The City of Seattle’s Human Services Department (HSD) released the results of its homelessness funding for the first six months of 2018. These results represent activity from January 1 through June 30, 2018 and show agencies receiving city funds served 18,356 households and helped 4,459 households exit to permanent housing (2,644) or maintain their housing (1,815). The 2,644 households exiting to permanent housing represent an increase of 35% (692 households) over the same time in 2017. In all of 2017, city funds helped 5,456 households exit to permanent housing or maintain their housing, which the city is on track to surpass.

“HSD began 2018 with clear goals – invest in programs that work and help more people connect to housing from all points in the homeless services system,” said HSD Interim Director Jason Johnson. “Quarterly data helps us understand if the City’s investments are supporting people effectively and identify how we can improve. We’re encouraged by the increases in placing people in housing and grateful for the hard work human service providers have demonstrated in helping vulnerable people.”

In 2018, the City of Seattle has a budget of over $86 million across more than a dozen departments to invest in services for people experiencing homelessness and mitigate the impacts of people living unsheltered across the City. HSD oversees more than 157 contracts with programs throughout the city that provide services for people experiencing homelessness. Moving people into housing (exits to housing) and/or keeping them from becoming homeless is the primary measure of success for programs that received funding through the City’s investments at HSD.

Highlights of First Six Months of 2018

• Programs have served 18,356 households in first six months 2018, an increase of 5.4% (946 households) over 2017.
• 4,459 households exited to housing (2,644) or maintained that housing (1,815) through city investments. The 2,644 households exiting to housing represents a 35% (692) increase over the first six months of 2017.
• Housing programs are moving people to permanent housing at an increased rate over 2017;
• Native American/Alaska Native and Black/African American households– populations that experience homelessness disproportionately – are moving to housing at increased rates in comparison to the first six months of 2017. Specifically, programs receiving city funds have helped more NA/AN households connect to housing in the first six months of 2018 (284 households) than in the entire year of 2017 (273 households); and
• In the first six months of 2018, 4,071 households were served by enhanced shelters and 691 exited to permanent housing, an increased rate of 7% of over the first six months of 2017.

The Homeless Services System

Seattle invests in three primary categories for homeless services:

• prevention (keeping people housed),
• emergency (shelters and connection to housing), and
• housing (permanent housing that may or may not include subsidy and support services).

Together, these create the homeless services system. Click here to read definitions of homeless services terminology.

Housing Programs are Moving More People to Permanent Housing Over 2017

All housing programs increased the rate at which they are moving households into housing or helping them maintain housing over the first six months of 2017.

• Diversion: Diversion primarily helps people avoid the emergency shelter system by offering one-time financial assistance and case management. Of the 593 households served in the first six months of 2018, 72% of households that left the program exited to permanent housing, a rate that is 11% higher than the first six months of 2017. In 2018, HSD increased funding for Diversion programs to $2 million from $1 million in 2017..
• Rapid Rehousing: This national best-practice which combines temporary rental assistance and case management to help people eventually assume their own housing costs, moved people to housing at a rate that is 5% higher than the first six months of 2017, and had a success rate of 80% in Q2 2018. HSD increased investment in Rapid Rehousing programs from $4.3 million in 2017 to $7.2 million in 2018.
• Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH):The most effective housing program for high-needs people experiencing homelessness, PSH offers ongoing housing and support services for people who need long-term assistance. PSH has a success rate of 97% in helping people maintain their housing or leave supportive housing to move to other kinds of permanent housing. The success rate in the first six months of 2017 was 95%. HSD increased investment in permanent supportive housing from $9.3 million to $13.2 million in 2018 in order to help people who need the highest level of services to successfully obtain and remain in housing.

Human Services Programs Help More Native American/Alaska Native and Black/African American Households Connect to Housing in 2018

Native American/Alaska Native (NA/AN) and Black/African American (B/AA) households experience homelessness disproportionately to their representation in the population of King County. These households are seven times and five times more likely to experience homelessness, respectively.

Programs receiving city funds have helped more NA/AN households connect to housing in the first six months of 2018 (284 households) than in the entire year of 2017 (273 households). In addition to serving more people, programs have increased their rate of success in connecting these clients to housing by 10% over 2017. 33% of NA/AN households exit homeless services to permanent housing in the first six months of 2018, up from 23% in the first six months of 2017.

