Everett Gospel Mission plans for major shelter expansion

Published 11:35 am Friday, April 10, 2026

EVERETT — The Everett Gospel Mission is planning to break ground later this year on a significant expansion of its existing shelter space, nearly doubling the number of shelter beds available to people experiencing homelessness.

Permit documents filed with the city show that the nonprofit plans to connect two existing warehouses with its current shelter on Smith Avenue by adding new structures between the buildings. The result would be one contiguous building, renderings show, about three times the size of the existing shelter.

The expanded shelter would provide 172 beds, with separate spaces for men and women. The expansion will open up more space at the nonprofit’s family shelter located in the Lowell neighborhood, and will also include surge capacity to add as many as 64 additional beds during severe weather events.

The nonprofit began exploring possible plans to expand its shelter space at other locations over a decade ago, said Nathan “Chivo” Hawkins, the director of advancement at the Everett Gospel Mission. But the nonprofit couldn’t find a suitable location.

In 2024, however, the Everett Gospel Mission got the opportunity to purchase the two properties adjacent to its current shelter. The architect took ideas from the nonprofit’s previous planning on a larger location and used those to create a design by combining the three properties.

“We like to think of it as the emergency room for people experiencing homelessness,” said Everett Gospel Mission CEO John Hull in an interview Wednesday. “… We’re really the first step, and then people can stabilize and find a way to consider how to move into those next steps.”

The Everett Gospel Mission is the only homeless shelter available in Snohomish County for men without families. Those staying in the shelter can remain there for up to two years as they connect with other services and look for permanent housing.

In total, the expansion project will cost approximately $30 million, Hull said. It will be split into two phases — phase one would complete most of the construction of the exterior of the building and increase the shelter capacity, while phase two would complete much of the interior. Significant portions of the funding have already arrived from the city of Everett and Snohomish County, as well as philanthropic donations. The state is also set to chip in funds through a budget allocation approved in the Legislature earlier this year.

Construction is set to begin in October or November. It will not interrupt the current shelter service at the nonprofit. The goal is to have the first phase completed in time for the cold weather season in 2027 — an ambitious timeline, Hull said, but one that is needed to best support the needs of Snohomish County.

“We have the opportunity to fill a need, which is what this project is really going to do,” Hull said.

Staff at the nonprofit traveled to shelters across the country to learn best practices, Hull said. The newly expanded location will include an open, easily navigable design with spaces to meet with shelter staff, a store to buy necessities, a craft room available for projects like art lessons and kennels to store pets. (The plans include a dog washing station, too). The nonprofit will hire more employees to be able to have staff on-site 24/7.

The new facility will also include added safety measures and office space for staff and volunteers. Architects designing the space worked with researchers at the University of Washington to ensure the design would be friendly to neurodivergent individuals.

In an ideal world, Hull said, the shelter wouldn’t need to be built in the first place. There would be enough affordable housing across the community that no person would need to be living on the street. But he said the goal of the nonprofit is to create a space that he would want to go to, a place that provides the best service possible, in an effort to change the lives of those who use it.

“Shelters are not the ideal solution,” Hull said. “But we can do shelter better.”

Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.