Lewis County is looking ahead to 2030 after approving a new plan last week that prioritizes services tailored to the needs of individual community members in Lewis County under the “functional zero” model.
The Lewis County Board of Commissioners approved the county’s newest five-year Housing and Homeless Strategic Plan last week during a hearing toward the end of the board's Tuesday business meeting.
A five-year plan for homelessness services is required by Washington state; however, this year, county staff worked hard to put their own spin on it, better tailoring it to the needs of Lewis County.
Lewis County Social Services and Public Health Director Meja Handlen and the county’s Housing and Infrastructure Specialist Eric Eisenberg led the teams developing the new plan. The two also provided a staff briefing and answered questions for Commissioners Lindsey Pollock and Scott Brummer during the Tuesday meeting.
Handlen highlighted the improved quality of the new plan compared with the county's previous five-year homelessness services plan. The new plan reportedly was created with more feedback and cooperation from local stakeholders and while paying closer attention to local needs and circumstances.
“The resulting plan was basically a cut and paste from what the state required, without a lot of input directly from the cities,” Handlen said. “And that was problematic, as the five-year plan extended into action items.”
The new plan proposes better collecting information from homeless residents to understand their personal circumstances and find situations that give them the best chance at finding a sustainable housing arrangement.
According to Eisenberg, the new plan still reflects the objectives laid out in the state's service plan. In fact, it even combined two of the state's objectives into one single actionable goal. But Eisenberg added that the new plan also goes to lengths to do more than regurgitate prescribed goals and instead establishes realistic milestones for the county.
The county’s plan touches on all of the requirements from the state but also provides context of cost, funding availability, grant eligibility and more to describe how realistic the goals set for the county really are.
“So our plan repeats those things as it must, but it also discusses how realistic they are in terms of development,” Eisenberg said. “The milestones that are listed are realistic and achievable. They're designed to not oversell, but instead to talk about what we can really achieve, and in the time we can achieve it.”
According to Eisenberg, the biggest changes to both the state’s and the county’s plans are a greater emphasis on preventing homelessness, developing the homeless service workforce and considering housing supply needs identified in the county’s comprehensive plan.
During the meeting, Eisenberg remarked that he had expected more members of the public to appear to comment on the plan and told commissioners they could recess the hearing if they wanted to solicit more feedback.
No members of the public appeared for the meeting to ask any questions or provide any feedback on the new plan. Commissioner Brummer asked a series of questions to measure the level of work and public engagement already put into developing the plan.
According to Eisenberg, the state released information on the new plan roughly one year ago, and the county has been working to develop the plan since. In that time, staff has also worked with community stakeholders, with the City of Centralia, more than others, taking a proactive role in helping develop the plan and provide feedback.
“The primary person who's produced a lot of outside input was the city of Centralia, which got very interested in this plan and what it would mean for county homeless services,” Eisenberg said. “So, starting over the summer in earnest, they were asking questions of both the department and of me specifically.”
Eisenberg stated that outreach had been directed toward stakeholders, service providers and individuals actively experiencing homelessness, suggesting some residents may not have engaged with the plan. Handlen urged the commissioners to pass the plan, mentioning that the plan is a “living document” and can be changed as needed if more people bring forward feedback after its approval.
“If we do want to make changes, we are allowed to make changes,” Handlen said. “And that is a point that was not well known in the previous plan. So if something were to occur, a new provider came in, or a philanthropist said, ‘Hey, I would like to buy that derelict building and Winlock and change it into this,’ we should and will amend the plan to fit the needs that the community voices.”
Ultimately, Brummer and Pollock approved the plan, presumably deciding that they were satisfied with the amount of feedback from stakeholders and community members.
Washington state passed a law in 2018 requiring all counties to have a homelessness services plan. One year later, Lewis County passed its first plan in accordance with the law, which described the county’s plan from 2019 through 2024. The new plan covers the county’s actions starting this year and stretching through 2030.
For more information about the county’s services and its Homeless and Housing program, visit https://tinyurl.com/4ur584c2.
