For homeless in Puyallup, fewer beds and no hope in sight
Support for homelessness services is flagging even as the issue grows larger in East Pierce County.
Two church groups have backed out of Puyallup’s voluntary Freezing Nights program to house the homeless overnight during colder months, and a high-profile homeless aid center in downtown Puyallup says it is barely making ends meet.
Meanwhile, the Pierce County Council this month defeated a resolution that would have raised $10 million annually in sales tax revenue for mental health and homeless programs, and the Puyallup City Council, which in late November appeared to be rushing to impose such a sales tax within that city, has lost its immediate enthusiasm for the tax increase.
Paula Anderson, director of Puyallup’s New Hope Resource Center, said the center is scrambling to meet its monthly $7,800 expenses budget. Some donations have disappeared and two churches that previously shared the task of providing evening meals and overnight accommodations for up to 80 homeless people nightly have quit the program after more than a dozen years.
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