Seattle — Today, Mayor Katie Wilson, Seattle business and neighborhood leaders including the Downtown Seattle Association, members of the Seattle City Council, Seattle’s Human Services Department, and community organizations shared details of a new shift in strategy to rapidly reduce homelessness in Seattle.
The change in approach draws on an established framework, pioneered by Community Solutions, that has seen success in cities around the United States.
In Seattle, these best practices were piloted in Pioneer Square ahead of the 2026 World Cup to great effect, placing 70 out of 80 people into sustained shelter or housing. They were previously used in the JustCARE program pioneered in Seattle during the pandemic, and in the Washington Transportation Right of Way Encampment Resolution Program. That program effectively resolved 40 large encampments impacting Seattle neighborhoods, achieving a 95% shelter/housing acceptance rate.
This shift in approach will largely be accomplished by an efficient re-organizing of existing resources in order to achieve a higher level of impact. Its success depends on passage of the $37 million for shelter in the mayor’s budget proposal, which closes Seattle’s $175 million deficit.
In a keynote address to the Community Solutions conference on Tuesday, Mayor Wilson explained how the strategy works:
“Let me put in plain terms what we will do: We are scaling up our success from this summer’s World Cup in one downtown neighborhood, to other parts of Seattle. We are doing this within existing resources, by marrying my shelter acceleration initiative with this focused, proven strategy informed by Community Solutions.
Here’s what we’ve accomplished already with this approach: In June, weeks before the first World Cup match when Belgium drew 1-1 with Egypt at Lumen Field in front of 66,000 fans, the “Streets to Housing” pilot program was launched in Pioneer Square with the City’s support. This was an effort led by DSA and a coalition of service organizations, using the Community Solutions framework. The partners shared data, followed individuals from outreach to successful placement in shelter or housing, and monitored what happened thereafter. It was a success that our city can be proud of: 70 out of 80 people were placed into shelter and housing – a nearly 90 percent placement success rate. Only three people declined all services. 47 percent of those individuals had been homeless for more than 3 years, 77 percent suffered from addiction or mental illness, and 16 percent were seniors.”
Mayor Wilson continued:
“Now, we will scale this success. That means working with more neighborhoods across Seattle to proactively develop By-Name lists that can be used in real time by the City and our partners. It means prioritizing shelter placements for those individuals who are having the greatest impact on public space. And it means smart service-matching so that we are prepared to meet complicated needs and set people up for stability and success.
The bottom line is this. Our public parks and public sidewalks belong to the public: they should be kept open and usable for their intended purposes. Scaling up this approach is how we can meet this reasonable expectation, without merely sweeping human beings around our city from one block to the next.
Helping the people currently living in those spaces will help us, in turn, re-activate those spaces for the public and local businesses.
We will go as fast as we can and I want to see steady, visible improvements. The $37 million for shelter expansion in my budget proposal – a budget that, I am proud to say, closes the $175 million deficit I inherited – will be crucial to this effort.
While this approach is not entirely new to Seattle, what is new is the depth of the partnerships now being brought to bear, and the commitment to scaling up. It is inspiring to me to know that the Community Solutions framework underpinning this model has been shown to work in so many of your communities, in cities across the country such as Atlanta, Charlotte, Anchorage, Kansas City, Houston, and Denver. In Denver, a New York Times analysis published last week showed their unsheltered population is down 64% in three years.
Make no mistake: That is the kind of striking progress that we are going to make here in the Emerald City.
Change is in the air – let’s enjoy the changing seasons.”
