In 2023, I voted for the Crisis Care Centers levy. I believe in accessible, compassionate behavioral health care for people in crisis. Everyone I know, including neighbors, parents and business owners, did too. We understand that failing to invest in mental health is a failure of civic leadership.
Belief in the mission should never be mistaken for blind acceptance of a flawed process. The proposed siting of a Crisis Care Center at 1145 Broadway in the heart of Capitol Hill’s Pike/Pine corridor was not the product of a transparent, community-informed process. It was arranged behind closed doors among United Healthcare, Guntower Capital and King County, then presented to the neighborhood. That is not how we rebuild trust. That is how we lose it.
Last week, King County’s budget committee moved the funding package for the center to the full Metropolitan King County Council, but without recommendation. This was after hearing from dozens of concerned community members about the lack of outreach and serious questions about the transaction itself. This lack of endorsement by councilmembers sends a signal that more discussion and scrutiny are needed. Considering the clinic could operate for 50 years, more time is absolutely necessary. The full council weighs in soon: Oct. 7.
Capitol Hill is home to LGBTQ+ history, cherished independent businesses, vibrant arts and nightlife and a population that prides itself on inclusion. Yet the neighborhood has endured enormous strain over the last five years: the pandemic, Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone / Capitol Hill Organized Protest, escalating opioid use, retail theft, nightlife-related crime and shuttered legacy businesses.
Within a few blocks of the proposed site are more than 50 vacant storefronts, seven schools serving 14,000 students, a day care, behavioral health programs, a methadone clinic and multiple supportive housing programs. This decision is not only symbolic. It carries measurable risks for people in crisis, residents, schools, businesses and a fragile neighborhood still finding its footing.
The county reiterates its commitment to working with the community. Yet for eight months, most of the businesses, apartments and residents directly adjacent to the site have received no outreach from Department of Community and Human Services. None. You cannot claim partnership while skipping the partners. The result is predictable. There is no faith left in the process.
What is most troubling is not only that this decision lacked independent land use and safety assessments, but also how the county maneuvered to push it through. In June 2024, the county amended its rules to create a new “exceptional circumstances” clause that allowed direct property purchases. In November, the county issued a Determination of Nonsignificance for all Crisis Care Centers, assuring the public that no sites had been identified. Yet less than two months later, in January, the county signed a purchase and sale agreement with Guntower Capital LLC — a middleman between United Healthcare and the county — which stands to make $10.5 million for assigning its right to buy the property over to King County.
The speed and sequencing paint a picture that the site was already in play even as the county told the public otherwise.
A few years ago, a similar dynamic played out with the Navigation Center in Little Saigon. That siting, well-intentioned but poorly executed, ignited community backlash and eroded trust between the county, city and surrounding stakeholders. The center closed, leaving lasting damage to the neighborhood.
When trust is sacrificed for speed, the results speak for themselves. Kirkland’s Crisis Care Center served fewer than 500 people in its first three months. The new $244 million UW Behavioral Health Center is using only one-third of its beds. Lynnwood’s center will not open until 2026. Pierce County’s project is on hold. Public confidence in these systems continues to erode.
We are not asking to cancel this project. We are asking to slow it down so it can succeed. We urge the Metropolitan King County Council to delay the purchase of 1145 Broadway until after the election and those responsible for property implementation inside and out are in place.
Metropolitan King County Council’s Oct. 7 deadline is coming incredibly fast for such an important decision and what we have seen so far makes it unlikely these questions will be resolved by then. More time, preferably when after the officials responsible for the implementation of this center are elected and have taken office, would allow that to happen.
In Capitol Hill and the Pike/Pine corridor, the stakes are too high to settle for anything less.