In the first six months of 2018, there were 1,713 B/AA household exits to permanent housing from homeless services programs, an increase of 351 household exits over last year. 37.5% of B/AA households leaving homeless services entered permanent housing, an increase of 10% over the last year’s rate of 27.5%.

“During the 2018 funding process, HSD asked homeless services providers to join us in helping more Native American and Alaska Native households and more Black and African American households enter permanent housing from homeless services programs. We are pleased to see this progress and look forward to continued improvement,” said Jason Johnson.

Supportive Services Result in Improved Housing Results

Enhanced shelters, which provide 24/7 or extended hours of services, storage for belongings, and case management, have continued to support more people in finding permanent housing. In the first six months of 2018, 4,071 households were served by enhanced shelters, and 691 exited to permanent housing, an increase rate of 7% of over the first six months of 2017. Enhanced shelters have a rate of moving clients to housing that is five times that of basic, overnight shelters.

The City’s basic shelters and permitted villages continue to be a critical component to the City’s emergency response to provide safer spaces for people experiencing homelessness. So far in 2018, they have served more than 3,750 households in the first six months of 2018. Seattle first invested in sanctioned encampments in 2015. Since this time, HSD has increased support for tiny houses, hygiene services, and case management. Residents often face many barriers to finding stable housing and are more likely to find that stability with more support services. In 2018, Seattle has expanded to support eight villages, with a ninth expected to open this fall, which provide spaces for more than 350 people per night. The City’s Villages are at capacity every night and have supported 17% of households who exit the program in finding permanent housing in the second quarter, a decrease of 5% over the same six-month period in 2017. In recognition that more services support improved housing outcomes, the City increased case management support at the Villages in the second quarter. HSD will continue to monitor the performance results of this program quarterly.

“City-funded homeless services programs are serving more than 18,356 households in 2018, an increase of over 5% from last year. This tracks with what our providers have seen – more and more people are experiencing housing instability in our rapidly growing region. Their needs are outpacing the City’s homelessness prevention, emergency and housing services capacity. HSD is pleased with the continued improvement in the system’s housing results, but a continued regional focus on creating more housing is key to helping people exit the homeless services system permanently,” said Johnson.

City Implements New Accountability and Performance Measures

In 2016, the City of Seattle, King County, and the United Way of King County adopted the same performance standards in a memorandum of understanding signed in 2016. In addition, the City of Seattle has established and implemented in 2018 new performance standards in City programs including diversion, prevention, outreach and engagement, basic day and hygiene centers, and villages. 2018 is the first year the City is implementing full accountability measures across all programs. Each of these programs have different targeted standards.

In 2018, HSD implemented performance pay for key areas of investments: emergency shelter and enhanced day centers, transitional housing, rapid rehousing, and permanent supportive housing – this rewards programs with the full amount of their contracted award when they meet performance standards. While both HSD and King County use performance pay contracting based on the adopted performance standards, HSD pays programs based on the rate of exits to permanent housing standard and King County pays programs based on the utilization rate standard.

In Q2 2018, 65% of the programs subject to performance pay contracting met the standard for exits to permanent housing. 31 of 48 programs total subject to performance pay contracting are meeting standards.

HSD is partnering with the remaining programs to develop improvement plans and to ensure that the City’s contract policies are being operationalized to support the intended result – helping more people move from homeless services programs to permanent housing. HSD has an intensive process in place to partner with the remaining programs to increase the likelihood that they will receive full payment in future quarters. HSD is committed to using any funding that wasn’t paid out to support technical assistance and training designed to help programs move more people to permanent housing.

 

As the City of Seattle moves more unsheltered people into safer places, we are working to restore public spaces that were previously encamped into safe, clean spaces. The City makes significant investments to clean up trash resulting from the homelessness crisis. The numbers below have been updated to reflect amounts collected as of August 29, 2018.

Removing trash from unmanaged encampments: In 2017, City removed 3,205 tons (6,410,000 pounds) of garbage and waste from unmanaged encampments. In 2018, the City has removed more than 986,000 pounds.

