Washington
Washington County plans to build emergency housing shelter on the grounds of the government center in Stillwater
Washington County officials are moving forward with plans to build an emergency housing shelter on the grounds of the Washington County Government Center in Stillwater, and they’re asking the state to chip in.
The $12 million shelter, which is expected to open in the fall of 2025, would provide short-term emergency shelter to individuals over the age of 18. The average stay is expected to be around 90 days, said Jennifer Castillo, the county’s director of community services.
Plans call for the 30,000-square-foot emergency homeless shelter to be built on 1.5 acres on the southeast corner of Washington County’s main campus in Stillwater; the campus is about 29 acres total.
The project — the first of its kind in the county — would “add critical shelter infrastructure to support individuals experiencing homelessness,” Castillo said. “As housing costs rise, more people are left without stable homes, and we are faced with creating emergency housing options to combat the growing homelessness crisis.”
The two-story building will have 30 private rooms — four on the first floor and 26 on the second floor — with 24/7 staffing to provide people experiencing homelessness a place to stay while county officials help them find an array of “wrap-around” services, including connections to permanent housing, workforce development, public health, legal help, social support and economic support, she said.
The county is using $7 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to fund the project and is asking the state of Minnesota to contribute $5 million, Castillo said.
‘County remains behind’
“Despite the increase in emergency housing capacity for individuals post-pandemic, Washington County remains behind for individuals when compared to other Minnesota counties,” according to its legislative request. “Due to lack of adequate emergency housing in Washington County, more than 70 of our residents had to seek shelter in neighboring counties.”
Washington County does not have any permanent emergency housing capacity for adults without children; Dakota County, in contrast, has 45 rooms, and Anoka County has 66 rooms, according to the county’s legislative request.
“We have private providers doing a lot of these services, but if they decided tomorrow not to do this, we would not have a facility for people,” Castillo said.
During the “Point in Time” count in January, an annual count of those experiencing homelessness on a single night across the United States, 46 households in Washington County were identified to be residing in emergency housing or outside, emphasizing the ongoing and pressing need for comprehensive support in addressing homelessness, county officials said.
The Washington County Community Development Agency will be the developer of the project, which will be owned by Washington County. Residents would be referred to the shelter by the county’s Washington County Homeless Outreach Services Team and would have to meet eligibility criteria, Castillo said.
Pets allowed
The project will offer 23 singles and seven rooms will be set up as doubles. Residents can stay with partners, regardless of gender, and each room would have its own bathroom. “It’s very similar to a modest hotel room,” Castillo said. “They will have space to keep their belongings safe.”
Another key consideration: pets will be allowed in the shelter, Castillo said.
“A pet is a natural support and an integral part of so many people’s lives,” she said. “We did a lot of work understanding other programs — what’s working, what’s not working. More importantly, we’ve talked to the people who are being served or who have refused to be served in the past. ‘What are your barriers to housing? Why are you choosing to sleep in your car?’ It comes down to a lack of safety, not being able to bring their belongings, not being able to bring their pets, not wanting to be separated from a partner. We’ve really designed this with the understanding of the people who are experiencing homelessness and what’s preventing them from reaching out for support or from being successful.”
Among the other amenities: A commercial kitchen will be located on site to provide meals and snacks; a computer lab; a large gathering space, and a meditation/quiet room.
Although the average stay is expected to be 90 days, some residents may need to stay longer in order to secure permanent housing, she said. “This program is about the long game,” she said. “We are working on removing those barriers (to housing) so people move on to permanent housing and don’t have to return.”
Local support
Stillwater officials have been supportive of the plan, said Tim Gladhill, the city’s community development director.
The site is located in the public administrative offices district, which allows residential uses with a conditional-use permit, he said.
“We definitely know that there is a need for this type of housing for individuals experiencing homelessness,” he said. “It’s not always visible, but we know that it does exist. We think that the Government Center is an ideal location for this facility, and I think Washington County would be a great partner to create this project. This seems to be a longer term, more sustainable, solution to the need.”
