The Bremerton City Council continued its conversation about funding for shelter services and affordable housing at its Jan. 28 study session.
At the end of last year, Kitsap County officials reached out to Mayor Greg Wheeler about funds for The Salvation Army. The letter was then sent to City Council. “As we cannot afford their requested costs into 2026 with reduced federal funds, and the city has refused to contribute, the county can only afford to fund night shelter operations starting Jan. 1,” the letter from the Kitsap County Administrator read. “This restores their shelter services to pre-COVID levels. Our new contract extends these services to June 30 and will require $300-$500k, this time from the county’s reserves. The board (of commissioners) will review the funding of this program in early 2026 and decide their approach toward these services from July 1 on.”
City Council did not receive the county’s email until late December, after the governing body’s last meeting of the year. Council president Jane Rebelowski shared that the council had not previously been engaged in conversation with the county about developing a funding plan to ensure ongoing operations at The Salvation Army, despite references to coordination in the letter…