Trash in the right-of-way: In May 2018, Seattle began a new Citywide effort to remove garbage and debris from roads, sidewalks, and the public right-of-way adjacent to RVs. Started initially as a pilot in November 2017 in SODO, this new coordinated effort is led by Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), SPD’s Community Police Team (CPT), Seattle Parks and Recreation (Parks), Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) and Finance and Administrative Services (FAS) in order to reduce negative impacts to public health and safety. The pilot is designed to engage RV occupants to voluntarily move their RVs, which allows City crews to clean and remove garbage, waste and immobile vehicles left behind. The City has collected 167,210 pounds of trash.

Litter bag pilot program: In January 2017, Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) began a pilot program to collect trash from unsanctioned encampments and from areas where RV camping is frequent. Working with other City departments and community partners, SPU gives out litter bags and conducts regular and on-call pick-ups. The pilot has collected 612,140 pounds of trash, an average of about 30,600 pounds a month.

Syringe collection program: In August 2016, SPU launched a program to collect syringes through complaints as well as special disposal boxes in City public rights-of-way and small bathroom units in City parks. The pilot has collected more than 111,760 syringes.

City of Seattle Homeless Response

Seattle continues to address the crisis of homelessness by helping people living unsheltered on the streets and in tents move to safer places and toward a permanent home and better future.

Often, people experiencing chronic homelessness face significant challenges in finding and accepting shelter. These challenges include traumatic or violent life experiences, not being able to safely store valuables, rules against staying with a significant other in shelter and having to move between multiple shelters with no guaranteed bed at night. Further, there are even more barriers for this population in finding the resources and stability to secure housing.

Introduced in winter 2015, tiny house villages (formerly known as sanctioned encampments) play a crucial role in helping the City move unsheltered people from dangerous conditions on the streets and into a more safe and supportive environment. City permitted tiny house villages are designed to meet this need by offering transitional safer spaces that provide services and support stability and get people on a path to stable housing. Spaces in tiny home villages represent approximately 12.5% of all shelter beds and safe spaces the City supports and make up less than 3% of all homelessness response investments made by the City of Seattle. Tiny home villages are made possible through significant community and volunteer support as well.

The tiny house village program is just one of the strategies the City of Seattle utilizes in addressing this crisis. The Human Services Department (HSD) has a three-pronged approach to address homelessness:

1. prevention programs to help stop people from falling into homelessness;
2. affordable housing programs that help move people on from shelters and villages and that bring more affordable housing online; and
3. emergency shelter programs that keep un-housed people safe while they search for housing, and shelter programs such as tiny house villages.

Prevention helps people who are housed, but are in imminent danger of becoming homeless, to remain in their homes. Once a person is homeless, they may use onetime funds or services, in a diversion program, to bypass shelter and enter permanent housing, or they may enter emergency services which include shelter, permitted villages, and transitional housing. From emergency services, a person may exit the program to housing using Rapid Rehousing, shorter-term rental subsidy, or Permanent Supportive Housing, which includes intensive support services as well as rental subsidy.

Mayor Jenny Durkan’s recently announced new shelter investments strengthen the impact of these approaches.

Emergency Services – Villages

Emergency services – like shelter programs and villages – play an important role in providing safe spaces for people to stay while they connect with permanent housing.

The City’s trained Navigation Team, which connects people living in unmanaged tent encampments to shelter, reports that tiny house villages are some of the most sought and accepted offers of help. In 2017, the Navigation Team referred over 250 people to tiny house villages. The village model includes individual weather-proofed sleeping structures with electricity that offer a secure space to store belongings, access to showers, restrooms, laundry, a community kitchen, and most importantly, access to professional supportive services.

The Navigation Team has found that they are more likely to convince an individual to accept their offer of shelter and move away from living in a tent on Seattle’s streets by offering a spot within a village.  For many of the tiny house villages, the only way to secure shelter within the village is through a referral from the Navigation Team.

Seattle was one of the first cities in the nation to invest in tiny house villages as transitional spaces to address homelessness. The City has evaluated the program to refine, improve and integrate the tiny house village model into the existing homelessness response system. For example, the City has learned through interviews with people served by the villages that private sleeping structures (tiny houses) provide an invaluable physical space where people can transition from being in survival mode on the streets to reconnecting with community and supportive services. The City also has learned from neighbors and businesses about how the City and tiny house villages can better engage and work with community stakeholders to address challenges and meet common goals.

