The Public Safety and Human Services Committee discussed on Sept. 16 placing an agreement on the Oct. 7 consent agenda to let the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) pool and administer Redmond’s severe-weather shelter funds, which the council previously funded at $25,000 per year. Brooke Buckingham, Human Services Manager, and Planning Director Carol Helland briefed the committee on the proposed partnership.

The nut graf: Committee members generally supported the efficiency of pooling funds but pressed staff for guarantees that East King County providers would receive Redmond money and for participation in procurement oversight. Staff described limits in the agreement and said Redmond would have a seat in the RFP review process.

Brooke Buckingham told the committee that the agreement “includes rules and responsibilities, scope, and allowable cost, and reporting requirements” and that KCRHA has been leading regional planning for severe-weather activations including heat, smoke and cold-weather responses. Buckingham said the city has existing contracts with local providers and that, under the proposed structure, KCRHA would be the contract holder and then contract directly with providers to administer severe-weather funds.

Councilmember Nueva Camino asked whether Redmond had done this pooling before and how Redmond-specific impacts would be tracked. Buckingham said the city had not partnered with KCRHA previously but had used similar contracting structures with the City of Kirkland. She said the funds would serve East King County and “we will have either the Redmond or city of Bellevue staff participating” in the RFP process to help ensure allocations align with Redmond priorities.

Councilmembers also asked about the funding amount and whether the $25,000 per year would be the only severe-weather funding. Buckingham said the $25,000 is specific to severe-weather activations; the city separately funds year‑round shelter capacity that would remain in place and would not be pooled into this KCRHA-administered fund. She added that providers bill for services after an activation and that KCRHA has refined activation criteria.

Council President Kritzker and others expressed conditional support for pooled administration, noting KCRHA’s recent emphasis on operational contracting and timely payments. Staff said the arrangement would create administrative efficiencies and that Bellevue’s governing body had approved the agreement in July and Bellevue’s council would consider it later in the month.

Ending: Committee members agreed to place the partnership on the Oct. 7 business meeting consent agenda for formal consideration; staff will return the final agreement and RFP details for council review.