Extreme Heat Shelter: May 13-19

Due to extreme heat, with temperatures in the 80’s and potentially higher, KCRHA is activating Severe Weather Response protocols in Seattle from Saturday, May 13 through Friday, May 19. Due to persistent high temperatures in some areas of King County, this activation has been extended from its original time frame. This post was updated 5/15/2023 at 5:40pm.

The mild Pacific Northwest climate can make us more sensitive to heat. When it’s hot, our region sees a spike in the number of people who have serious health problems like heart attacks, stroke, and kidney failure. This risk is more severe at the beginning of the hot season when our bodies have been in months of winter adaptation and haven’t had time to acclimatize to heat.

King County Metro Statement: 

King County Metro has directed operators to provide any customer a trip who is seeking respite from the heat and/or would like a ride to a cooling center.

“Metro is not waiving fares during the heat wave. However, we never make fares a barrier to people in safety situations.”

Below you will find locations and hours of operation across the county for cooling spaces. 

Seattle Day Centers: 

The following are Seattle day centers for people experiencing homelessness. These day centers remain open on their regular schedule.

• The Salvation Army
  • Jefferson Day Center (4th & Jefferson), Every Day, 7:00am – 5:00pm
  • White Center Community Center 
• Seattle Indian Center Day Center (624 S. Dearborn Street), Monday – Friday, 8:30am – 5:30pm
• Compass Day Center (77 S Washington St.), Monday – Friday, 7:00am – 7:00pm
• Elizabeth Gregory Home (1604 NE 50th St.), Sunday – Friday, 9:00am – 4:30pm, women only **
• Immanuel Community Services (1215 Thomas St.), Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 2:00pm 
• YouthCare
  • Orion Center (1828 Yale Ave),Monday-Friday 9am-8pm (except Wednesday CLOSED from 12:45pm-3pm) / Saturday 10am-2pm youth only (ages 12 to 24)
  • UDYC (4516 15th Ave. NE) Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri 8am-4pm / Wednesday 8am-1pm / Sunday 9am-1pm youth only (ages 12 to 24)
  • S. Seattle 24 hours (except Wednesday CLOSED from 12:45pm-3pm) youth only (ages 12 to 24)
• Mary’s Place Day Center (1830 Ninth Ave), Monday – Friday from 7:00am – 3:30pm; single women
• Urban Rest Stops
  • Ballard (2014-B NW 57th St), Monday – Friday, 6:30am – 2:30pm
  • Downtown (1924 Ninth Avenue), Monday – Friday from 5:30pm – 9:30pm and Saturday – Sunday from 8:00am – 3:00pm
• Chief Seattle Club Day Center (410 2nd Ave. Ext S.), Monday – Friday, 7:00am – 2:00pm
• Aurora Commons (8914 Aurora Ave N.), Monday – Thursday, 10:00am – 1:00pm **
• Bread of Life Mission (97 South Main St.), Monday – Friday, 9:30am – 3:00pm
• Immanuel Lutheran: (1215 Thomas St.), Monday – Friday, 8:00am – 2:00pm **
• Street Youth Ministries (4540 15th Ave NE, Monday – Tuesday, 10:00am – 3:00pm, Wednesday – Friday, 10:30am – 2:30pm
• New Horizons Ministries (2709 3rd Ave), Monday – Thursday, 3:00pm – 9:00pm Youth/Young-Adult Only (13-25)

East King County 

Day Centers:

• Congregations for the Homeless – Day Center (Male-identifying) Lincoln Center 515B 116th Ave NE Suite 174 Bellevue, WA 98004, 5AM – 10PM
• Catholic Community Services – New Bethlehem Day Center (Families with Children) 11920 NE 80th St Suite 100, Kirkland, WA 98033, 9AM – 4PM
• The Sophia Way – Sophia’s Place Day Center (Women-identifying) 3032 Bellevue Way NE Bellevue, WA 98004, 8AM – 3PM 
• Friends of Youth (16101 NE 87th ST Suite 110, Redmond), for youth and young adults, 206-236-5437

Cooling Sites

Bellevue: 

• South Bellevue Community Center (14509 SE Newport Way, Bellevue, WA 98006) 6AM-8PM (M-F) 8AM-5PM (Sat)
• Crossroads Community Center (16000 NE 10th St, Bellevue, WA 98008) 8:30AM-5PM (M-F) 
• North Bellevue Community Center (4063 148th Ave NE, Bellevue, WA 98007) 9AM-8:30PM (M-Th) 9AM-5:30PM (F)

Redmond:

• Redmond Community Center at Marymoor Village (6505 176th Ave NE, Redmond, WA 98052) 8AM – 8PM (M-F),  9AM-5PM (Sat.), Closed (Sun.)