County officials have generally contracted with hotels in the county to secure rooms to provide emergency housing. Last spring, the county board approved a contract with Coratel Inn and Suites in Stillwater for a “do-not-exceed amount of $450,000” to secure rooms to provide emergency housing to people experiencing homelessness; the contract ran from May 22 to Dec. 31. The county also has contracted with Woodspring Suites in Woodbury and Stillwater Inn and Suites in Stillwater to provide emergency housing to people experiencing homelessness.
Using hotel rooms was really a response to COVID, Castillo said. “The idea of using private rooms to mitigate the virus … was really one of the silver linings of COVID. It helped us advance new ways of providing emergency housing in a way that we hadn’t been able to gain traction on before.”
But placing people in hotel rooms temporarily “is not a sustainable long term solution,” Castillo said. “We do not have adequate funding … and we aren’t able to bring in the wraparound services, so it’s really us being able to operate the program in the way that we want.”
The county is working on several major projects to provide more than 200 units of affordable housing in the county in the next 18 months or so, said Melissa Taphorn, executive director of Washington County Community Development Agency
New projects include: Red Rock Square, a 51-unit, $17.3 million project at the northeast corner of Maxwell Avenue and Rock Rock Crossing in Newport that has an expected opening date of December 2024; Bluestem Apartments, a 52-units, $16.3 million project at the southeast corner of Hemingway Avenue South and 79th Street South in Cottage Grove that has an expected opening date of September 2025, and Oakdale Commons, a 168-unit, $48.8 million project at 1135 Hadley Ave. in Oakdale with an expected opening date of December 2024, Taphorn said.
The Washington County board will receive an update on the plan at a workshop on Tuesday.
An 18-year-old who was shot and wounded in Northwest D.C.’s Tenleytown neighborhood on Thursday afternoon has died, authorities say.
Brady Flowers Jr., of Southwest, was the victim, police said in an update Saturday.
Flowers was found shot in the 4500 block of Wisconsin Avenue NW, behind the CVS store. Jackson-Reed High School and American University are nearby.
Flowers was rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries and pronounced dead a day later, police said.
Police said 10-15 teens were seen running after the gunshots.
An investigation is underway. Anyone with potentially relevant information is asked to contact police.
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Washington
Governor Moore Continues “Delivering for Maryland” Tour in Washington County, Highlighting Transportation Infrastructure, Economic Development, and Early Childhood Education
Updated:
ANNAPOLIS, MD — Governor Wes Moore today continued his statewide “Delivering for Maryland” tour with a series of engagements in Washington County, highlighting vital investments in local transportation infrastructure, manufacturing job growth, and early childhood education. The governor emphasized state contributions to modernize the Hagerstown Regional Airport, toured the state-of-the-art Hitachi Rail facility, and celebrated the opening of a new child care center in the South End of Hagerstown funded by the administration’s historic ENOUGH Initiative.
“From investing $1.5 million to update Hagerstown Regional Airport’s aging control tower to supporting 1,300 jobs at Hitachi Rail, the Moore-Miller administration is delivering for Hagerstown, Washington County, and Western Maryland,” said Gov. Moore. “Through our administration’s ENOUGH Initiative partnerships and investments, we’ve tripled child care capacity in the South End of Hagerstown — because no parents should be forced to pick between staying in the workforce or securing quality care for their kids.”
The governor began the day at the Hagerstown Regional Airport, touring the Air Traffic Control Tower and airport grounds. During the visit, Governor Moore highlighted the State’s $1.5 million Fiscal Year 2027 investment to complete the design for a critical replacement of the airport’s aging air traffic control facility. As a primary airport in the Maryland Aviation System Plan, the Hagerstown Regional Airport is a vital economic engine for Washington County, supporting more than 1,800 jobs and generating over $140 million in local business revenue.
