A Pilot Transportation Project is scheduled for a June 1 launch. Through a partnership with Pierce Transit and using funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, five hundred people experiencing homelessness will have access to a one-year Pierce Transit bus pass as a part of their Critical Time Intervention, Rapid Rehousing, or Emergency Shelter enrollment. Transportation is often a barrier to medical care, employment, job training, behavioral health services, and staying connected to family and support structures. This pilot will assess if program participants receiving a bus pass will be more successful than a control group in increasing positive exits from homelessness, reducing the duration of homelessness, and increasing income.
Also on the short list of immediate action is the establishment of a shelter to provide temporary housing and wraparound services to transition people into permanent housing. Its location is not yet determined, but it will be in an underserved unincorporated area. The Fife Shelter RFP is on hold and the TRM shelter expansion contract is still in development.