VANCOUVER, Wash. — Washington Gov. Jay Inslee visited a newly built affordable housing complex in Vancouver on Friday, calling it a "good investment" for the state and its families.
Built with the help of Washington State Low Income Housing Tax Credits, Columbia Gardens opened in early 2023 and features 124 units of two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments. The complex was built to target residents who make 50% to 60% of area median income.
It also features solar panels and electric vehicle chargers — as well as air conditioning, which resident John Reed said is a must for his son, who has diabetes.
The father of three has lived at Columbia Gardens for six months, saying he was just weeks away from being homeless before he found a place to live here.
"I was definitely scared I was going to be homeless, and I wouldn't be able to see my kids. I wouldn't have a place for them to live with me," Reed told KGW.
Reed said there are other people living at the complex that may have been on the streets if this facility wasn't available.
"I don't know how to explain the fear of being homeless," he said. "I didn't have to experience it, thank God; I know many people that do. This program has been like a miracle, at least for my family, and I know for several others that live here too."
The state of Washington has an ambitious goal to build 1 million housing units in the state over the next two decades. Inslee said it's necessary to keep up with the demand of people moving to the Evergreen State, and low-income housing is a main target area.
"What we are seeing are efforts to get people out of the rain, out of homelessness, while simultaneously fighting climate change by getting rid of pollution. So we aren't burning coal and gas — we are using clean electricity," Inslee said, after touring Columbia Gardens.
Inslee added that though housing complexes are a big step in the right direction, the fight to end homelessness in the state continues.
"We have to continue our efforts to help open up more land for housing, in our zoning system, in our permitting system," he said. "We have some statutory changes we need to make so we get more place we can actually build; that's important, too."