Following the airport tour, Governor Moore visited the Hitachi Rail STS facility alongside Congresswoman April McClain Delaney, Senator Mike McKay, Senator Paul Corderman and state transportation leaders. The governor toured the factory floor and rode a test train to observe the manufacturing process. Opened in September 2025 with the support of a $1.6 million state conditional loan, the 307,000-square-foot, carbon-neutral facility is a $100 million capital investment by Hitachi. The factory supports 1,300 jobs — including 460 newly created jobs — and is actively manufacturing railcars for both the Maryland Transit Administration and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.
“Hitachi Rail has built a cutting-edge model for advanced manufacturing here in Western Maryland which is focused on delivering clean, safe, efficient regional transportation across our state and the rest of the country,” said Congresswoman April McClain Delaney. “This facility is powered by Maryland’s second-to-none workforce and world-class innovation environment. I’m proud to work with Governor Moore and our public, private, and philanthropic partners to drive global investment that supports jobs and economic growth along our I-270 Tech Corridor.”
Governor Moore concluded the day at the Children’s Learning and Empowerment Center in the South End of Hagerstown, where he met with parents, children, and community leaders. During the visit, the Governor highlighted the administration’s ENOUGH Initiative, which provided critical support for the center’s opening. The new facility is a major win for the community, tripling local childcare capacity with 24 new slots and generating six new early childhood education jobs.
The Children’s Learning and Empowerment Center’s opening was accelerated by a $100,000 investment from San Mar Family & Community Services, the ENOUGH grantee in Hagerstown. ENOUGH grant funding was also supplemented by a $100,000 philanthropic contribution from the Bainum Family Foundation — a member of the ENOUGH Alliance — to complete necessary facility upgrades. The center’s completion underscores the strength of the ENOUGH Initiative’s public-private partnerships to deliver on community priorities and work towards ending child poverty.
Governor Moore’s visit to Washington County follows the third stop of his “Delivering for Maryland” tour in Montgomery County, where he marked a historic milestone by installing the final segment of rail for the Purple Line. This installation completes the 16.2-mile light rail corridor connecting Bethesda and New Carrollton, with passenger service expected to begin in late 2027. The governor also visited Max’s Best Ice Cream in Bethesda, a local business dedicated to creating meaningful employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through the Best Buddies Jobs program.
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A man charged with attacking the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner is seeking to disqualify top justice department officials from direct involvement in prosecuting him because they could be considered victims or witnesses in the case, creating a potential conflict of interest.
The acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, and US attorney Jeanine Pirro were attending the 25 April event at the Washington Hilton hotel when Cole Tomas Allen allegedly ran through a security checkpoint and fired a shotgun at a Secret Service officer.
In a court filing late on Thursday, Allen’s attorneys argued that it created at least the appearance of a conflict of interest for Blanche and Pirro to be making any prosecutorial decisions in the case.
“As this case proceeds closer to trial, the country and the world will continue to wonder – how can the American justice system permit a victim to prosecute a criminal defendant in a case involving them?” defense attorneys Eugene Ohm and Tezira Abe wrote.
Ohm and Abe, who are assistant federal public defenders, suggested that the appointment of a special prosecutor might be warranted. They urged US district judge Trevor McFadden, a Trump nominee assigned to Allen’s case, to disqualify Pirro, Blanche and possibly other justice department officials from direct involvement in the investigation and prosecution.
“Both heard gunshots, which presumably forced them to duck below the tables with the rest of the occupants. They were quickly evacuated. Shortly thereafter, they learned that law enforcement believed the target was certain administration officials,” Ohm and Abe wrote.
Pirro said her office would respond to the defense lawyers’ arguments in its own court filing.
“We will not tolerate people who come to the District of Columbia to engage in antidemocratic acts of political violence; and we will prosecute all such acts to the fullest extent of the law,” Pirro said in a statement.
Allen is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday on further charges in an indictment handed up Tuesday by a grand jury in Washington.
The charges include attempting to assassinate Donald Trump, who is a longtime friend of Pirro. Blanche served as a personal attorney for Trump before joining the justice department last year. Blanche, through a spokesperson, referred a request for comment to Pirro’s office. Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, is also charged with assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon and two additional firearms counts.
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