HomesNOW! is moving and merging the tiny house villages of Swift Haven and Unity Village to 330 Northwest Ave. this year. A new complex complete with amenities will be built at the new location.
HomesNOW! is a non-profit dedicated to bringing people out of homelessness using a housing-first model. The organization operates Unity Village and Swift Haven, two tiny house villages in Bellingham that provide shelter and a foundation for people in need.
HomesNOW!’s villages are self-governed and the organization is operated by unpaid volunteers.
Doug Gustafson, chairman of HomesNOW!, said this structure grants residents autonomy and contributes to the organization’s 58% success rate in getting people into longer-term housing.
Timothy Booth is the acting manager and a current resident at Unity Village. Their responsibilities include trucking gray water, monitoring the community’s cameras and serving as the point of contact for the community.
Booth’s relationship with these responsibilities is complicated, they said.
“Of course, integrity, work, duty, all those things are still very important to me. So that's why I continue,” they said. “For most people, I believe that it does provide them that level of autonomy, but I think in certain circumstances, it can also take it away.”
Thomas, a resident of Swift Haven, has been through every contiguous state and to countless cities for work while homeless. He appreciates the opportunity the village provides.
“It’s a hell of a lot better than being on the street,” Thomas said. “I stayed outside about seven years.”
The tiny houses have electricity, heating, air conditioning and locking doors. The villages have showers, portable toilets, drinking water and garbage services.
According to Thomas, residents are expected to fulfill a range of responsibilities including keeping their rooms clean, managing the front desk, maintaining the yard, painting and reflooring.
“We do everything ourselves. Nobody here is paid, even the staff’s not paid,” Thomas said.
HomesNOW!’s model differs from other shelter options in the city and allows its villages to operate more affordably than others like it. However, they could not afford to change the model: even one paid person could bankrupt HomesNOW!, Gustafson said.
HomesNOW! does not accept federal funds because they come with strings attached — such as a non-resident board member being required on-site 24/7 — which are incompatible with HomesNOW!’s model.
Tara Sundin, the Community and Economic Development Manager for the city of Bellingham, said having a variety of models is valuable.
“[HomesNOW!’s model is] very different. We need it all,” Sundin said. “I think it’s helped the whole county in sheltering… they're referred to as homes or houses, but they're not. They're still considered shelter in our mind. But we need shelter for lots more people.”
The City of Bellingham purchased 3300 Northwest Ave from the North Coast Credit Union, for $1.26 million. Setting up North Haven will cost more than $1 million, Sundin said.
That money will go towards utilities and amenities like water, sewer, electricity, a kitchen and laundry services for the location. North Haven will be designed to last longer than the previous locations, with greater amenities.
The current villages were meant to be temporary. This is reflected in their infrastructure.
"Our shower truck being a little unreliable is not necessarily HomesNOW!'s fault," Booth said. "People might scrutinize the infrastructure there a little bit because they don't fully understand how fickle that system is when it wasn't intended to be that way."
The temporary nature is also reflected in how many times the villages have had their permits extended and how often the plan to move has changed.
"Over the past six months it's changed 10 times, probably,” Thomas said.
Previously, the plan was to move the villages in fall 2024, but permitting issues delayed this. The city is aiming to move the villages in early spring, but Gustafson is pushing for the beginning of summer. Moving in the summer would be warmer and would keep them out of the rain while they work, Thomas said.
Booth, Thomas and Gustafson anticipate that bringing the 48 people from both villages together will be the biggest hurdle.
“There's going to be a lot of hiccups, just because people are learning people — their triggers, their boundaries, what respect means to everybody,” Booth said.
Gustafson would prefer to keep Swift Haven and Unity Village open, and open North Haven as a third, but HomesNOW! can’t. The permits of the villages cannot be extended any longer and the city has plans for each plot of land, Sundin said.
“The demand is really high. I get about 30 calls a day; 30 calls a day of people really needing a place and wanting to move in,” Gustafson said.
The city has more shelter projects with other organizations on the way, but the fiscal resources are being stretched, Sundin said.
“We're getting maxed out on our financial capacity to do more sheltering,” said Sundin.
Steven Colson (they/them) is a city news reporter for The Front. They are a fourth-year environmental journalism major. Beyond the newsroom they like to be outside with the stars, trees and water, or in busy spaces jumping to loud music. You can reach them at stevencolson.thefront@gmail.com