Lastly, the City provides quarterly reports detailing outcomes from investments made in the homeless response system, including tiny house villages. So far in 2018, the City has found all tiny house villages are at capacity every night, serving over 320 people every night. And, villages with more supportive services have an increased rate of exiting people into permanent housing than other villages.

Below is a summary of current updates, improvements, and community meetings for each City supported tiny house village. Each village is supported by a City-contracted operator, adheres to specific guidelines and hosts regularly scheduled meetings between village residents and community stakeholders through Community Advisory Committees  (CACs). The City–Permitted Villages webpage  contains details about each village to include the code-of-conduct materials, management contact information, names of the CAC members and the minutes for the monthly meeting.

Current Tiny House Villages

Whittier Heights Village 

Located at 8030 15^th Ave., Whittier Heights Village is operated and managed by LIHI. It is the newest tiny house village to open and serves up to 20 chronically homeless women who have lived unsheltered for extended periods and also experience disabling medical conditions – including behavioral health and substance use disorders.

Whittier Heights Village is Seattle’s first all-women tiny house village, meeting a need that unsheltered women, service providers and outreach workers have identified. LIHI provides extensive case management and supportive services for the residents in Whittier Heights Village and offers access to showers, bathrooms and laundry on-site. The village opened in May 2018 with 16 tiny houses and has supported a slow ramp-up to allow women to adjust to this new space. 

Licton Springs Village

Located at 8620 Aurora Ave. N., the village is operated by Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI), and managed daily by SHARE/WHEEL. Licton Springs Village was designed to meet the needs of some of the most vulnerable people experiencing homelessness in Seattle. Most of the residents of Licton Springs Village have experienced homelessness for years and even decades at a time, and some experience chronic substance use disorder, mental health, and behavioral conditions.

Developing intensive supportive services for such a vulnerable population has presented challenges for residents, service providers, and neighbors. Currently, the village has full-time intensive case management, access to medical services, showers, bathrooms, on-site laundry and meal service once a day.

Based on feedback from neighbors in Licton Springs, LIHI is implementing an improvement plan that is designed to better serve both village residents and surrounding community members. Improvements, which will be evaluated by the City contract team in August, include moving and narrowing the entry gate to provide better security, improved fencing, replacing dorm tents with tiny houses, reducing possession hoarding on-site, improved hypodermic needle containment and disposal, better hand washing stations, increased perimeter clean-ups and security, increased rodent abatement and installation of additional lighting. These improvements will help to inform decisions around continuation of the village at this site.

Northlake Village

Located at 3814 Fourth Ave. NE, the village is operated by LIHI and managed daily by Nickelsville.

Northlake Village is one of the original permitted villages. It operated as Nickelsville Ballard off Market Street from November 2015 through March 2018. The new village has 20 tiny houses, a hygiene trailer with plumbed toilets, showers and laundry. A LIHI case manager works with residents to identify and address their barriers to obtaining housing. The Community Advisory Committee (CAC) recently began its work and has already shown strong support for the village. Community members hosted a July 4^th barbeque for residents and neighbors.

Interbay – TC-5 Safe Harbor

Located at 1601 15^th Ave. W. on property owned by the Port of Seattle, the village is operated by LIHI and formerly managed by SHARE/WHEEL. The Interbay-Tent City 5 village was originally located at 3234 17th Ave W. and successfully operated from November 2015 through November 2017. This was also one of the original tiny house villages launched by the City of Seattle and currently serves 50 people on an average per night.

Recently, residents of the village approached LIHI to take on daily management. LIHI has and continues to provide case management to aid in residents’ housing searches. In addition to full time case management, LIHI will add two staff people to act as site coordinator and manage day-to-day operations. Village residents will work with LIHI staff in leading and managing the village community. To date, Interbay-Tent City 5 has benefited from a strong CAC partnership, which was a driving force in relocating the village near its original location to maintain its strong connection to the neighborhood.

Othello Village

Located at 7544 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S., the village is operated by LIHI and managed daily by Nickelsville. Othello Village is the third original permitted encampment and is operating at the current location, which is owned by LIHI, on a month-to-month basis. Othello Village serves adults and families experiencing homelessness and is frequently at capacity. The site offers access to showers, bathrooms and on-site laundry.

The Othello CAC, which provides a strong community voice, has stated that LIHI and Nickelsville have consistently addressed community concerns and complaints. The City will host a community meeting on Aug. 16 to hear about the accomplishments of the village and to begin discussions around the feasibility of allowing the village to remain at the site until the property is developed into affordable housing in 2020.’

Georgetown Village

Located at 1020 S. Myrtle St., the village is operated by LIHI and managed daily by Nickelsville. Georgetown Village serves adults and families experiencing homelessness, most of whom come directly from unsanctioned encampments through the City’s Navigation Team. Georgetown Village provides safe living spaces, including access to showers, bathrooms and laundry for 65 people per night on average. Residents also have access to case management services to assist with housing searches. The Georgetown Village opened in March 2017 and has an active and supportive CAC. 

Camp Second Chance – Myers Way

Located at 9701 Myers Way S., the village is operated by LIHI and managed daily by leadership at Camp Second Chance. Camp Second Chance (C2C) is the only tiny house village in the West Seattle region and serves, on average, 50 people per night. Residents have access to case management services, portable toilets and hand washing stations. Union Gospel Mission provides a regularly scheduled hygiene trailer that visits C2C as well. From its opening at this location in March 2017, the Camp Second Chance CAC meets regularly to support the residents and address neighbor concerns.  

New Tiny House Villages

Lake Union Village

The potential village is planned for 800 Aloha St. in South Lake Union and is the first village to be located in the downtown region, meeting a critical need in the area. Lake Union Village is part of Mayor Durkan’s plan to expand capacity at shelters and villages to serve an additional 500 people per night. Site preparation is underway and the City anticipates the village will open in October.  

It will host 22 tiny houses. LIHI will operate the site and Lifelong will provide case management to assist residents in finding permanent housing.

 True Hope Village

Located in the Central District at 1714 E Yesler Way in the Central District, True Hope Village is sponsored by two churches, New Hope Missionary Baptist Church and Truevine of Holiness Missionary Baptist Church. The two churches and LIHI will support case management and other community resources for people living in 35 tiny houses at this property. Outreach organizations that work with unsheltered people will provide referrals into this village, including referrals for homeless students seeking to enroll in local vocational school programs. Partner organizations include the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, Seattle Vocational Institute, Seattle Indian Center, New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, Truevine of Holiness Missionary Baptist Church, LIHI and the Navigation Team.  

True Hope Village opened in September of this year.

The Human Services Department will continue to monitor the performance outcomes of the permitted village program and report the results quarterly.

The City of Seattle hosted a community meeting on Thursday, June 28 to discuss the proposed  Lake Union Village. This post contains answers to questions that were asked at that meeting.

How might pursuing tiny house villages impact the City’s federal (HUD) funding?

Even though tiny house villages serve similar functions as emergency shelters do- such as reducing the number of individuals living in unsanctioned encampments, increasing safety and access to hygiene facilities, and connecting individuals with services and supports to help them end their homelessness- HUD does not count tiny house villages as ‘shelter’. This means that residents of tiny house villages are still part of Seattle’s unsheltered persons count.

HUD expects cities to actively work to reduce the number of unsheltered individuals from year-to-year. In the near-term, residents of tiny house villages will have a neutral impact on Seattle’s unsheltered count. Residents are considered unsheltered prior to entering the village, and they are still considered unsheltered while staying in the village. Over the longer-term, as village residents receive services and supports to access permanent housing, these individuals will then be counted as housed, which will reflect positively on Seattle from HUD’s perspective

How is the City accountable in the usage of taxpayer funds when homeless people aren’t tested for drugs when they move into villages, apply for housing or are in housing?

Being homeless and living unsheltered makes it extremely difficult for people to access addiction treatment, mental health care, physical health care, food and hygiene services, employment services, and case management to end their homelessness.

Nationwide, cities that are demonstrating a reduction in unsheltered homelessness have adopted a model called Housing First. Under Housing First principles, permanent housing is the first priority for homeless people. Once housed, people are more successful in treating and managing other conditions, including behavioral health disorders and substance use disorders. Housing First is a cost-effective service-delivery model that aligns with good stewardship of taxpayer dollars. HSD uses housing first principles to make investments in the homeless services system.

To measure the effectiveness of the City’s investments in homeless services, HSD looks at five performance metrics. These performance measures, which are also used by King County and United Way, work together to ensure accountability and results for the public dollars that are supporting homeless response projects. The results help HSD determine whether programs are using all available resources to assist people in connecting to stable housing and shelter.

HSD presented the first quarter results of 2018 to the City Council on June 26, 2018. Overall, the homeless services programs that receive city funding are more effective in connecting clients to housing in Q1 2018 as compared to Q1 2017. In the first quarter, there were 3,030 household exits from homeless services programs that receive city funding. This is an increase of 1,241 household exits over the first quarter of 2017.

Permitted villages offer safer spaces to stay for over 320 people per night. In Q1 2018, the villages have an exit rate to permanent housing of 17%. This puts the villages slightly below enhanced shelter in connecting clients to housing (20.5% exit rate to housing) and above basic shelter (3.8% exit rate of housing). HSD looks forward to reviewing a full six months of data and results in the second quarter review. You can watch the video of that presentation here.

HSD is pleased that programs have shown improved performance, however more people are falling into homelessness than are connecting to stable housing. In response to the scope of the homelessness crisis, Mayor Durkan has proposed the expansion of shelter and village capacity by 25% so that we can provide safer living conditions for people living unsheltered and for the community at large.

How can community members express their concerns about this project?

The humanitarian crisis unfolding on Seattle streets impact all communities, in every neighborhood across the city. To better help reduce the number of vulnerable people living unsheltered, Mayor Jenny Durkan and City Council committed to this project as one way to get people into safer shelter, decrease the public health impacts of unsheltered homelessness, and increase the City’s ability to support people in ending their homelessness.

HSD’s role is to bring the project online, in partnership with the contracted provider (LIHI) and other City Departments. At all stages of project implementation community input can and does shape project design and can help address neighborhood needs. Community members are encouraged to reach out to the Human Services Department at homelessness@seattle.gov to ask questions, express support, or express concerns about the Lake Union Village. Neighbors interested in volunteering at the site or donating items are encouraged to reach out to LIHI at jcastle@LIHI.org.

What can be done to deter homeless people from outside this area from moving to Seattle?

The idea that Seattle’s challenges with homelessness are caused by an influx of people from outside the regions is untrue. A 2016 survey of just over 1,000 individuals living unsheltered in Seattle indicated that 49% of respondents were living in Seattle immediately prior to becoming homeless. An additional 36% of respondents reported living in wider King County or other Washington Counties immediately prior to becoming homeless.

The vast majority of individuals experiencing homelessness reported moving to Seattle for the same reasons the rest of the population does; having family/friends living in Seattle (35%), or for a local job (34%). The Evergrey recently addressed this here.

Can we reserve Seattle’s homeless services dollars only for those people who were living in Seattle immediately prior to becoming homeless?

It’s not possible to restrict Seattle homeless services dollars to those people who were living in Seattle immediately prior to becoming homeless. Since most homeless services in Seattle are designed to transition people from homelessness to housing, this would put the City in violation of federal and local fair housing laws. It would also leave vulnerable individuals who are living outdoors without any access services, including medically fragile individuals, those with significant mental health care needs, and families with young children.

What can be done about street lighting around Aloha/Dexter and the adjacent park? 

The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) does light analysis on arterial streets and Seattle City Light (SCL) does light analysis on non-arterials. An analysis was recently completed, and updates were made in the neighborhood around the Lake Union Village site. According to SCL this neighborhood has the brightest arterial lights in the city. If community members believe additional remedies are needed they can make a request through the City’s Customer Service Bureau  or through the City’s Find It, Fix It mobile app.

How does SPD respond to crime problems in neighborhoods that host villages and what are the crime stats for these neighborhoods?

Crime data, including any upticks in crime, is taken into consideration when making decisions on where to assign patrol resources. Emphasis patrols have been used to address areas of concern, when appropriate.

Neighborhood-specific crime data is located on the Seattle Police Department website.

What is the progressive discipline process for people who violate the code of conduct?

