) moved to the new 24/7 enhanced SODO shelter. The move allowed for these spaces to be available as severe winter weather shelter. 

For information about the temporary shelter, call 206-735-9461. If you are in need of shelter, call 2-1-1 or 1-877-211-9274. For an emergency, call 9-1-1. 

Download the Severe Weather Shelter Flyer – February 10, 2021

As part of the recently approved 2021 budget, funding was included for a Human Services Department (HSD) led eight-person Homelessness Outreach and Provider Ecosystem (HOPE) Team. This new Team will be the City’s coordinating body for its response to homelessness in partnership with the contracted outreach providers and City departments. 

This new collaborative approach to homelessness began before the 2021 budget was adopted, when funding was approved in late October for the remainder of 2020, after months of deliberations between the Mayor’s office, HSD, City contracted outreach providers, and City Council.  

The HOPE Team and outreach providers are coordinating outreach at a number of locations across Seattle, including 8^th Ave and Jackson Street in the Chinatown International-District, 2nd Ave Extension in Pioneer Square, Green Lake, Denny Park, Albert Davis Park, Cal Anderson Park, and the University District. After the initial month of implementation, preliminary data indicates that the HOPE Team has successfully supported 25 referrals into shelter through at least four different outreach provider agencies. Of these referrals into shelter, 80% were to enhanced shelters or tiny homes, which are the most effective at helping individuals find permanent housing. The HOPE team will verify if clients stay overnight at the shelter the person was referred as a measure of success. 

In addition to supporting outreach agencies by facilitating access shelter beds, the HOPE Team is coordinating with City Departments on encampment litter and debris mitigation efforts by Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) and Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), including their “purple bag” trash collection program and RV remediation services, as well as continued evaluation and maintenance of hygiene resources. In partnership with Department of Neighborhoods, HSD, and outreach partners, SPU has deployed hygiene resources citywide to help slow the spread of COVID-19, especially among our neighbors sheltering in place. In addition, SPR has completed a full accounting of hygiene resources at Parks facilities throughout the City that are available to people living unsheltered. These resources include nearly 80 24/7 toilet facilities and are updated weekly. HSD has provided an interactive map that highlights locations.     

Outreach partners are using new and innovative ways to connect persons experiencing homelessness to services and shelter. For example, REACH recently started a new program that provides “pop-up spaces” that allow them to meet individuals where they are and coordinate with service partners such as the United Way and LEAD. These new approaches during the challenges of COVID-19 are also helping get people inside. The Public Defender Association launched a CARES Act-funded program, JustCARE, in Pioneer Square and the Chinatown-International District, with partners Chief Seattle Club, Asian Counseling and Referral Service, and REACH, resulting in 40 people experiencing homelessness in the Chinatown-International District moving directly into hotel rooms. 

With additional enhanced shelter units, including hotels, coming online over the coming months, expansion of the successful Rapid Rehousing program, and the addition of 600 units of new Permanent Supportive Housing in 2021, the City will be expanding access to shelter and housing, making it possible to help our vulnerable neighbors move from street to housing. 

As we enter this year’s winter season, the City of Seattle is in the midst of multiple crises including the COVID-19 pandemic and an economic downturn. Maintaining COVID-19 health recommendations as part of the City and King County’s shelter system remains a challenge facing our homelessness response system.

In the event of a major snowstorm or cold weather event, the City is capable of activating hundreds of short-term, temporary emergency shelter beds across Seattle for people experiencing homelessness. The City’s winter emergency response is coordinated by the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), which partners with City departments like HSD to make preparations and ensure City programs and services are maintained during disruptive weather events.

As in years past, HSD has identified shelter spaces for an emergency response based on different scenarios, including a short-term weather event or a longer-term weather event. A short-term winter weather emergency response is activated when there is a snow accumulation in excess of 1-inch and/or forecasted temperatures of 25 degrees or below for multiple days. A long-term response is activated when the weather conditions significantly impact people living homeless, including snow accumulation of over 6-inches, 25 degrees or below for multiple days and/or a State of Emergency declaration. Both weather event scenarios may include other health and safety considerations such as a wind advisory or ice.

