Submitted by Thurston County
The first residents of Maple Court, a new enhanced homeless shelter in Lacey, are moving in this week. These new residents are moving to Maple Court from some of the homeless encampments along Interstate 5 in Thurston County. Residents will be moving in gradually, at about 10 people per week over the next few months.
The state identified five counties, one of which is Thurston County, that have encampments on the Washington State Department of Transportation’s rights of way. “Rights of way,” in this context, refers to the highways and freeways that the state oversees. The Rights of Way Initiative (ROW) provides funding to these counties with the goal to move people living on ROW sites into better living situations and permanently clear these encampments.
Maple Court, previously a Days Inn, is on Quinault Drive at Marvin Road in Lacey. This facility will serve as an enhanced shelter, which means there will be staff on site to help people access services and move into permanent housing. Maple Court has 118 furnished rooms for residents and six rooms for staff and case- management offices. The Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) manages Maple Court. They manage a similar property in Tacoma and other supportive housing facilities around the state. LIHI has established a community advisory group to meet monthly to address any potential questions and concerns from local business owners and residents.
“Maple Court has the potential to change lives and our communities for the better,” said Carolyn Cox, Chair of the Regional Housing Council and Lacey City Council Member. “The enhanced shelter is in Lacey, but it is truly a regional effort to humanely address the biggest challenge of our times. I’m grateful for the goodwill and cooperation it took to get here.”
At this time, housing at Maple Court is solely offered through the coordinated outreach to people living at the ROW encampments. Thurston County has contracted with Olympia Mutual Aid Partners (OlyMAP) and partnered with the City of Olympia to lead outreach efforts to those living on ROW properties.
“For the last year, outreach workers have been doing tremendous work building rapport with residents of the camps and sharing what housing options are available to them. This work is vital. It must be done with compassion and care; and it takes time,” said Keylee Marineau, Thurston County Homeless Response Program Manager. “Opening Maple Court is increasing the capacity of our homeless crisis response system that will benefit our entire region now and in the long-term.”
The long-term plan is for Maple Court to transition to permanent supportive housing in two to four years. To learn more about Maple Court visit the City of Lacey’s Maple Court website.
