Everett extends deadline for homeless service facing closure
EVERETT — Hope ‘N Wellness, which provides social services in downtown Everett, will be able to operate through the end of April after the city extended a deadline requiring the organization to comply with zoning laws.
Jasmine Donahue, who founded the organization in 2020 and currently heads it, is “very grateful” for the extension, she said in an interview Tuesday. But she still hopes to find a permanent solution to allow the organization to operate downtown.
Hope ‘N Wellness provides a place for those in need — particularly people experiencing homelessness or addiction — to warm up, keep track of appointments, and store belongings. The city has said, however, that the organization is violating a city code which prohibits social services from operating on the ground floor of certain streets within Metro Everett. Those codes, first introduced in 2006 and expanded upon in 2018, limit certain areas of downtown to retail shops and dining.
If the organization, located at 3021 Rucker Ave., was operating a few blocks away or above the first floor, it could continue to operate as a social service facility.
https://www.heraldnet.com/news/everett-extends-deadline-for-homeless-service-facing-closure/