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Multiple toilet paper rolls, liquid dish soap and other household items sat on a long table Wednesday afternoon at the Rosehill Community Center in Mukilteo.
People were tasked with putting the household items into reusable bags, making household kits for the soon-to-be residents of the Edmonds New Start Center, 22127 Highway 99.
“This site will help YWCA meet a critical need in our community,” said Kresha Green, regional director at YWCA Seattle | King | Snohomish, during an event Wednesday.
YWCA Seattle | King | Snohomish hosted its fourth annual Community in Bloom event May 13 to celebrate the impact of the organization’s donors and volunteers. The event also touched on the Edmonds New Start Center and the plan to open soon.
The Edmonds New Start Center, along with the Everett New Start Center, are emergency bridge housing for people experiencing homelessness. YWCA will run the Edmonds location, and The Salvation Army will run the Everett location at 1602 S.E. Everett Mall Way.
The Edmonds New Start Center used to be America’s Best Value Inn. The Everett New Start Center used to be Days Inn. Both centers have a combined budget of about $37 million and are paid for by Federal American Rescue Plan Act funds and money collected from the county’s 0.1% affordable housing sales tax.
My Neighborhood News Group reported in January that the Snohomish County Council unanimously approved to move forward with the contracts for the New Start Centers. The contracts outline a management plan, code of conduct, referral and eligibility, as well as safety and security.
“We’ve worked long and hard to bring all this together, not only with [Snohomish County] but with tons of community folks,” Green said.
The 45-unit Edmonds New Start Center will provide residents with wraparound services, Green added. This includes life coaches, healthcare navigators and landlord engagement specialists, among other professionals.
Green said residents will also have access to meals and hygiene products, as well as a computer station to search for housing and employment opportunities. Everett-based Millennia Ministries has been instrumental with the meal component, she said.
“It’s so cliche, but it’s so true — it takes a village,” Green said. “This project has been years in the making. It has been a journey in the last few months. It has been a whirlwind.”
YWCA has been hiring new staff, some of which were present at the event.
“We are going to be opening the doors soon. That’s about what I can say,” Green said. “We are going through that path and journey of getting everything in order. When we open up, we want to open up correctly.”
YWCA Seattle | King | Snohomish is a social justice organization that serves nearly 10,000 people per year, with a focus on housing stability, economic advancement and health and safety.
The organization has more than 20 locations, four of which are already operating in South Snohomish County: Pathways Emergency Shelter, Somerset Village Apartments, Trinity Place Apartments and Victorian Woods Apartments.
YWCA’s housing services include supportive housing, permanent housing, homeless services, rental/utility assistance, emergency shelter and childcare.
The organization’s next upcoming event is the annual Inspire Luncheon from noon to 1:15 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, at The Westin Seattle, 1900 5th Ave. More information on the event is available here.
Angelica Relente is a Murrow News Fellow covering housing and related issues in South Snohomish County for the My Neighborhood News Group. Contact her at [email protected].
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