Federal Way officials: Fusion cold-weather shelter logged roughly 714 stays; council requests after-action details

City officials reported that a cold-weather shelter operated in partnership with Fusion served 714 stays between mid-January and mid-February and has closed now that overnight temperatures have warmed.

Keith Niven, the city’s community development director, told the council the shelter operated beginning Jan. 13 and through the coldest stretch in February, and summarized preliminary figures: “In total, there were 714 people, sheltered over about a month's period,” he said. He added the program ran longer than typical in recent years because of sustained cold weather.

The numbers prompted follow-up questions from council members about whether 714 represents distinct individuals or total stays. Niven said some people returned for multiple nights: “It’s 714 individuals. Some of them were definitely return,” he said. City staff later clarified the tally in the meeting record as the total number of stays—“heads and cots”—and said staff would provide more precise…