Despite the setbacks in decontamination efforts, Snohomish County is still on track to convert former hotels into bridge housing for unhoused adults.

Bridge housing is designed to provide immediate shelter in a stable environment, with 24/7 support services. It is considered a first step toward permanent housing and comes with medical and mental health help, job services and other immediate needs. 

In a Feb. 20 email to constituents, Snohomish County 3rd Districy Councilmember Strom Peterson explained that the decontamination process for the former America’s Best Value Inn at 221st Street Southwest and Highway 99 in Edmonds “has taken longer than anticipated” and provided a report of the activities.

According to Peterson’s report, AA Decon, a decontamination contractor, performed the first round of decontamination efforts at the Edmonds facility in May 2023. 

In July 2023, Abatement and Decontamination Services (ADS), a testing contractor, was asked to provide post-decontamination testing at the facility. 

ADS submitted a report for the post-decontamination sampling at the Edmonds facility in September 2023. Results showed most spaces tested higher than during the assessment sampling prior to decontamination efforts.

Snohomish County hired BioClean to perform confirmation testing at the Edmonds facility, with the Snohomish Health Department on-site to observe the sampling process. 

BioClean’s results showed resilient surfaces, such as stainless steel and glass, had been decontaminated. However, porous surfaces, such as drywall, and surfaces next to unsealed ductwork were “well above the allowable standards in the testing reports,” Peterson explained.

In January 2024, Snohomish County terminated contracts with ADS and AA Decon. Proposals have been requested to move forward with BioClean and another decontamination company that has yet to be chosen. 

County Office of Recovery and Resilience Deputy Communications Director Kelsey Nyland said that the county’s most recent assessment found that most rooms at the Everett facility needed to have wood and other porous surfaces removed. However, most rooms at the Edmonds facility should be able to be addressed by cleaning. 

“We will, of course, evaluate after the next round of decontamination to determine additional steps, if any,” Nyland said.

Once the decontamination process is completed, the county can remodel the building for longer-term stays than the hotels were originally built to accommodate.

Why would there be more contamination after the Edmonds cleaning? “The county cannot speculate how contamination could increase after cleaning, despite the Edmonds facility being closed to the general public,” Nyland said.

“We are finalizing contracts with new decontamination firms,” she added. The firm estimates being able to complete decontamination at the Edmonds facility this summer. We are negotiating a contract for the Everett location to follow a similar timeline by decontaminating approximately eight rooms per day.”

The county received a discount of $1,580,600 on the properties’ purchase price due to the drug contamination. So far it has spent $721,967 for decontamination and testing. Nyland said contracts for the new cleaning and testing are being negotiated.

“During the 2023 budget cycle, we allocated an additional $5 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds for remodeling, security, services and staffing for both facilities and have not yet begun to spend those funds,” Nyland explained. 

“Purchasing properties and renovating them – despite the setbacks with needed decontamination – was always going to be faster and more cost-effective than building from the ground up,” Nyland said.

County Councilmember Nate Nehring of the 1st District said he “was opposed to the decision to purchase these two properties.” He recently introduced legislation to the Snohomish County Council that will require annual testing of county-owned, taxpayer-subsidized facilities in response to multiple reports of fentanyl and methamphetamine contamination at supportive housing facilities throughout Snohomish County. 

“I am hopeful that legislation will be adopted by the full council,” Nehring said.

The ordinance will be assigned to a county council committee for briefing in the coming weeks, and a public hearing will be scheduled following the committee’s recommendation.

— By Rick Sinnett