Snohomish County Council awards $23M for affordable, mental health housing
Published 1:30 am Friday, April 24, 2026
EVERETT — The Snohomish County Council voted unanimously to award $23 million to six projects for affordable housing and behavioral health housing Wednesday.
The grants include $5.8 million to the Everett Gospel Mission, which is planning a 172-bed expansion of its existing shelter. Construction is set to begin in October or November.
Helping Hands will put its $4.2 million award toward an affordable housing development in North Everett at 2410 and 2412 Broadway, serving those who are disadvantaged or have special needs, with a total of 28 units, according to documents submitted to the County Council. The project’s completion is planned for February 2028.
Helping Hands Project Organization is a nonprofit that provides services to the underserved, its website says.
The Everett Station District Alliance plans to build a 58-unit low-income mixed-use building with 15 units reserved for homeless tenants at 3102 Smith Ave., Everett. The county awarded $2.98 million to the project, but the alliance is still gathering funds for the estimated $35 million cost.
The district alliance is a community development corporation serving transit communities, its website says.
The Housing Authority of Snohomish County will use its $2.98 million award to help build a senior housing project with 60 total units at 5710 and 5714 200th St. SW in Lynnwood. With this grant, the project is fully funded and planned to start in fall 2026.
The housing authority works with individuals who need housing support and with communities to develop and maintain housing, its website says.
In Arlington, Holman Recovery Center will build a 48-bed substance use disorder facility. The $3 million grant will help cover the predevelopment and initial construction costs at 4230 Airport Blvd.
Holman Recovery Center is a nonprofit that provides residential treatment throughout Snohomish County, its website says.
Housing Hope’s Rainbow Terrace, which will be built on the former Everett United Church of Christ property at 2624 Rockefeller Ave., will be a 66-unit senior facility with 14 units reserved for homeless tenants. It is receiving a little over $4 million from the county.
Housing Hope’s goal is to start construction in October, Chief Executive Officer Kat Opina said in an interview Thursday. The grant from the county just about finalizes the needed funding, she said.
“I can’t wait. I think it will be very exciting,” Opina said. “The community has really been vocal about needing more senior affordable housing.”
The project has been in process for almost five years when talks began with the Everett United Church of Christ to purchase the land, she said. That sale was finalized in 2024 and gathering funds ramped up after, Opina said.
“It’s really an honor, honestly, for me to be in this role and in this position,” she said. “It’s always teamwork that brings these things together.”
Housing Hope owns and operates 640 units of affordable housing in Snohomish County at 24 different locations, Opina said.
The grants come from the county’s Housing and Behavioral Health Capital Fund, supplied by an affordable and supportive housing sales tax, codified by RCW 82.14.540, and a sales tax for housing and related services, RCW 82.14.530.
These projects were recommended to the County Council through a standardized process. County staff reviews all applications before submitting them to a technical advisory committee — including representatives from cities, the County Executive Office and county residents — and a policy advisory board, which has nine members: three County Council members, one County Executive Office representative, four from cities and one chairperson selected by the other eight members.
The Housing and Behavioral Health Capital Fund began in December 2023. Wednesday’s grants are the second round of funding, with the first awarded last year.
“I cannot overestimate the benefit of these funds for people in need in our county,” Human Services Department Director Mary Jane Brell Vujovic said in an email. “These funds are helping Snohomish County realize our vision of safe, prosperous, and resilient communities where all residents have access to the services they need and a safe and stable place to call home.”
Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; X: @BTayOkay