The temporary emergency shelters identified by HSD for use may include, City Hall, the Seattle Municipal Tower (SMT), and Seattle Center’s Fisher Pavilion. If needed, the response could be expanded to community centers and other City-owned facilities that would otherwise be closed during a snowstorm and therefore are available to use as temporary shelter. The City Hall and Fisher Pavilion spaces will be available for winter emergency response in mid-November once the Salvation Army relocates those shelter programs to the new SODO facility. Further, the Seattle Center’s Exhibition Hall will be available as an emergency shelter when the current de-intensifying shelter relocates. HSD has also identified several other currently occupied temporary shelter spaces that could be used depending on the timing of the vacancy.

These temporary emergency shelter spaces will meet COVID-19 safety protocols recommended by Public Health-Seattle & King County and the Centers for Disease Control. The protocols call for additional COVID-19 screening for those experiencing homelessness, expanded space to allow physical distancing, hygiene access, and increased sanitation guidelines.

Past Winter Events

Over the first 11 days of February 2019, the Seattle area received over 20 inches of snow over multiple weather systems and experienced sustained temperatures nearly 10 degrees below normal. During this winter weather event, the Navigation Team was the City’s frontline response working extended hours to get those living unsheltered into shelter and providing transportation. Shelter and assistance were offered to over 715 individuals living unsheltered and some 162 individuals were transported to emergency shelters by the Navigation Team. The Navigation Team also distributed essential food and clothing that were donated by Costco, Nordstrom, Amazon and Starbucks.

During the cold weather and storms in January of this year,  the team made 196 site visits during the severe weather event, making over 550 contacts with people living unsheltered. The team transported 44 people to shelter and made 77 referrals to emergency shelters during the course of the week. Despite the recent Council action to disband the Navigation Team, HSD staff will be available to help coordinate emergency sheltering efforts on the ground during a weather emergency. The Mayor’s 2021 proposed budget would reinstate these emergency functions, previously done by the Navigation Team, with a new outreach team, but that would need to be passed by City Council.

Blog post translations: Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified), Korean, Spanish, and Tagalog

The City of Seattle’s Human Services Department (HSD) and King County’s Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) announce a new 24/7, enhanced deintensification shelter opening in Seattle’s SODO neighborhood. This new shelter will offer supportive services, housing navigation, and meets public health standards to protect clients and workers against the spread of COVID-19.  

The shelter will begin operations in early November with the goal of achieving full occupancy by the first quarter of 2021. The shelter is projected to accommodate 275 shelter beds. The Salvation Army will move four existing programs—some of which were basic/overnight only shelters—into a new 24/7 shelter with supportive services and hygiene access.  Programs being moved are the existing City of Seattle shelter programs at City Hall and Fisher Pavilion (which was a de-intensifying site for the City Hall program), and King County funded programs at 4^th and Jefferson Street and the King County Administration Building. These moves also allows for Fisher Pavilion and City Hall to be available as severe winter weather shelters. 

DCHS plans to relocate its sobering and recovery support program from its temporary location nearby at the Recovery Café into a section of the SODO site at some point in 2021.   

The building, leased by King County, was originally designed as a quarantine, isolation, and recovery center for COVID-19 to help prevent the region’s medical centers from being overwhelmed. To date, the facility has not been needed for COVID-19 response.  

The shelter has a high quality air filtration system, physical space, and hygiene access to handle both wildfire smoke and COVID-19. In September, the facility was temporarily used as a wildfire smoke shelter and served between 80-100 people 24 hours a day during that time.  

This new shelter was funded through a combination of Federal and local emergency resources. King County’s lease on the building is for three years.  

Additional Shelter Resources Coming Online 

As part of the Mayor’s 2021 budget, the City plans to invest $34 million in new shelter resources in the coming months. These new resources will fund 300 temporary hotel rooms and 125 new units of enhanced 24/7 shelter. The Mayor’s proposal also includes an increase in funding for Rapid Rehousing and Diversion.  

More information can be found on the Frequently Asked Questions page 

Update on September 2, 2020 at 6 p.m.

Today, the Navigation Team removed a safety hazard on and around the former Marion Street pedestrian walkway after, last week, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) declared the bridge to be structurally unsound and a danger to those living in an encampment on and below the structure. 

