King County Buys 3 More Buildings To House The Homeless

Seattle WA

29 July, 2021

5:30 PM

Description

SEATTLE — King County officials on Thursday announced three more property buys for the Health Through Housing initiative, estimated to provide another 313 units to house chronically homeless people across King County. The latest deal is valued at $96 million and includes a brand new apartment building in Seattle's Pioneer Square neighborhood and Extended Stay America hotels in North Seattle and Federal Way. Here are the three latest Health Through Housing properties: The Canton Lofts, Seattle (80 units)Extended Stay America, Seattle (131 units)Extended Stay America, Federal Way (101 units) The three latest acquisitions join five others purchased since May, including the Silver Cloud Inn in Redmond, an Extended Stay America in Renton, the Clarion Inn in Auburn, the Inn at Queen Anne in Seattle's Uptown and the Holiday Inn Express & Suites in North Seattle. Altogether, officials estimate they will have space to provide secure, safe and private housing for hundreds of people experiencing long-term homelessness before the colder months arrive. "For too long, we've let process stand in the way of progress, and with our regional partners across King County we have acted swiftly to purchase the first eight Health Through Housing properties, a substantial step forward in our regional solution to chronic homelessness," said King County Executive Dow Constantine. "Two months ago I announced the first purchase for Health through Housing, and with today's announcement we'll soon have 850 new supportive housing units ready to serve our community before this winter, and up to 1,600 by the end of next year." Unlike traditional shelter settings, the Health Through Housing projects will offer each resident a private room and bathroom, with access to around-the-clock services and case managers to help provide a way out of homelessness for good. During the early days of the pandemic, a University of Washington study found moving people from large shelters into individual rooms led to better physical and mental health outcomes and a higher rate of success in securing permanent housing. Read more about Health Through Housing on the King County website.