Orting Veterans Village - http://www.quixotecommunities.org/orting-veterans-village.html

• Jaycie Osterberg, executive Director for Quixote Communities - osterberg@quixotevillage.com
• Quixote Communities is a nonprofit based out of Olympia
• Had no idea what I was walking into at this meeting  - we are much smaller in Olympia
• How many people have heard about the veterans village
• We own and operate Quixote Village – for 30 individuals.  The Puget sound Veterans Hope Center (http://www.pugetsoundveteranshopecenter.org/  ) operating out of the Tacoma Rescue Mission Men’s shelter asked us to partner with them to build a community in Pierce County. 
• We are building on the Washington Soldier’s Home campus in Orting – building 30 tiny homes.  (I was just out there – it is as serene a place as you could hope for – I’d pick one of the tiny homes where you could hear the frogs in the pond nearby. –ed).   
• It has been a long time coming, and the permitting has been long winded (what an incredibly polite way to say that –ed)
• Ground breaking next Tuesday, October 1st – I have a press release I can send around.  It is just an event, not really groundbreaking – that will actually happen in a couple weeks.
• It will be Permanent Supportive Housing – each unit will have 176 ft², a bedroom and bath – fully furnished, toilet, sink, shower.  At Quixote Village in Olympia, we didn’t put a shower in, and the residents have wanted that.  So we added it this time.  It is Quixote Village 2.0.  They will still have electricity and plumbing.  But, not a kitchen.  There will be a 2,500 ft² community building with a large double kitchen.  There is a large multi-purpose room – open for life skills classes and yoga and such from community providers.  Will also have 2 full time staff – a program manager and a full time case manager – someone to work one-on-one with folks – get wraparound services, benefits, transportation, help finding work or getting in school. 
• We are recovery housing, so residents need to try to be clean and sober.  That can scare some people – we know relapse is hard.  We don’t kick folks out, we work with them if they want recovery. 
• We’ve been working on this for over 2 years – would love to hear any questions.
• Carolyn Read – what is the cost per client so folks can compare to the being on the street?  Jaycie – our Quixote Village budget is $285k/year - $8k per person per year.  Residents pay 30% of income for rent, and are working with Pierce County Housing Authority to get vouchers. 
• Theresa – is there space out there for a campground nearby?  Is anyone looking at that as a possibility until these units are built?  Gerrit – Roosevelt barracks, run by the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs, has a transitional housing program (called Grant Per Diem or GPD – least descriptive program name ever. –ed) with space available out there.  Westcare also operates a transitional housing program called Betsy Ross House (in a lovely building that just had a fabulous remodel –ed.), which always has space for single female veterans.  Both of those programs operate as clean and sober housing, and each veteran gets their own room (and the case managers are top notch – the Orting and clean and sober housing combo can be a tough sell, but let’s refer clients so they can get access to some amazing programs. Ed)
• Orting Veterans village will use Coordinated Entry to refer veterans to the program.
• Transportation – none there – working on that.  We have a van or some such to get folks to the VA hospital.  It is something we need to work out (or Orting could choose to vote themselves back into Pierce Transit and then they could have bus service – just doing a little dreaming here –ed.)