(The Center Square) – The official steering Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s signature program to build 4,000 new units of temporary housing for the homeless is leaving his position.
Jon Grant’s resignation comes after tension between the City Council and Wilson’s office over the homeless housing plan.
Wilson’s Interim Chief of Staff, Esther Handy said in a statement that Grant will be resigning effective June 1. Handy did not say why Grant was resigning. Grant was unavailable for comment.
Grant played a “key role in advancing the mayor’s highest priority, accelerating the development of new homeless shelters,” Handy said in a statement.
But Grant’s less than six-month tenure was also marred by tension between the City Council and the mayor’s office over the homeless plan
While the City Council ultimately passed legislation to create an initial 500 housing units, members of the City Council bickered with the mayor’s office over council amendments to the plan, such as requiring 24-hour guards at new homeless housing complexes.
Council members privately had said Wilson was trying to ram her plan through the city council, without recognizing that the city council was an independent body.
Grant was a key liaison between the mayor’s office and the city council on the homeless plan.
Grant, a veteran housing advocate, had previously worked for the Low Income Housing Institute, the city’s main tiny home village operator.
Wilson has announced two new tiny home villages since taking office, though none of them will be operated by The Low Income Housing Institute. Grant’s departure removed what could have been a potential conflict-of interest if LHI is chosen by the city for new contract
it’s unclear who will be leading the mayor’s homeless housing efforts with Grant’s resignation.
Wilson spokesperson Sage Wilson did not respond to requests for comment other than sharing the statement from the Chief of Staff.
Grant is they second key Wilson administration official to leave within a span of several weeks.
Interim Chief of Staff Handy replaced Kate Kreuzer, who was moved to a special projects role.
Kreuzer was working with Grant in pushing for the city council to pass the homeless plan and is a longtime friend of Wilson.
Grant was no stranger to Seattle politics. He ran unsuccessfully for the City Council in 2015 and 2017. He also had been executive director of The Tenants Union of Washington from 2010 to 2015.
Wilson had said her goal was to open 500 units of housing by the time The World Cup starts in Seattle on June 15, but only two new complexes have been announced so far with a total of 165 units.
Its unclear if any of the units will be open before the start of the World Cup.
