Behavioral Health offers the first halfway house in Sequim

Peninsula Behavioral Health (PBH) officials are preparing to open the doors to its first halfway house in Sequim for five adults this November.

Employees and community members celebrated the future opening with a Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting on Oct. 16 in the renovated space.

“The more we can do to help get people into housing, the more likely they are to be independent,” PBH CEO Wendy Sisk said in an interview.

“Housing is healthcare.”

As of last week, three of the five spots have been reserved for people who don’t have an apartment or have been couch surfing, Sisk said.

In some cases, individuals in the agency’s transitional housing were living with family members who were no longer able to provide support, she said.

The Sequim House, formerly PBH’s Sequim office, will provide supportive transitional housing for five adults who have greater needs for independent living support, development director Tracy Sheldon said via email.

The home was financed with $250,000 from Clallam County under Substitute House Bill 4106, which allows jurisdictions to impose a local, state-shared sales and use tax on affordable/supportive housing projects.

Sequim’s home is the agency’s fourth Transitional Supportive Home, and his home and property are owned by PBH.

Once opened, the agency will create up to 17 rooms for transitional housing and 35 to 40 spaces in its long-term apartments.

Housing has a waiting list of more than 150 people, Sisk said, while transitional housing placements are based on recommendations from clinical teams.

By definition, the duration of temporary housing is no longer than two years, she said.

This new home is the only one planned in Sequim, she said, as a 36-unit permanent housing project is being built in Port Angeles that will take at least a year to complete.

“We don’t expect much more action as we work to build this complex,” Sisk said.

In the house

According to Sheldon, the PBH employees are on site in the transitional homes almost all day long.

Clients’ daily lives include working with case managers and supporting colleagues to create a schedule for brushing teeth, doing laundry and dishes, cooking classes, and more.

“We also work to ensure residents support each other and are good neighbors,” Sisk said.

“We very rarely have complaints from neighbors as the staff are there most days, if not all days.

“The goal is to make them independent.”

One of the benefits of a halfway house is that it helps clients with rental and credit history so they are better positioned to apply and be successful when permanent housing comes up, Sisk said.

According to PBH staff, there are no special income or homeless status requirements to live in the agency’s transitional housing.

Tenants pay monthly rent and the homes are available exclusively to PBH customers on a month-to-month lease, Sheldon wrote.

Sisk said the way clients pay their rent varies, but many receive disability benefits due to mental illness.

“If someone has no income, we support them and help them participate in support programs,” she said.

Clients suffer from serious mental illnesses, such as major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and other psychotic illnesses, employees report.

“They are more likely to be the victims of a crime than they are to commit one,” Sisk said.

“They won’t ruin our neighborhoods.

“There is a lot of fear about mental illness, but it is not contagious. They are sensible and valuable people in our community.”

For more information about Peninsula Behavioral Health, visit peninsulabehavioral.org. If you have any questions, call (360) 457-0431.