Moses Lake council to close Open Doors sleep center; staff seeks public input on post-closure plan

Moses Lake Mayor Dustin Swartz told a packed June 3 town hall that the City Council has decided not to renew funding for the Open Doors Sleep Center when the state grant that supports it expires on June 30.

"After reviewing the impacts and costs, the council has decided not to renew funding for the sleep center when the state grant expires at the June," Swartz said, explaining the decision grew out of council review of program outcomes and costs.

The decision matters because the center, run with subcontractor HopeSource, has operated since 2020 at about $700,000 a year to manage roughly 40 units of temporary housing; its closure will remove that local shelter capacity at the same time the council plans new enforcement and outreach measures. City staff presented a draft post-sleep-center plan at the town hall and asked residents to provide feedback that the council will use before a planned vote to adopt the plan on June 24.

City staffer Elizabeth (city staff) told attendees the center has run since 2020 in partnership with HopeSource and reiterated the schedule: a special council meeting on April 18 led to the closure decision, staff updated council on…