KING COUNTY TEN-YEAR PLAN TO END HOMELESSNESS

Major accomplishments in the first seven years of the Ten-Year Plan include:

  • Added 4,622 new housing units or dedicated subsidies to our housing inventory with another 802 in the pipeline and set to open in 2013 and 2014, and linked that housing to the services these new residents need to stay housed and maximize their self-sufficiency
  • Since the start of the Ten Year Plan, we have helped more than 35,000 individuals in over 23,000 households to leave homelessness, either to the units created above or into market housing or other opportunities.
  • Prevented homelessness for over 22,000 people (more than 7,000 households) through emergency assistance programs throughout the county
  • Between 2005 and 2013, secured over $120 million in new public, private, state and local funding to provide housing and supportive services to individuals and families countywide
  • Formed the Funders Group, comprised of all the major funders committed to ending homelessness, to align our resources and strategies and streamline the process for agencies to apply for funding. In 2011 the Funders Group received a “Top 25 Innovations in Government” award from the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s prestigious Kennedy School of Government
  • Proven the effectiveness of our work in nationally acclaimed studies such as the Journal of American Medical Association article on Housing First and 1811 Eastlake, and through Client Care Coordination – both projects demonstrated cost offsets of several million annually in use of expense emergency systems such as jails, hospital stays and sobering center admissions.
  • Became a national leader in efforts to end youth and young adult homelessness, evidenced by our piloting of Count Us In, a point in time census of young adults who are homeless, and helping us to better understand the numbers and faces behind youth homelessness to inform our comprehensive plan to end youth and young adult homelessness by 2020.
  • Launched Family Housing Connection, streamlining the process by which families who are homeless can access one of 80 shelters in our region.
  • Served the 1,000th household in the Landlord Liaison Project, far surpassing our original goal! By year end, we had placed 1,202 households in market housing, working with 173 landlords representing 342 properties across King County.

Community Accomplishments in the last calendar year

People served in 2012 by program (from Safe Harbors) / 2011 / 2012 / % Change
Homelessness Prevention & Rapid Re-Housing / 7,881 / 11,008 / 40%
Emergency Shelter / 11,999 / 12,501 / 4%
Transitional Housing * / 6,507 / 5,576 / -14%
Permanent Housing/Permanent Supportive Housing / 5,275 / 6,254 / 19%
Service Only Programs / 6,113 / 6,911 / 13%
Movement to Permanent Housing
From emergency shelter or transitional housing / 3,072 / 3,004 / -2%
From service only programs / 930 / 1,348 / 45%

*Some transitional housing units were reprogrammed into permanent housing.