Spokane mayor announces new warming shelter funds

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Young Kwak photo

Per municipal code, the city is required to provide warming shelters when low temperatures drop below freezing.

On Oct. 30, after our story was sent to the presses but before it was distributed, Mayor Lisa Brown announced that her team will add $800,000 of one-time funds to pay for inclement weather beds this winter — that is, extra beds for when the temperature drops below freezing.

These dollars, plus the already allotted $250,000, mean the city is now able to pay for 133 beds for 143 nights, which is about the average number of nights that Spokane has lows at or below 32 degrees.

Those 133 beds will be split between existing shelters —The Way Out Shelter, Hope House, House of Charity, Revive, and Salvation Army’s Family Emergency Shelter, according to the city.

The extra money comes from Spokane's "1590 Fund," which is the result of a 0.1% sales tax increase passed in 2020 to raise revenue for affordable housing projects. It raises about $6 million a year.♦