Thurston County, Washington

Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Monday, January 19

County facilities will be closed on Monday, January 19 in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

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Thurston County Washington

Public Health and Social Services

Thurston County’s Local Homeless Housing Plan for 2025-2030

Washington State Department of Commerce (Commerce) requires local jurisdictions to submit a local homeless housing plan every five years. Thurston County Office of Housing & Homeless Prevention staff has led a core team of stakeholders in developing the Local Homeless Housing Plan for Thurston County.

Thurston County's Homeless Housing Plan for 2025-2030 outlines the objectives, strategies, and tasks to be implemented in 2025-2030 to address homelessness and housing instability. The plan is based on available data and projected local housing and service needs in the coming years. It is a living document that will remain responsive to emerging issues, evidence-based and promising practices, and system data identifying opportunities for continuous improvement over its lifespan. Additionally, the plan sets priorities for situations where the need for services exceeds available funding and resources.

The Thurston County Homeless Housing Plan 2025-2030 was approved by the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners December 16, 2025

Thurston County Homeless Housing Plan (2025-2030)

What's in the plan?

The Introduction

The introduction sets the foundation for the plan by providing context. It first explains Thurston County’s Homeless Response System and the shared priorities the core team of stakeholders who developed the plan agreed on. 

The introduction goes on to review the process the was followed to develop the plan and who was involved in the development of the plan. The section ends with a Work Plan Summary. There is a list of key themes that are represented throughout the Work Plan.

The 2025-2030 Homeless Housing Work Plan

The Work Plan is formatted in a table and organized by the five objectives required by the Washington State of Commerce. Under each objective, there are strategies with tasks, responsible parties, goals, intended outcomes, and a timeline.

The five objectives:

  • Promote an equitable, accountable, and transparent homeless crisis response system
  • Strengthen the homeless service provider workforce
  • Prioritize assistance based on the greatest barriers to housing stability and the greatest risk of harm
  • Prevent episodes of homelessness whenever possible
  • Seek to house everyone in a stable setting that meets their needs

Appendices

The appendices include information that can help readers better understand the plan, such as lists of definitions and acronyms. Some of the appendices are of required data and data projections around housing in Thurston County. The remainder of the appendices include documentation of the plan development process, including public engagement activities.

About the Plan Development

Thurston County Office of Housing & Homeless Prevention staff led a core team of stakeholders in developing the Local Homeless Housing Plan for Thurston County. Washington State Department of Commerce (Commerce) requires local jurisdictions to submit a local homeless housing plan every five years. Commerce provides guidelines with requirements and objectives for local jurisdictions to follow. 

The stakeholders included representatives from organizations working directly in homeless services, behavioral health, and opioid response/prevention. Thurston County’s Lived Experience Housing Steering Committee participated in the development by providing guidance and vetting of the development process and the plan.

For the 2025-2030 Local Homeless Housing Plan, Commerce has identified five objectives.

  • Promote an equitable, accountable, and transparent homeless crisis response system
  • Strengthen the homeless service provider workforce
  • Prioritize assistance based on the greatest barriers to housing stability and the greatest risk of harm
  • Prevent episodes of homelessness whenever possible
  • Seek to house everyone in a stable setting that meets their needs

Public Engagement

Public engagement is required during the development of the Homeless Housing Plan. The stakeholder group and the Lived Experience Housing Steering Committee agreed on conducting surveys as part of the public engagement process. There were two surveys designed to gather input based on the requirements and objectives of the plan set by the Washington State Department of Commerce. These surveys were open February 5 - March 9, 2025.

In May, members of the stakeholder groups conducted targeted engagement sessions with Thurston County residents experiencing homelessness and housing instability and an engagement session with frontline staff at homeless service organizations. 

Feedback from the surveys and engagement sessions was used to help inform the development of the Homeless Housing Plan. Information about the outcomes of the public engagement activities is included in the Appendix of the plan.

Timeline of Plan Development

  • Public Engagement: February-May 2025
  • Drafting of Plan: May-August 2025
  • Public Comment Period and Public Hearing: September-October 2025
  • Present plan to Regional Housing Council for approval: November 2025
  • Present plan to Board of Thurston County Commissioners for final approval: December 16, 2025
  • Submit final plan to Washington State Department of Commerce: December 2025