SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — A new approach to addressing homelessness is gaining momentum across Spokane County, with local officials and citizens advocating for treatment over housing as the primary solution.
The “Treatment First MOU” represents a shift in strategy for tackling what many officials now characterize as primarily a drug problem rather than a housing crisis.
“What I think years ago, folks could arguably say was a homelessness problem, is not a homelessness problem. It’s a drug problem,” said Preston McCollam, Spokane County Prosecutor…