Tumwater to join Washington in addressing issue of homeless people living in rights of way

Tumwater is set to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Washington state State to relocate homeless people living in rights of way into state-funded housing.

The city’s General Government Committee agreed on July 13 to recommend the MOU as a consent calendar for a city council meeting on July 19 where it is likely to be approved.

The MOU is the first of a series of agreements between the Washington State Department of Commerce (COMCommerce), Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), Washington State Patrol (WSP), the cities of Lacey, Olympia, and Tumwater, along with Thurston County to address the issue of homeless people living in state rights of way.

The MOU seeks to pursue a short-term goal of outreaching affected people and identifying their needs before they are moved to an emergency housing, newly built house, or renovated high-density building.

Washington Governor Jay Inslee had issued an order for COM, WSDOT, and WSP to identify rights of ways within five counties namely Thurston, Pierce, King, Snohomish, and Spokane. All affected areas in Thurston County are in Olympia, mainly along Pacific Avenue, Lilly Road, Sleater Kinny Road, and the area surrounding the capital entrance.

“The reason why both Lacey and Tumwater are also involved in the process is we have concerns about pushing the problem down the road by having all this process… and the unintended consequences of moving the problem somewhere else. So we wanted to make sure that if we’re looking at these issues, we want to do so in a holistic manner,” said Brad Medrud, Tumwater planning manager.

Medrud added that the MOU is only a first step to addressing the issue of homeless people. The MOU does not establish long-term strategies and only seeks to lay the groundwork before advancing to future agreements.

As part of the current agreement, 50 new tiny homes with a capacity of about 60 people will be built along with the renovation of a high-density building consisting of around 100 units. The MOU seeks to have the housing occupied by September 2022. Twenty-four shelter beds have also been prioritized as early as June 2022.

All housing will be funded by the state for three years. Additional support will be provided to domestic violence survivors, homeless youth, and other people unsuitable for regular shelters.

During a committee meeting, the General Government Committee acknowledged the complex situation of moving people out of their homes.

“This isn’t something I think is best practices by any means, however, it is an opportunity in terms of having funding coming from the state that we wouldn’t have otherwise to deal with an issue that is not going anywhere,” Medrud said.