News Magazine of the UW Department of Communication
By Julian Martin, UW
Among the many local organizations working to eliminate homelessness in King County through a 10-year plan, the Plymouth Housing Group has been following a housing first model since 1980 – over 20 years before it was made an official policy by the Interagency Council on Homelessness.
Originally started by member of the Plymouth Congregational Church in Seattle, the group has grown substantially in constituents and funding.
According to the Plymouth Housing Group Web site, the organization has created nearly 400 units of permanent supportive housing for homeless and very low-income people in Seattle in the last four years alone.
“As a society I feel we do owe a debt to our neighbors,” said Tara Connor, Policy Director for the Plymouth Housing Group.
Connor said that the organization “tries to build as fast as they can,” and that it is “somewhat able to produce a property every 18 months.”
Unlike most organizations assisting the homeless, Plymouth Housing Group decided 14 years ago to provide onsite supportive services to bolster its commitment to affordable supportive housing.
Like others who have worked with HUD, Connor has noticed a drop in national funding for housing concerns by the Bush administration.
“For eight of the 10 years that I’ve been here, I’ve felt really tenuous about whether we’re going to receive any funding at all,” she said. “It’s been a very scary ride, and you can’t plan year to year.”
Connor said that while Paul Carlson may disagree with her, she has found the current administration to be “very destructive to finding permanent housing,” and remains hopeful for how the next administration will address the issue.
The Policy Director noted that while there have been individuals who have assisted with the effort to eliminate homeless in the federal agency, she believes that HUD nationally has contributed to homelessness by not helping as much as they could.
