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Residents urge council to restore day‑center funding; council mentions $2.5 million in federal allocation under review
Summary
Speakers during public comment urged the Federal Way City Council to restore funding for the Federal Way Day Center. Council leaders said a $2.5 million federal allocation discussed in a recent delegation trip could support relocating the day center and related shelter planning, but details and approvals remain pending.
At the May 6 meeting, several residents urged the Federal Way City Council to restore and prioritize funding for the Federal Way Day Center, which community advocates and nonprofits say serves people experiencing homelessness.
Diane Dobrowolski, a member of the board of Sound Alliance and a retired social worker, told council members the day center is a "lifesaver for many people" and asked the council to "please stop pausing the funding of the day center and put the funding of the day center on the council's next meeting agenda. I implore the city council to vote yes on funding the Federal Way Day Center," she said.
Council President (speaker identified in the meeting as the council member who reported on a federal trip) told the council and audience that a delegation's trip to Washington, D.C., yielded a potential federal allocation of $2,500,000 that "we hope will go for the day center to hopefully move the day center" to a site nearer a light-rail station and that it could be part of combining day‑center services with overnight shelter. He said the amount "is going through the budget process" and that it may take time to be released.
The council did not take a formal vote on the day-center funding during the meeting. Dobrowolski asked specifically that the council place the item on the next meeting agenda and that it stop pausing funding; the request was made during the public-comment period and not acted on as a formal motion.
Separately during public comment, resident Susan Strong raised concerns about an investigation into illegal massage parlors and said community members have observed numerous massage businesses around Federal Way; the council asked the police chief to follow up.
City leaders framed the day-center remarks as part of an ongoing conversation about services and possible relocation; council leaders described the federal funding news as provisional and dependent on federal-to-local processes and budget approvals.
