Thurston Regional Housing Council approves legislative priorities for 2025 

The Thurston Regional Housing Council (TRHC) has approved its legislative priorities for 2025, focusing on key initiatives to support affordable housing and address homelessness in the region.  

At its Nov. 13 meeting, the TRHC board voted unanimously to include three main priorities in its legislative agenda for next year: 

On the agenda

Pass legislation to prevent unfair and extreme rent increases.  

In a press release, the TRHC cited a 2020 report by the US Government Accountability Office that every $100 increase in median rent is associated with a 9% increase in the estimated homelessness rate. About 55% of all Thurston County renters spend over 30% of their income on housing costs, and 75% of extremely low-income renter households spend over half of their income on housing costs.  

In 2024, working at the minimum wage of over $16 per hour, an individual would have to work 83 hours weekly to afford a modest one-bedroom rental home at fair market rent.  

The TRHC recommends that the Legislature enact reasonable rent stabilization measures to address the rising housing costs and prevent further increases that could exacerbate homelessness in the region. 

Provide long-term operational funds for programs established and paid for by the Governor's Rights of Way initiative.  

The TRHC recommends that the Legislature identify sustainable, long-term funding to continue the Rights of Way-supported projects and maintain these essential services for the community.  

In Thurston County, Rights of Way Initiative funds have supported operations at an existing continuous-stay shelter, a new enhanced shelter, a tiny-home village, and hoteling and rent assistance for those fleeing domestic violence and for families. These programs have provided critical temporary housing and services to vulnerable populations.  

However, the current funding is only secured through June 30, 2025. Securing long-term operational funding after this date is crucial to ensure that residents of these temporary housing facilities are not displaced when the initial funding ends.  

Support South Puget Sound Habitat for Humanity's Boulevard Road project

South Puget Sound Habitat for Humanity plans to develop 112 owner-occupied townhomes and cottages on a 10-acre property at 3900 Boulevard Road SE in Olympia. These homes would be affordable to households making 30-80% of the area median income.  

The homes will be constructed in phases and designated as affordable in perpetuity. Over 50% of the homes are planned to be ADA accessible, and all units will be built to the Evergreen Sustainable Development Standard.  

The associated cost for this project is $23 million. Habitat has secured approximately $14.5 million in funding through expected home sales and grant awards.  

Habitat submitted a Housing Trust Fund proposal requesting $4 million and plans to pursue a 2025 congressional appropriation of up to $5 million. Phase 1 of the project includes infrastructure improvements that will begin in summer next year and the construction of 36 homes in spring 2026.  

Tom Webster, Thurston County's Office of Housing & Homeless Prevention manager, said that in the previous meeting, Olympia City Councilmember Dani Madrone brought up the idea of including capital funding for the Housing Trust Fund as a legislative priority. This had been discussed as part of the 2024 priorities, with the potential for creating a dedicated source of revenue for the Housing Trust Fund. However, due to time constraints, it was decided to postpone further discussion until the recent meeting.  

The Housing Council has now decided to include in the legislative priority for 2025 an increasing capital funding through the Housing Trust Fund for the development and preservation of affordable housing.  

Under the analysis of affordable housing needs developed under HB 1220-Housing Amendments to the Growth Management Act, Thurston County needs to develop over 54,000 units of net new housing between 2020-45. The RHC recommends that the Legislature identify substantial and sustainable state resources to develop a significant number of new affordable housing units, including creating a dedicated source for the Housing Trust Fund. 

TRHC's other area of interest  

The TRHC has identified addressing mold and moisture in housing as an additional area of interest. The RHC calls on the state legislature to take action to explore practical options for increasing protections for households impacted by conditions of mold and moisture in housing. 

Madrone expressed that including mold and moisture as an area of interest "might flag the attention of a legislator who already had some ideas or maybe wants to work on something this session or next session." 

The TRHC acknowledged that the presence of mold and moisture causes negative health and economic impacts, particularly for low-income and vulnerable renter households, including those with people who identify as Black, Indigenous and Persons of Color (BIPOC), as well as families with children and medically vulnerable individuals.  

While not a formal legislative priority, the council believed this is an important issue that warrants further work and exploration in the coming year to develop potential policy solutions to address this challenge facing many households in the region.