New home: Valley Renewal Center gets OK to open in Snoqualmie

Published 4:09 pm Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Editor’s Note: On Tuesday, Feb. 17, the Valley Renewal Center received approval to open a temporary winter shelter.

Jennifer Kirk, with the Valley Renewal Center, is pushing to keep the Valley’s homeless population safe as winter comes to a close. To do it, she’ll have to set a precedent, opening the first homeless shelter in Snoqualmie since 2013.

The Valley’s seasonal shelter, the North Bend Winter Shelter, was open during winter months at the Mount Si Lutheran Church since 2012, but it closed Feb. 3.  Kirk said the Valley Renewal Center applied for a permit from North Bend, but never heard back from the city, so they opened the shelter regardless.

“Our decision to close (in North Bend) was because the church asked us to uphold what we promised to the neighborhood,” Kirk explained. “We did not choose to leave because of permitting.”

According to North Bend City Administrator Londi Lindell, the Renewal Center applied for a permit, but did not agree to the conditions.

“We had a permit, we sent (the application information) out to them, they didn’t like some of the conditions so they simply just opened,” Lindell said.

In the year it opened, the shelter was not required to have a permit, because it relocated within 45 days of opening, Lindell said. The shelter did obtain a permit last year.

Kirk said she did not know about the revised conditions for a permit this year.

“Usually our stay in a shelter is permitted for 45 days,” Kirk said. “While we prefer a 60-day stay, because it’s a big move and disruptive to our guests, we work to partner with the neighborhood and hosting churches. It has been requested that our Snoqualmie permit run through April 15.”

Before the closure, Kirk and the Rev. Paul Mitchell of Snoqualmie United Methodist Church applied to the city of Snoqualmie for a permit to open a shelter in the area. They applied December 22. The process has not been quick.

“It’s new territory for (the city),” Kirk said. Snoqualmie issued a permit to Friends of Youth for a youth shelter in 2012, but it was later closed.

“The city has been through the process, but it’s not a familiar one,” Kirk said.

Mitchell agreed, describing the process as a “steep learning curve,” although he said setting up the shelter is simple.

The shelter “is a fairly easy, simple thing for a church community,” he said. “All we really have to do is have a place for them to be.”

Gwyn Berry, the Snoqualmie planner who reviewed the application, said the city and shelter came to a mutual agreement over details. The city is waiting for a decision on the use of the church as a shelter from hearing examiner, Sharon Rice.

“It’s required in our code, things like conditional-use permits go to a third party,” Berry explained. “We use an impartial, third-party person because they can be counted on to read the code and interpret it based on facts rather than emotion.”

The Renewal Center’s permit was one of three sent to the hearing examiner in 2014. Berry said Snoqualmie has followed this protocol for the 17 years she’s worked for the city.

The North Bend shelter first opened in December, 2012, after a community-wide meeting addressing homelessness. Sgt. Mark Toner, former North Bend police chief, raised the issue in November 2012. Soon after, organizers connected with the Bellevue-based Congregations for the Homeless and set up the shelter, which provided service for 40 men, women and children.

“Homelessness affects everyone. We’re really here to partner with the community,” Kirk explained, “to work with people and do what we can to alleviate homelessness.”

Mitchell said he felt “called” to set up a shelter in Snoqualmie, and has similar goals for the space.

“Guests of the shelter come from up and down the Valley and stay in North Bend because it’s the only thing available… The shelter’s purpose is life, safety and preservation — to prevent guests from getting hurt or dying out in the elements,” he said.

Mitchell also said the guests are the ones who want the shelter open more than anyone else, so they’re typically on their best behavior. He said he’s noticed most guests have jobs and have learned that homeless people aren’t different from anyone else.

There are strict rules. To keep guests safe, the shelter performs background checks, separates the men and women and has a 10:30 p.m. curfew. Guests must sign a waiver allowing staff to search their belongings, if necessary.

When open, the shelter provides public dinners every night in addition to overnight services from 8:30 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. It is staffed by Congregations for Homeless, while volunteers provide meals and the church supplies the shelter. Until a shelter reopens, nightly meals will continue at the Methodist Church, 5:15 to 6:45 p.m.

Learn more at www.valleyrenewalcenter.com.

Snoqualmie United Methodist Church will host a winter shelter for the homeless.

Volunteers Linda Beckvold and her granddaughter Malia, 8, set up for the Snoqualmie United Methodist Church community meal on Thursday, Feb. 12.

Megan Worzella puts a casserole in the oven for the church’s community dinner.