There were ten tents and one structure inside the affected area at the start of today’s action. Navigation Team System Navigator outreach specialists engaged with all nine individuals living within the affected zone and others in the area experiencing homelessness. Systemwide, there were at least 24 shelter beds available and, based on preliminary data, one referral to shelter was accepted. Navigation Team Field Coordinators identified and documented four bins of personal items for storage. 

The outreach conducted today by the Navigation Team and its partners, including REACH, was the culmination of a weeklong effort to address the needs of the individuals living in the area to ensure continuity of services after relocation. Over the past two days, ten people voluntarily relocated before today’s activities.  

An inspection by SDOT following today’s removal revealed that the western edge of the structure was becoming unseated from the weight-bearing timber beam, exemplifying the danger to the persons in  the encampments had they remained in place. 

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Original post:

Early last week, the Seattle Department of Transportation’s (SDOT) Roadway Structures Division observed shear cracks developing around the lower structural supports on the remnants of a former pedestrian walkway near the Waterfront. The obsolete structure once connected Marion Street to the ferry terminal, but was partially demolished in 2019 along with the Alaskan Viaduct, leaving a small dead-end section attached to the Commuter Building, which is slated for demolition in the near future. The cracks indicate that the former walkway is structurally unsound putting those in an encampment on and below the structure in danger. 

SDOT has also recently identified fire damage caused by the encampment near the west end of the structure on the timber decking, posing the risk of deck failure. The structure still has remnants of the original creosote coated timber stringers and floor beams which are an added health hazard for those living on or near the structure. 

On Friday, August 28, SDOT posted Notice of Construction signs in the area of the former pedestrian walkway. This construction includes the removal of the structure and is set to begin on September 2 and continue through the end of the year. 

As a result of the safety concerns for persons in the encampment, created by the impaired structural integrity of the former pedestrian walkway and the impending construction, on Monday, August 31, the City of Seattle posted a 48-hour advance notice for all personal property to be removed from the structure and the area directly surrounding it. 

As of Tuesday, September 1, there were 11 tents total on and around the pedestrian bridge  in the impacted area. 

The City’s Navigation Team, along with outreach partners including REACH, DESC, and Public Health – Seattle & King County, have been conducting ongoing outreach in the area to address the needs of those living unsheltered, including offers of shelter and services. Outreach teams are coordinating to ensure continuity of services. As with every encampment removal, the Navigation Team will offer storage and continued referrals to shelter and services to those living in the impacted area during and after the encampment move.  

From May through mid-August, the Navigation Team has engaged the area nine times for outreach and 25 times for litter and debris mitigation. Outreach during that time resulted in six referrals to shelter. 

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, removals of unauthorized encampments and obstructions by the City of Seattle have been suspended, with exceptions for extreme public health and public safety circumstances. Since this directive was implemented, seven encampments have met this strict criteria through July. Since March, citywide the Navigation Team has made over 600 site visits for outreach, conducted over 1,000 litter and debris mitigation operations, and made over 520 referrals to shelter. 

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The Seattle Human Services Department (HSD) has announced the temporary de-intensifying shelters at Garfield, Miller, and Southwest Teen Life (SWTLC) community centers have relocated to new spaces. These moves follow months of planning, community outreach, and partnership with service providers to ensure new and existing shelter programs are compliant with public health requirements to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Seattle’s shelter system.  

Moving the temporary shelters out of community centers allows for Seattle Parks and Recreation to operate childcare and teen learning programming at these sites across. This programming provides childcare, recreation activities, and wifi to provide access to online learning. All programming will follow public health guidance, including wellness screenings, temperatures checks, face coverings, and sanitization.  

New Locations 

Garfield, Miller, and SWTLC de-intensifying shelters are managed by Catholic Community Services (CCS), Compass Housing, and YouthCare, respectively. These services providers moved existing programs into the community centers at the start of the COVID-19 outbreak and are now moving these programs to either new sites or improved existing spaces.  

