Key Points
- Opening Ceremony: The opening of the Everett New Start Center was marked by the ribbon cutting event, which took place last Friday with the participation of city of Everett and Snohomish County representatives as well as local residents.
- Capacity and Offerings: The center is going to provide 90 days of transitional housing for up to 70 individuals with assistance that includes job coaching, life skills training, behavioral health counseling, three daily meals, laundry service, and much more.
- Timeframe: According to Taylor Scott of The Herald, The Salvation Army is going to begin accepting referrals in two weeks from now, and the first residents are expected to come in before the end of September.
- Background of the Project and the Budget: According to Snohomish County, in 2022, they acquired both the property in Everett and Edmonds from The Days Inn. Even though the cleanup process was hindered by asbestos and methamphetamine contamination, the Everett property turned out to be much cheaper than the initial budget of nearly $22 million. The project received funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act and local affordable housing sales tax.
- Requirements: Residents should have at least 30 days of sobriety prior to admission and cannot have any recent offenses for manufacture or distribution of controlled substances or violent crimes.
Everett (Evening Washington News) August 29, 2026 – Elected officials, community leaders, and local residents packed the city’s newly established New Start Center on Friday to mark its official opening with a celebratory ribbon-cutting ceremony. Designed to bridge the precarious gap between acute housing crisis and long-term stability, the facility aims to reshape the local approach to homelessness by blending private transitional living spaces with robust, wrap-around support services. The opening represents the realization of a multi-year regional initiative spearheaded by local government bodies and managed operationally through a partnership with community service providers.
What Is the Everett New Start Center and Who Does It Serve?
The newly minted Everett New Start Center is configured to function as a 90-day bridge housing facility capable of accommodating up to 70 residents at any given time. According to reporting by Taylor Scott of The Herald, the site is designed to offer far more than a temporary roof over someone’s head, integrating essential provisions such as job coaching, specialized life skills classes, behavioral health counseling, and general healthcare navigation.
During a facility tour led by project stakeholders, Matthew Garrett, a divisional homeless service specialist with The Salvation Army, detailed the operational philosophy driving the space. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, Matthew Garrett noted that the center will supply residents with three daily meals and look after laundering their bedding, emphasizing a foundational focus on self-worth.
“First is that they feel respected,”
Matthew Garrett stated, as quoted by Taylor Scott of The Herald.
“Part of rehabilitating — gaining that confidence — is that dignity and that respect, is like you have a place to call your own.”
Each individual accommodated at the center will secure their own private bedroom and bathroom, providing a secure, lockable environment intended to foster psychological respite. Matthew Garrett summarized the core mission to Taylor Scott of The Herald by outlining three guiding pillars:
“It’s really dignity, service, speed. If we were to sum it up in three words.”
He added, as noted by Taylor Scott of The Herald,
“We’re serving folks that are still going through the recovery journey. We’re supportive of that… There’s a lot of services here, and our goal is to move you onto your permanent destination fast.”
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When Will Residents Move In and How Can People Apply?
The transition process for unhoused individuals looking to enter the facility is scheduled to begin imminently. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, Salvation Army Capt. Gin Pack stated after the ceremony that the organization will begin accepting official program referrals within a fortnight, with the first cohort of residents expected to move onto the premises prior to the conclusion of September.
Access to the facility, however, is subject to specific community safety and recovery parameters. Individuals are barred from staying at the Everett New Start Center if they carry a recent conviction linked to the manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance, or if they have a history of violent criminal convictions. Furthermore, program guidelines dictate that prospective residents must demonstrate at least 30 days of sobriety before they are permitted to move in.
Expounding on the wider vision for those who cross the threshold, Capt. Gin Pack shared her aspirations with attendees and media. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, Capt. Gin Pack explained,
“Our goal is not simply to provide shelter. It is help people identify and overcome the barriers standing between them and homelessness to permanent, sustainable housing.”
How Was the Project Funded and Why Were There Delays?
The journey toward opening the Everett New Start Center began back in 2022, when Snohomish County proactively purchased the former Days Inn property in Everett, alongside a sister property, America’s Best Value Inn, located in Edmonds, with the intent of converting both structures into dedicated regional recovery and housing hubs.
While the Edmonds facility managed to open earlier in the summer on June 29, the Everett branch experienced a series of operational setbacks. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, multiple delays—chiefly involving necessary structural asbestos remediation and comprehensive methamphetamine contamination cleanups—pushed the completion date deep into 2026.
Despite these hurdles, financial management of the conversion drew praise from county administration. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers addressed the crowd during the ceremony, revealing that the Everett New Start Center ultimately came in under budget, totaling an expenditure of nearly $22 million. Financial backing for the property acquisition and subsequent renovations derived primarily from federal allocations via the American Rescue Plan Act, complemented by the county’s dedicated 0.1% affordable housing sales tax.
What Do Local Leaders Say About the Impact of Bridge Housing?
The grand opening brought together a broad coalition of municipal and county leaders who reflected on the systemic importance of transitional infrastructure in addressing local housing vulnerability. Everett City Council member Paula Rhyne emphasized that access to a stable environment is a fundamental human right. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, Paula Rhyne stated,
“For people working to move out of homelessness, transitional housing can be that bridge between crisis and stability.”
She further noted, as quoted by Taylor Scott of The Herald,
“It gives people a safe place to land, a door they can lock behind them and a safe respite to rest and renew.”
Echoing these sentiments from a deeply personal perspective, Snohomish County Council member Megan Dunn shared her own lived experience with housing instability during the proceedings. As reported by Taylor Scott of The Herald, Megan Dunn recounted how a severe natural disaster altered her family’s trajectory.
“In 2015, a catastrophic flood forced me and my family to be unhoused,”
she stated, according to Taylor Scott of The Herald. Reflecting on the emotional friction of displacement, Megan Dunn added,
“We were fortunate to have a community that helped us, and I still remember trying to help my kids with their homework and we realized we didn’t pack paper and pencils. So, that was a really small moment, but it really showed how quickly every day routines can fall apart.”
By humanising the policy discourse surrounding homelessness, speakers at the event underscored that the center is designed to catch families and individuals before small disruptions snowball into chronic displacement. With its combination of strict recovery expectations, secure private quarters, and swift pipeline routing to permanent dwellings, the Everett New Start Center now stands as a primary testing ground for regional social policy in Snohomish County. As referrals open in the coming days, community stakeholders remain watchful to see how effectively the model delivers on its promise of dignity, service, and speed.
