[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6457818,"mediaKeyId","5827507-04304ecf4b5b212b35a623d7bafac9f3","parentId",5827507,"title","Regional Housing Council holds mission‑statement workshop; directs staff to draft sample statements","audioSeconds",4740,"startMs",1850000,"endMs",6590000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5827507-04304ecf4b5b212b35a623d7bafac9f3&start=1850&end=6590","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5827507-04304ecf4b5b212b35a623d7bafac9f3/thumbnail_1850000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6457818/Thurston-County/Washington/Regional-Housing-Council-holds-missionstatement-workshop-directs-staff-to-draft-sample-statements","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6457818-83c20e055cddef38d0560961964f6d42/orig.mp4?Expires=1773639581&Signature=ixyNbJ52GKotEOQtM5nNo33peTZFFN4zKYQ25RxLe~ybkBe2fyAe5cn-AIh85xok2BS7CZNyUXlQvI4khybq-qExC6h7duM1QImqor-d6Cb0-Rf9n~CJPZBFHNdvPRNgyxKCItrKC1PsKBG~CRnrvh6RT~MRNJIAXj~Bj8bzpG86MtPKNRaanS2JDYij6fuMPjbgT~oHmfWXJ5ghyHWQotPlHNXK1evz8jGHK5qsPnw-w7ubiDmmMdUhgetI-OWP-yjxWkaIU0mW4x4reHeTH5Om-MXL~wZAvf-2Cm6KIKCW1ubrO9hO7~f8fEC7~wFX0z3ciUlIdakKBJMr9kIYBg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Thurston County Washington","date","2025-09-25T17:45:12.907Z","article","The Thurston County Regional Housing Council spent a substantial portion of the meeting in a facilitated workshop to refine a mission statement that will guide the council’s work on homelessness and housing affordability. Facilitator Sue Mountain led participants through a virtual whiteboard exercise that asked members to identify audience, service/purpose, benefits and goals.

Mountain read the council’s adopted vision from May: \"Everyone in Thurston County has stable shelter or housing that they feel is safe and the services they need to thrive.\" She asked members what words or phrases from that vision connected to their \"why.\" Participants repeatedly highlighted safety, stability and access to services.

During the whiteboard exercise the council prioritized the audience as \"the whole community, especially those impacted by homelessness and housing insecurity,\" and chose coordination as the council’s core purpose. Members voted on phrasing and concepts in real time; recurring themes included concise language, action‑oriented wording and clarity about the population served.

Discussion surfaced differing views about how narrowly to define the council’s service role: some members emphasized the council’s historical role in recommending allocations for funding competitions, while others urged a stronger focus on regional coordination and policy work. Facilitator‑led conversation and comments from council members like Michael Altauser and Casper (co‑chair of the Homeless Services Advisory Board) centered on keeping the mission concise, actionable and accountable.

Tom Webster, summarizing next steps, said the council’s tech team and staff would take the workshop outcomes and prepare two to four draft mission statements for the council to review at the next meeting: \"The tech team could... come up with 2, 3, 4 different sample mission statements. ... maybe the October meeting could spend the first little bit on mission before we move into the values discussion,\" Webster said.