All new or improved sites align with Public Health – Seattle & King County (PHSKC) COVID-19 health and safety requirements and are configured to maintain the same number of people served. PHSKC staff assisted in assessing and planning the new spaces, and the Seattle Fire Department inspected locations for code compliance. New sleeping spaces are configured to maintain at least 6’ between beds, meal delivery is coordinated to reduce contact between guests, and ventilation is improved to meet the guidelines set by PHSKC.  

Garfield Community Center temporary women’s shelter, which was managed by Catholic Community Services (CCS), moved to a new 24/7 enhanced shelter that will permanently replace seven small faith-based overnight only sites. The new shelter, located at the CCS owned MLK Day Home site in the Central District, will host up to 40 beds and will operate under PHSKC COVID-19 safety requirements. The new site has private sleeping areas, showers, laundry, and meals. Professional case management will be offered to help clients find permanent homes. CCS and HSD worked with community members to hold several meetings to discuss the impact of the shelter on the neighborhood and ensure accountability and partnership.   

Miller Community Center temporary men’s shelter, which was managed by Compass Housing, will ultimately move 45 clients to a new space at Compass Housing’s 210 Building. In the interim, clients will stay at the Queen Anne Shelter while Compass completes construction and improvements at the new location. These new and repurposed spaces are being stood-up under PHSKC COVID-19 safety requirements and will offer the men private spaces with storage for belongings, meals, hygiene, and access to housing case management.  

SWTLC temporary youth and young adult shelter, which was managed by YouthCare, will temporarily move to The Christ Spirit Church in Beacon Hill through the end of the year while YouthCare’s new permanent facility in South Seattle is completed. YouthCare’s shelter program serves up to 15 young adults. Both the temporary space and the future home of YouthCare will meet PHSCK COVID-19 safety requirements and will continue to offer housing search supports to help clients address barriers to permanent housing.  

Background 

HSD and service providers began preemptively moving shelter clients and programs out of traditional congregate shelter spaces earlier this year into de-intensifying shelters that would allow for social distancing, offer enhanced services, and provide better hygiene access. These redistribution efforts were done under the guidance of PHSKC and have helped limit the spread of COVID-19 to vulnerable populations that use emergency shelters. 

The City opened de-intensifying shelters at Exhibition Hall, Fischer Pavilion, Garfield Community Center, Miller Community Center, and SW Teen Life Center. Loyal Heights Community Center was made available as de-intensifying shelter but was not been utilized by a shelter provider during the pandemic. Through these three community center de-intensifying shelters, the City created up to 150 safer shelter beds to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The de-intensifying shelters offered improvements for some clients, including 24/7 access, meals, and hygiene services. These efforts—coupled with HSD’s opening of new shelter space at tiny house villages and enhanced shelter—helped the City provide safer shelter to vulnerable populations during the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, there has not been a widespread outbreak of COVID-19 at these de-intensifying sites. 

The de-intensifying shelters at Fisher Pavilion and Exhibition Hall will continue to operate at Seattle Center and are not impacted by this announcement. 

Garfield, Miller, and SWTLC served 256 unique individuals total between March 1 and late August 2020, according to preliminary program data available to the City.  

The City of Seattle’s Human Services Department (HSD) has released the fourth quarter (Q4) performance data for programs that receive City funding to serve people experiencing homelessness. Mid-year data for 2019 was last published in September 2019. The finalization and release of Q4 data was significantly delayed due to the onset of COVID-19, which required HSD staffing resources to be diverted to pandemic response. 

The Q4 data affirms that the 2017 Homelessness Investments RFP, which realigned HSD’s homelessness response portfolio to focus more on throughput and permanent housing outcomes, continues to achieve these outcomes, with more unsheltered people served and moved into housing. After reviewing three full years of data performance, HSD believes the metrics have stabilized and remains steady with programs such as tiny house villages and enhanced shelters continuing to show success in moving people into housing.  

The full report is available here: Homeless Investment 2019 Q4 Performance Outcomes

Given the ongoing response and recovery to COVID-19, HSD has waived performance metrics for services providers in 2020 and has continued to deploy staffing resources to virus response. HSD does not have a timetable for releasing 2020 data performance and anticipates data sets will likely vary when compared to previous years due to the extraordinary challenges COVID-19 presents to service providers and clients.