New VSHSL funding opportunity: Navigate Homeless Veterans to Housing
A new funding opportunity is available from the Veterans, Seniors, and Human Services Levy (VSHSL) to provide housing navigation services for veterans experiencing homelessness in King County.
This investment seeks to provide housing navigation and related stabilization services to veteran households experiencing homelessness, including those assessed for housing but who are still waiting for a housing resource and necessary supports to be available. Funded organizations will provide supportive services to help veterans obtain and initially maintain their housing.
Although there has been success over recent years in reducing veteran homelessness in King County, about 769 veterans are actively experiencing homelessness in King County. Many veterans experiencing homelessness encounter challenges in accessing or connecting to housing resources, this investment envisions strong partnerships and targeted housing navigation services as a key strategy in addressing these issues and promoting housing stability for veterans experiencing homelessness in King County.
Funded entities will actively collaborate with other housing partners and receive referrals through weekly veteran case conferencing and efforts related to the Veteran By-Name-List, the central tool utilized by community partners in the collaborative effort of addressing veteran homelessness. The support services will include outreach and follow up with veterans, assessment of eligibility for housing resources and housing preferences, assistance in linking with housing opportunities, support of housing search processes, coordination with other service providers, and up to 3-months of housing stabilization support following housing placement.
Funding overview
This funding opportunity is grounded in three goals:
1. Engage and connect veterans experiencing homelessness to housing opportunities and supports that promote housing stability.
2. Focus on veteran populations that are demographically overrepresented among persons experiencing homelessness in King County, and who have historically faced barriers to accessing services, by providing targeted outreach and connection to appropriate resources.
3. Engage in collaborative partnerships, system building, and mutual learning to create and sustain meaningful pathways to services for veterans experiencing homelessness, and increase the capacity of organizations serving these individuals
Application details
Available funding: Up to $1,806,434 in Veterans, Seniors, and Human Services Levy funds
Investment period: July 1, 2024 – December 31, 2026 (subject to change)
Questions: Contact Kip Swanson, Veteran Initiatives Team, at Kip.swanson@kingcounty.gov or 206-263-8209
Applications due: May 6, 2024 by 2:00pm Pacific Time
Join the information session to learn more
A virtual information session to discuss questions related to this RFP will be held on April 16, 2024, 11:00am – 12:00pm.
Register to participate: https://bit.ly/VSHSLVeteranHousingNavigation
The information session will be recorded and posted at https://www.zoomgrants.com/zgf/VSHSL_Veteran_Navigation.
This will be a remote session with speech to text captioning provided. For accommodations to participate, please contact Kip Swanson by April 12, 2024.