No formal vote was required to continue mission development; the group asked staff to return with word‑smithing options and to carry the workshop themes forward into upcoming values and governance meetings.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Thurston Regional Housing Council meeting September 24, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The council worked through a facilitated virtual whiteboard to refine its mission components (audience, purpose, goals) and asked the tech team to draft 2–4 sample mission statements for consideration at the next meeting.","taxTitle","Thurston County, Washington","taxId",4614,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6457823,"Regional Housing Council approves plan to include people with lived experience and outside subject-matter experts",852,337000,1189000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5827507-04304ecf4b5b212b35a623d7bafac9f3&start=337&end=1189","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5827507-04304ecf4b5b212b35a623d7bafac9f3/thumbnail_337000.jpg","/articles/6457823/Thurston-County/Washington/Regional-Housing-Council-approves-plan-to-include-people-with-lived-experience-and-outside-subject-matter-experts","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6457823-27c2a08d02d72c4d98d3dc7f558d7392/orig.mp4?Expires=1773639581&Signature=mVXKUxOz1jFCs1L7nnFnalaSA1WZ2RVyHwcHdnTUuG9tf3e-rfFhywtVofwlgp1MPwesOpwFy94a6hiE~~zLnd7CM8P-6i~qYWinvfuRmM5NJMzC72mPDpMw6-k4FZpDrxOpj7NKMmhZAuzFrgffqze09rjDQBuJX6W9kKIzhNKvKu9-1xXDhIza-wNnxxKz4j0-hEt8y67dUGfUhNTp1Jfey5elPsf5RF0chuuFadrNJ5-78RB8osY0-I2adaMiToaJSNwNn8HCRPrMyg4fjFVwScHx7gjeVT6CZHdXoI1hiq0n09ksfBy-3bB7hu5Q0HLeME9FPm~vNUwvJidApw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Thurston County’s Regional Housing Council approved a proposal to begin in January a monthly engagement process that will include a member of the Lived Experience Steering Committee (LESC) and periodic presentations by subject-matter experts, and to pay a stipend to the LESC participant, council members said at the meeting.

The change is intended to give council members regular, structured input from people with direct experience of homelessness and from providers and experts so the council can better understand ongoing impacts on the local system. Tom Webster, a county staff member presenting the proposal, said the LESC member would attend every meeting but would have a standing agenda item only every other month, and that subject-matter-expert (SME) presentations would be 20–30 minutes and limited to information, not lobbying. \"This is really intended to be informational, educational, not anticipated that you would take any action related to any of these items, but really just to kind of get a sense of impacts that stakeholders are feeling in the community,\" Webster said.

Under the approved plan, the LESC participant will receive a stipend covered through the existing facilitator contract. The council agreed SMEs would be invited on the alternate months from the LESC presentation; staff proposed inviting two to three experts and providing them two to four guiding questions so remarks focus on the topic. Suggested starter topics included federal policy changes that affect homeless service providers, supply‑side cost drivers such as tariffs, and updates on federal rental‑assistance programs.

Several council members said they supported the structure but asked staff to be careful about timing. Carolyn Cox of Lacey urged scheduling outside the committee’s RFP and funding‑decision window to avoid any appearance of favoritism during the agencies’ application period. \"I just wouldn't want there to be any, any blowback on the housing council, from either the public who think maybe we're playing favorites here or from other agencies who weren't allowed to give a presentation during this window. So just it's optics is my concern,\" Cox said.

Dani Madrone of the Olympia City Council said she wanted the SME presentations to be practical and actionable: \"I would be more interested in hearing about gaps of funding ... because there's different changes of funding and policy for federal stuff. There's also state stuff,\" Madrone said. Michael Altauser of Tumwater questioned how much direct action the council could take on topics such as tariffs, saying, \"our influence ... is more informal rather than directive.\"

County staff also reminded the council that the county receives state funding administered by the Washington State Department of Commerce for homeless prevention and rental assistance and listed locally contracted providers for those services: Catholic Community Services (single‑adult rental assistance), Family Support Center (families), Community Youth Services (youth), and a program to serve Spanish‑speaking residents run by Cielo.

A motion to implement the engagement proposal carried by roll call vote. Carolyn Cox moved the motion; a second was recorded but not named on the record. The chair announced the motion passed unanimously among the eligible voting representatives present. Staff said they would begin the new schedule in January and return with logistics and a roster as part of regular meeting materials.","The Thurston County Regional Housing Council voted to start monthly engagement with a member of a Lived Experience Steering Committee plus alternate-month briefings from subject-matter experts, with a stipend for the LESC participant covered by an existing facilitator contract.","actionData","errors"]

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Regional Housing Council holds mission‑statement workshop; directs staff to draft sample statements

Regional Housing Council approves plan to include people with lived experience and outside subject-matter experts