Progressive discipline provides a graduated range of responses to individuals struggling to adhere to village guidelines. The goal of progressive discipline is to support individuals in being able to successfully stay at the village. LIHI case managers tailor their responses to behavior challenges to the type of infraction that’s been committed. On the low-end, this can include verbal reminders of the expectations and offering support to individuals in making the necessary behavior modifications. At the high-end, individuals can be permanently barred from the village.

What is the difference between how Licton Springs operates and how this village will operate?

The primary difference between Licton Springs and Lake Union Village is that Licton Springs is designed to be a safe space for residents with severe substance use disorders to live with the expectation that these residents will actively use drugs or alcohol. While Lake Union Village will accept residents with substance use disorders, the Code of Conduct prohibits use in public spaces. At each village residents receive case management to address housing barriers to housing, including referrals to substance abuse treatment.

Are there quiet hours for the village?

Yes. Quiet hours will be maintained from 9pm-8am.

Why not use this site for affordable housing?

Increasing affordable housing is a goal of the City’s. Given the length of time it takes to develop housing, it’s essential that we pursue a variety of short, medium, and longer-term strategies to meet the needs of our community. With thousands of our Seattle neighbors living outside, tiny house villages are able to make use of available City land to quickly address safety and housing needs of individuals experiencing homelessness.

When will the next evaluation of the tiny house villages come out?

The 2018 evaluation of tiny house villages is scheduled to be completed in August. Read the 2017 evaluation here.

What is the timeline for the village?

The goal is to begin resident intakes by mid-to-late August.

Does the City differentiate between transients and homeless people?

Seattle uses the HUD categories/definitions of homelessness;

* literally homeless

* imminent risk of homelessness

* homeless under other federal statutes

* and fleeing/attempting to flee domestic violence.

Read detailed descriptions of these definitions here.

Will people be allowed to use drugs or alcohol inside the tiny houses?

Smoking of any kind is not allowed inside the tiny houses and drug and alcohol use will not be permitted in community areas. LIHI will not search tiny houses or people for drug or alcohol use or paraphernalia.

Case managers will work with each resident on addressing their unique housing-related barriers such as employment, health needs, mental health needs, substance use, etc.

All residents are expected to comply with the Code of Conduct at the Lake Union Village.

What is the success rate of the villages in terms of moving people out of homelessness and into permanent housing?

In the first quarter of 2018, Seattle’s permitted village program shows a rate of exits to permanent housing of 17%. Villages with the most supportive services had higher rates of exits. Lake Union Village will have case management and supportive services in line with these villages. HSD will continue to review quarterly performance data for the village program.

How does the City use community input on projects like this, especially once the decision has been made to move forward?

The City uses four models/types of community engagement: informing, consulting, collaborating, and shared decision-making. The particular type of engagement that is used depends on several factors including the urgency of the project, council or legislative action that may have already taken place, and the needs of the community.

Once a decision has been made, and throughout the life of a project, community engagement continues to be important. Community feedback helps guide and inform project-specific policies and procedures, identify areas of concern, and prompts the City to seek remedies or resolutions to ensure that the project is successful for the neighborhood and other key stakeholders.

To provide input on the Lake Union Village project please email homelessness@seattle.gov. All input received becomes part of the public record for this project and will be used to help inform project design.

What will the fence height be?

The current 8’ chain link fence will stay in place. A fabric visual barrier will be added to it for privacy.

Will the Village provide for sharps containment and removal?

Yes, there will be sharps containers on site. The containers will be managed by Seattle/King County Public Health’s mobile medical van which will make regular visits to the village.

Will there be planters and other decorative features at this site?

There will be porches and planters at this site. Neighbors can donate materials and/or volunteer to help with site projects like plantings by contacting Josh at jcastle@LIHI.org.

Will residents be screened for active warrants and sex offender status before becoming residents of this village?

Potential residents will be screened for sex offender status. Individuals on the sex offender registry will not be permitted to be residents of the Lake Union Village.

Potential residents will not be screened for active warrants. Access to stable housing has been shown to increase community safety. Criminal and civil records are often cited as barriers to housing and factors in driving people to homelessness. Lake Union Village’s goal is to help people quickly end their homelessness, get the support and services they need, and enter permanent housing.

Permanent housing has been shown to significantly reduce recidivism rates for new convictions, revocations, and readmission to prison.