What People Are Saying
“I’m so thankful that we are expanding the successful ‘Streets to Housing’ program in Seattle. We know that individualized, robust support is essential to help those in greatest need. I’m especially hopeful because this is a collaborative and proven approach that brings together government, business leaders, and nonprofit service providers. None of us can solve this alone, but together we can make meaningful and long-term progress in housing all our neighbors.” — District 2 Council Member Eddie Lin
“When we find an approach that works, especially one that works for people who have experienced homelessness for years and face significant behavioral health challenges, we should invest and expand our commitment to that model with focus. The Streets to Housing Model demonstrates what we can accomplish when we break down silos and bring service providers, neighborhood businesses, City agencies, and treatment organizations together around a shared goal. That level of coordination helped connect 87% of identified individuals to enhanced shelter or permanent housing in less than two months, including people who have faced some of the greatest barriers to getting off the streets.
This model shows who Seattle can be when we are our best. We must continue to build on our work to expand shelter capacity, and this budget presents an opportunity for the Mayor and Council to invest in high-support shelter capacity and bring this proven, coordinated approach to more neighborhoods across Seattle. We know what works, and we have an opportunity to expand on that progress together.” — Councilmember Dionne Foster, Position 9 (Citywide)
“Friends of Little Saigon supports more effective matching of people with the resources, like high-support shelter units, they need to succeed. We are eager to work with cross-sector partners to use this strategy to support people in crisis and improve conditions in Little Saigon.” — Valerie Tran, Interim Executive Director, Friends of Little Saigon
“Seattle has been going in the wrong direction when it comes to homelessness. The Mayor’s plan is an opportunity to shift course and deliver real results for those suffering on the streets and for neighborhoods across the city. We know what works. With the help of Community Solutions, we’ve developed a playbook that has proven successful and can be replicated across the city. Mayor Wilson’s shelter plan, combined with the outreach, real-time data and partnership this initiative brought together, is the roadmap to scale the model across Seattle. We know how to do this, and we’re grateful to the mayor’s leadership to move this approach forward, because the status quo isn’t working and it’s expensive and at odds with Seattle’s values.” — DSA President and CEO Jon Scholes.
“We’re very pleased to see these planned shifts in Seattle’s response to street-level homelessness. Real progress happens when the entire system is designed around housing outcomes. Outreach, high-support shelter, healthcare, and housing must work as one coordinated system. From a person’s first connection during a crisis to the moment they move into housing, every interaction should be purposeful, responsive, and focused on helping them take the next step forward.” — Dan Wise, Co-Executive Director, Everyone Deserves Housing
“It’s great that City leaders are embracing the work of Community Solutions. They have significantly reduced unsheltered living in cities nationwide. Their strong accountability & results-driven management approach is highly effective. They measure performance & distinguish people in need from those who cause harm and disruption. They help cities focus on one clear goal: ending unsheltered living by bringing people in tents and RVs indoors. Our city is making a sound, strategic decision.” — Tim Burgess, former City Council Member and Interim Mayor
“Neighborhoods and small businesses bring valuable firsthand insight into the challenges on the ground. CIDBIA welcomes an approach that builds on existing resources, strengthens coordination and creates meaningful pathways to support and services.” — CIDBIA Executive Director Tuyen Than
“This has always been the Chief Seattle Club way. Our work has long shown that persistent, culturally responsive services tied directly to shelter and PSH works, and the success of Streets to Housing only strengthens the case for investing in that approach.” — Derrick Belgarde, CEO of Chief of Seattle
“When we plan for the success of a place, we build relationships with everyone who shares it, from small business owners to people living outside, and we tap knowledge that only the community holds. That trust changes outlooks and outcomes for everyone. For years, the U District has convened with LEAD, REACH, the City, and other partners around the people having the greatest impact on our streets, helping hundreds of people move inside, many into permanent homes. Routing high-support shelter through this place- and person-based framework while expanding neighborhood outreach puts the City’s weight behind an approach we’ve proven works, and we’re excited to see it reach more neighborhoods.” — Don Blakeney, Executive Director, The U District Partnership
To read Mayor Wilson’s full remarks at Tuesday’s Community Solutions conference, click here.
For more on Denver’s success with the Community Solutions framework, see this New York Times article.