SUMMARY MINUTES OF SPECIAL MEETING

Monday, October 10, 2022 Conference Room 440 - Shoreline City Hall

5:45 p.m. 17500 Midvale Avenue North

PRESENT: Mayor Scully, Deputy Mayor Robertson, and Councilmembers McConnell, Mork, Pobee, Ramsdell, and Roberts

ABSENT: None

STAFF: City Manager Debbie Tarry, Assistant City Manager John Norris, and

Community Services Manager Bethany Wolbrecht-Dunn

GUESTS: Lake City Partners Executive Director, William Towey

At 5:51 p.m., the special meeting was called to order by Mayor Scully. All Councilmembers were present except for Councilmember McConnell who joined the meeting at 5:54 p.m. Lake City Partners Executive Director, William Towey, introduced himself and gave an overview of Lake City Partners and the work they do to end homelessness. He said Lake City Partners was established as a nonprofit organization by volunteers working under the Lake City Taskforce on Homelessness. Lake City Partners offers a winter shelter program, day shelter, long-term shelter, and referrals to other services through the Homeless Management Information System.

Mr. Towey stated that he is working on understanding how clients are referred to their services for relationship building purposes. He said he hopes to have five to ten people on deck who are good candidates for intake at any given time. Councilmember Roberts asked for more information about what makes someone a good candidate for intake. Mr. Towey answered by emphasizing that they do not provide healthcare or assisted living services and would not be able to help with physical care. Other components that positively impact candidacy are good mental health, a source of income, and ability to get an ID.

The Oaks Enhanced Shelter is also operated by Lake City Partners. The Oaks guides residents through a program to help them achieve housing stability. Mr. Towey reported that 58 out of 60 beds are currently occupied at The Oaks, but he shared that the shelter is deeply constrained by staffing challenges. Staff are asked to work overtime and additional help is sometimes brought in from peer organizations or temporary employment agencies to cover vacancies. The Oaks is working to increase staffing capacity to provide ample shift coverage for the people currently residing at the shelter. Councilmember Pobee asked if a previous client of The Oaks has ever returned and Mr. Towey said he has not seen that happen and stated that the shelter’s waitlist would make it difficult to do so. He said priority for intake goes to those who are most vulnerable and can be served properly. Second priority goes to Shoreline residents, and then Lake City residents.

Mr. Towey explained a few challenges that Lake City Partners has been working to overcome. He noted that the organization started with a staff of six and a budget of approximately $500,000. Lake City Partners grew significantly over the pandemic. In a course of 18 months, the nonprofit had to adapt to a staff of 40 and a budget around $3 million per year. In addition to these changes, there was a long-standing leadership gap and new software was introduced to staff. Since implementing best practices tactics, Mr. Towy said operations are improving.

Mr. Towey stated that problems like homelessness, education, and environment require a large collaborative framework of operation. He said, agencies must help those experiencing homelessness by providing different types of housing and reengaging them with the housing market. Under an overarching planning system, individual organizations should work can coordinate to make meaningful progress to end homelessness. Mr. Towey expressed a need for additional physical space to provide transitional and permanent shelter.

At 6:43 p.m., Mayor Scully declared the meeting adjourned.

/s/ Kendyl Hardy, Deputy City Clerk