Olympia, Thurston County, and the Housing Authority of Thurston County are asking community members to share their input on the fair housing assessment, which would give authorities tools to assess people's housing conditions and needs and address barriers.
All Thurston County residents are encouraged to participate in the fair housing survey, which is available on the Engage Olympia website. The survey is anonymous and would only take 10-15 minutes to complete.
In creating the online survey, the organizations aim to address the real challenges residents may face.
The state, through the Fair Housing Act, protects people from negative housing actions because of their:
Olympia will use the community feedback as a guide in implementing housing efforts for its Housing Action Plan, which aims to increase the housing supply, bolster the diversity of housing options and increase affordability and stability for residents.
"Access to housing is something we're actively working on expanding in our community, and providing fair access is critical,” Olympia Housing Program specialist Christa Lenssen said.
“To do this effectively, we need to know where we're already doing great and where our community members may be experiencing barriers."
Olympia urged those who encounter unfair housing practices to visit the city’s tenant protections web page, contact the Fair Housing Center of Washington, Northwest Justice Project (including source of income discrimination under statewide landlord-tenant law), Washington State Human Rights Commission, or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to learn more.
The survey will close on November 20.
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