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Washtenaw winter-shelter task force asks county for targeted funds to shore up prevention, family shelter, hoteling and rapid rehousing
Summary
A task force of nonprofits and county partners described lessons from the last winter and urged the board to approve a bundle of targeted requests including eviction-prevention dollars, family shelter operations, rapid rehousing and money to secure daytime and overnight space for single adults.
Representatives of Washtenaw County’s Winter Shelter Taskforce told the Board of Commissioners on June 4 that the county’s winter response this past season kept people safe but strains persist and more targeted money is needed to hold gains and prepare for next winter.
A small group that has been meeting since April 2023 — Dan Kelly and others from the Shelter Association, Rhonda Weathers and Shona Tarusa from SOS Community Services and partner agencies — reviewed what worked in 2024–25 and where gaps remain. They described three pillars of the winter strategy: prevention and diversion; emergency shelter operations; and rapid rehousing and permanent housing supports.
“The needle’s greatest in December, and then it tapered down to about March,” Kelly said of shelter use this winter as sites opened and outreach increased. He thanked county and municipal funders and private supporters for enabling a countywide response.
The presenters described a set of funding requests and program changes they say are required to keep the system from being overwhelmed next winter: - Eviction prevention: Taskforce partners asked the board to…
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