Snohomish County’s annual homeless count gets underway

Washington state, not cities, to handle homeless encampment cleanup

There is now an effort by the state to take responsibility for the homeless camps you see along our highways—but it may not mean what you think.

SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. - Snohomish County officials are conducting their annual Point-in-Time homeless count on Tuesday.

The annual count is an important tool in tracking the homeless population and to help determine ways to end homelessness.

"We must use all of the tools at our disposal to address the crisis of homelessness," said Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers. "Too many are suffering from the significant negative impacts from this crisis: our families, our neighbors, our communities large and small, our businesses, and our quality of life. The data we collect allows us to make informed decisions as we look for ways to meet the full spectrum of needs across the county. I urge interested members of our community to join us in this important task."

Officials will count people staying in emergency shelters, transitional housing and on the street.

A Point-in-Time count wasn’t done in 2021 due to the pandemic.

In 2020, 673 individuals in 553 households reported they were unsheltered.

According to Snohomish County, another 459 people in 344 households were without a permanent place to stay and were temporarily housed in emergency shelter or transitional housing. There were 41 veterans, 532 chronically homeless individuals, and 121 households with children under 18, according to officials.

This year’s count will take place between 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday for people who were unsheltered on Monday night and service based counts will take pace through Feb. 28.

Get breaking news alerts in the FREE FOX 13 Seattle app. Download for Apple iOS or Android. And sign up for BREAKING NEWS emails delivered straight to your inbox.

Stay connected with FOX 13 News on all platforms:
DOWNLOAD: FOX 13 News and Weather Apps
WATCH: FOX 13 News Live
SUBSCRIBE: FOX 13 on YouTube
DAILY BRIEF: Sign Up For Our Newsletter
FOLLOW: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram