Shelters work to expand capacity for snowy weekend, but many will remain outside
With temperatures dipping into the 20s overnight and snow predicted for this weekend, Thurston County has declared a “hazardous weather event,” which provides additional funding for Olympia’s homeless shelters and outreach organizations to add staff and beds, as well as provide supplies to encampments.
It won’t be anywhere near enough to get everyone inside.
The county currently has about 320 shelter “beds,” a number that includes close to 100 tents at the mitigation site in downtown Olympia. The 2020 Point-in-Time count indicates that there are at least 541 unsheltered individuals throughout the county, though that number is likely an undercount.
This weekend, Interfaith Works’ shelter at First Christian Church will add 12-15 shelter beds for single adults, and outreach organization Partners in Prevention Education (PiPE) will distribute supplies such as socks, hand warmers, blankets, and tarps to encampments.
Thurston County contracts with numerous service providers in Olympia for cold weather support from Nov. 1 to April 30. But weather emergencies like this one trigger a temporary increase in funding — in this case about $10,000 to support PiPE and Interfaith Works’ efforts, as well as staffing at the Community Youth Services young adult shelter and Pear Blossom Place, which is run by Family Support Center of the South Sound.
No families will be turned away from Pear Blossom Place this weekend, executive director Trish Gregory said at a meeting of the county’s Housing Action Team on Wednesday. If they reach capacity, the Family Support Center will place families in hotels for the weekend.
Meanwhile, the city of Olympia will open the Olympia Center as a daytime warming center from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Friday.
Families looking for emergency shelter can call Family Support Center’s coordinated entry hotline at 360-754-9297. Single adults and couples without children can contact Community Action Council at 360-438-1100, and youth under 24 can contact Community Youth Services at 360-943-0780.
This story was originally published February 11, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
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