Nearly $1.7 million in federal housing and community development funds will go to seven local nonprofits

Thurston County Board of County Commissioners adopted the Fiscal Year 2026 HUD Annual Action Plan on Tuesday, June 23, splitting $911,107 in Community Development Block Grant funds and $782,891 in HOME Investment Partnership funds among organizations serving low-income residents in Tumwater, unincorporated Thurston County, and smaller cities including Bucoda, Rainier, Tenino, and Yelm.

The programs target households earning at or below 80% of the area's median income.

Homes First, a nonprofit founded more than 35 years ago that houses close to 300 people across Thurston and Mason counties, receives the largest share. The organization will get $218,476 in CDBG funds to acquire and rehabilitate a three-bedroom home for survivors of domestic violence, plus $648,439 in HOME funds split between recovery housing ($500,000) and additional domestic violence housing ($148,439).

CEO Trudy Soucoup wrote on the organization's website that rising costs have "completely depleted our cash reserves, threatening everything we've built together over the last 35 years."

The remaining CDBG awards go to:

  • South Puget Sound Habitat for Humanity — Critical Home Repair Program: $236,872
  • Rebuilding Together Thurston County — Critical Home Repair Program: $136,872
  • Boys and Girls Club of Thurston County — scholarships for youth experiencing homelessness: $52,500
  • Together! — Tumwater Community Schools Program: $34,166
  • Thurston County Food Bank — FORKids Backpacks: $30,000
  • Senior Services for South Sound — Home Share Program: $20,000

The City of Tumwater selected the CDBG recipients after its Budget and Finance Committee heard 10-minute presentations from applicants on Friday, April 24. The Regional Housing Council, which includes Thurston County and the cities of Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater, and Yelm, chose the HOME fund recipients based on scoring by the Affordable Housing Advisory Board.

Jen Freiheit, the county's Public Health and Social Services director, presented the plan to commissioners. No general fund dollars are involved; all funding comes from federal HUD sources.

The plan now goes to HUD for approval by Tuesday, July 15. The 2026 program year begins Tuesday, September 1.