Seattle Opens 50-Unit Homeless Shelter Without Sobriety Requirement as Mayor Defends Low-Barrier Model
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 9
Seattle Opens 50-Unit Homeless Shelter Without Sobriety Requirement as Mayor Defends Low-Barrier Model
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 9
Summary
Katie Wilson said residents entering Seattle’s new Bayside Enhanced Shelter Community in Interbay will not have to be sober, framing the policy as a way to move unsheltered people indoors.
The mayor said the site will follow a “low-barrier, high-support” model: treatment and behavioral health help for addiction and recovery will be available and encouraged, but not required.
The new shelter has 50 single-adult pallet-home units for 24/7 transitional housing and is expected to expand to 75 by month-end; KIRO 7 reported each 70-square-foot unit cost $16,000 to build.
Wilson also acknowledged Seattle is behind its shelter targets of 500 beds by mid-June and 1,000 by year-end, saying the city is still failing while thousands remain unsheltered.
Washington state counted 22,173 homeless people on Jan. 30, with 33% unsheltered, underscoring the scale of the crisis behind the policy.