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Residents urge Everett to preserve Hope and Wellness center as council hears homelessness concerns
Summary
Multiple public commenters told the Everett City Council Dec. 18 that Hope and Wellness, a small community center serving unhoused residents, faces zoning enforcement that could force it to cease operations. City staff said the site is not in compliance with a Metro Everett ground‑floor restriction but that staff have offered extensions and relocation assistance; council requested a formal written update including the specific code section.
Several residents used the council’s public‑comment period Dec. 18 to urge Everett leaders to preserve Hope and Wellness, a small community site serving people who are unhoused, and to reconsider enforcement of zoning rules that residents say are disproportionately affecting the population the service serves.
Amy Yeeb (identified herself as a resident and nonpracticing attorney) said the city had notified Hope and Wellness that it was out of compliance with an "enhanced zoning code" in Metro Everett and that the organization had been told to cease operations by the end of February. Yeeb said the center provides a safe place to connect and basic services to unhoused neighbors and urged council to "dig up that code section" and consider exemptions.
Other commenters, including Michelle Pendergrass and several residents with lived experience of homelessness, described the center’s role in providing stability and court‑date assistance, and urged the council not to displace services that operate without city funding. Speakers also criticized gaps in day‑time service capacity and the limits of cold‑weather shelter activation (which the city said is triggered when temperatures fall below 34°F).
Administration response: Mayor Franklin and Community Development staff said Hope and Wellness has been out of compliance with a city ordinance that restricts clinics and social services on ground floors in a defined Metro Everett footprint, and that staff have been working with Hope and Wellness for more than a year. Staff said they have offered multiple time extensions and alternative relocation space and pledged to provide council a more formal update with the specific code citation and options for exceptions or variances.
Why it matters: Speakers described the center as providing a low‑cost, practical pathway to stability for some clients; council members asked staff to include vacancy rates for nearby cold‑weather shelters, the specific code section used in enforcement, and a plan to develop additional day‑center capacity.
Quote: "Do not push out an organization that is serving the city's most underserved," Amy Yeeb told the council.
Next steps: Council asked staff to return with the code citation and a fuller briefing on relocation options and day‑center planning; council members urged staff to consider the matter in the Health and Human Services Committee and to include Community Development and Planning leadership and lead social‑work staff in follow‑up.
