About Us
Mission
Imagine Housing empowers individuals and families, supports diversity and strengthens communities by developing permanent affordable rental housing and providing supportive services.
Our Vision
Regardless of income, individuals and families in East King County have stable housing and strong support in diverse communities that empower success and foster a high quality of life.
We are working to help create an inviting Eastside community where families and individuals can choose to live regardless of income level:
- Teachers, service professionals and minimum wage earners are able to live in the same cities in which they work.
- Seniors need not leave their historic living locations simply because funds are limited or fixed.
- People who were once homeless can find permanent affordable housing and supportive services through providers that are committed to their successful transition into lives of independence and financial viability.
Guiding Principles
In everything we do, we strive to:
- Transform our community, making immediate and long-term differences.
- Develop innovative solutions based on stability, integrity and long-term viability.
- Partner with organizations and individuals to broaden our effectiveness.
- Engage the public in our work.
Our History
Founded in 1987 by members of Bellevue's Saint Andrew's Lutheran Church, St. Andrew's Housing Group (SAHG) became independently incorporated in 1989 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation. Until 1993, SAHG was a volunteer led organization. During this time, SAHG volunteers worked diligently to learn the business of developing affordable housing, establish SAHG within the market, create networking relationships, and build a solid reputation as a trustworthy developer of affordable housing. In 1992, SAHG opened its first housing development, Andrew's Arms, offering 14 units of affordable housing in Issaquah, Washington.
In 1993, SAHG's first Executive Director was hired and the groundbreaking work of the volunteers began to pay off as SAHG entered into a period of dramatic growth and accomplishment. In 2011, SAHG took the next step towards expanding it's visibility in the community and unveiled a new name for the organization, Imagine Housing. Today, Imagine Housing provides 425 units of affordable housing on King County's Eastside, serving nearly 1,000 individuals. Imagine Housing provides affordable housing in the following Eastside communities: Mercer Island, Issaquah, Redmond, Bellevue and Kirkland.
Imagine Housing is headed by Executive Director, Ann Levine, and operated by 17 qualified and professional staff, an engaged and effective 15-member Board of Directors and a strong committee led corps of more than 150 volunteers. The Board of Directors includes members from the Eastside and Seattle who bring experience in commercial, industrial and mixed-use housing construction and management, commercial and nonprofit real estate development, community development finance and real estate law. Each Board member financially contributes each year, actively participates in fundraising and serves on at least one committee.
The Need
The increasingly high cost of living in Washington State is forcing families to move into areas with no transportation, few job opportunities and little personal security. In the worst cases, these families end up on the street. Imagine Housing is creating solutions to this problem by bringing affordable housing to King County’s Eastside, the most populous county in Washington State. Consider the following statistics:
- 10% of Eastside households earn less than $25,290 per year, 30% of the Area's Median Income (United Way of King County, 2008 Community Assessment).
- $30.63 per hour is needed for a single parent to afford the $1,593 average rent for an apartment in Kirkland (calculated based on area median income (AMI) and average rent in Kirkland as of March 2010).
- 17% of all households in East King County pay more than 30% of their income towards rent (Eastside Human Services Forum, The Face of Homelessness in East King County, Summer 2007).
- 141 people were found sleeping without shelter on the Eastside in January 2010's "One Night Count of the Homeless" (Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness, 2010 One Night County, January 2010).
- 52% of homeless families in King County reported that they became homeless because of high housing prices (Gates Foundation's Sound Families Initiative Report, Summer 2008).
- 1,845 units of housing are needed to house the Eastside's homeless population based on a 2005 study (Eastside Human Services Forum, East King County Plan to End Homelessness, September 2007).
Strategic Plan
Imagine Housing has continued to implement goals outlined in our 5-year Strategic Plan, which was launched in February 2007. The successful accomplishment of these goals will result in greater community awareness of the need for affordable housing, increased production of housing units and a new Resident Services Program that will allow us to better meet the needs of those living in Imagine Housing properties.
Community Advocacy
The need for affordable housing in East King County has become a crisis that impacts us all. We believe that our community deserves to have greater awareness of this crisis and how it impacts transportation, education, healthcare and costs to taxpayers. Imagine Housing will work on advocacy and community outreach efforts in new ways by implementing a community outreach effort, providing resources to educate the greater community and by helping to create new solutions for the housing challenges faced by Eastside communities.
Increase Property PortfolioSeattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness, 2010 One Night County, January 2010
In response to the growing need for housing over the past few years, Imagine Housing is now poised to develop 200 new affordable units over the next five years, resulting in a 62% increase in Imagine Housing’s project portfolio and addressing urgent community needs for housing. Earlier this year, Imagine Housing broke ground on Andrew’s Glen, which will provide 40-units of housing in Bellevue targeting homeless veterans, and in October will break ground on Francis Village, which will add 60 additional units of housing in Kirkland.
Resident Services Program
St. Andrew’s Housing Group has recognized that while providing affordable, permanent rental housing is the key first step in preventing or ending homelessness, many of the residents entering its housing program may want or need supportive services to help them succeed and thrive in this housing and to maintain long-term stability. In response to this need, Imagine Housing has developed a Resident Services Program, designed to help build residents’ skills, increase their financial stability, provide children with educational assistance and cultivate a strong community at each property. Our Resident Services Program helps residents in two ways:
- 1) By providing onsite services to enhance residents’ skills, build their self-sufficiency, and connect them to their neighbors and their community. Such services include money management training, career planning, leadership development activities and parental support for adult residents as well as after-school tutoring, computer labs, craft and cooking classes as well as summer camp programs for children.
- 2) By connecting them to valuable services in the community that they may not be aware of, such as mental health services, grief and loss counseling, substance or physical abuse counseling, and job search assistance.
Imagine Housing believes that, through the foundation of stable housing and supportive services, residents will thrive. Imagine Housing hopes to help residents achieve greater job and income stability and strives to create a supportive and well-coordinated environment where residents can receive the help they need if and when they experience financial struggles, without jeopardizing their housing stability. Imagine Housing also hopes to build strong families where adults feel effective as parents and children are healthy and succeeding in school.
This program is currently available to 833 residents in eight of Imagine Housing's ten properties.
For Further Information
Check out one of the following pages:
Our 2008 990 | Imagine Housing Department Directors Imagine Housing Department Staff | |
|---|---|
Ann Levine |
Hester Winn |
|
Sara Cox |
| Sue Bliven Director of Finance |
Meg Colombi |
Eric Evans |
Marchelle Mertens |
Suzanne Koval |
|
Rachel Mathison |
Sarah Larson |
|
Kristine Gannie |
Samantha Gentz |
|
|
Kaye Miller |
Rozina Mohammad |
|
| Molly Statham Lead Resident Support Specialist |
|
Erin Wright |
|
| Imagine Housing Board of Directors | |
|---|---|
Jim Long, President |
Judy Gowdy, Vice President |
Jason Anderson, Treasurer |
Linda Bergam, Secretary |
Larry Abner |
Sterling Bentsen |
Eric Campbell |
Jeff Churchill |
Steve Dennis |
Garrett Guiler |
Darel Harrison |
Debi Miller-Murphy |
Tracy Reich |
Lucy Sannes |
| Michael Schneider Principal, Commonwealth Development LLC |
Position Currently Available |
Position Currently Available |
Position Currently Available |