Issaquah: 

• Issaquah Senior Center 75 NE Creek Way, Issaquah WA 8:30AM – 4PM (W/Th) 8:30AM- 2PM (F)

Kirkland: 

• North Kirkland Community Center ( 12421 103rd Ave NE, Kirkland, WA 98034) 8AM-5PM (M-F) 
• Peter Kirk Community Center (352 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland, WA 98033) 8AM-5PM (M-F) 

Sammamish: 

• Sammamish City Hall (801 228th Ave SE, Sammamish, 98075) 8:30AM-5PM (M-F)
• Sammamish YMCA (831 228th Ave SE, Sammamish, 98075) 5AM-9PM (M, T, Th, F) 5AM-9PM (Wed.) 7AM-7PM (Sat), 8AM-6PM (Sun)
• Sammamish Library (825 228th Ave SE, Sammamish, 98075) 1PM-8PM (W) 10AM-5PM (Th-F)

Emergency Shelters with Drop-in: 

• Bellevue: Congregations for the Homeless (515B 116th Ave NE, Bellevue), for adult men, 425-496-4885, closest bus route is the 271
• Kirkland: The Sophia Way, two locations, Helen’s Place (8045 120th Ave NE, Suite 200, Kirkland) and Sophia’s Place (3030 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue), women or women with children only, 425-896-7385, closest bus routes are the 239 and 250
• Kirkland: New Bethlehem Place (8045 120th Ave NE, Suite 100, Kirkland), for families with children, 425-679-0354 

South King County 

Day Centers:

• Catholic Community Services
  • Federal Way Day Center (33505 13th Place S. #D) 9:00am – 4:00pm 
  • Kent Community Engagement Center (1225 W Smith St) 9:00am – 4:00pm, 
• Auburn Food Bank, Ray of Hope (2806 Auburn Way North) 8:00AM to 8:00 PM

Cooling Sites: 

Burien:

• Burien Community Center (14700 6th Ave SW); Monday – Thursday, 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. (Building closed daily 2 – 3 p.m.)

Seatac: 

• SeaTac Community Center (13735 24th Ave So SeaTac, WA 98168), Monday-Thursday, 8:30 AM-9:00 PM; Friday, 8:30 AM-5:00 PM; Saturday, 8:30 AM-1:00 PM

Federal Way:

• Federal Way Community Center (876 S. 333RD STREET) Mon-Fri: 5:00am – 9:00pm; Sat: 7:00am – 6:00pm; Sun: 9:00am – 5:00pm

Renton:

• Renton Community Center (1715 SE Maple Valley Hwy), Monday-Thursday 8AM-7PM; Friday 8AM-5PM; Saturday 9AM-1PM

Kent:

• Kent YMCA (East Hill) (10828 SE 248th St)Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday (Nonmembers will be restricted to lobby only) 6:00am to 8:00pm

Emergency Shelters with Drop-in: 

• Auburn: Arcadia Young Adult Shelter (932 Auburn Way S., Auburn), for youth and young adults, extended hours for daytime drop-in, overnight shelter open at 9:00pm, 253-740-7189

Snoqualmie Valley

Snoqualmie 

• Snoqualmie Library
  7824 Center Blvd SE in Snoqualmie, 425-888-1223
  Hours: (Th) 10AM-5PM (T/W) 1PM-8PM

• Snoqualmie Valley YMCA
  35018 SE Ridge St on Snoqualmie Ridge, 425-256-3115
  (W-F) 6AM-7PM
  Anyone wishing to go past the lobby area must be 16+ and have photo ID. Local youth using the facility alone during daily teen hours must be 14.

Note: We will continue to provide updates as the agency secures more locations. 

More places to beat the heat:

Local malls 

• The Outlet Collection in Auburn
• Westfield Southcenter Mall in Tukwila
• Northgate Station in Seattle, 

Libraries

• King County Library System
• Seattle Public Libraries System
• Most libraries will be open and can be used as cooling spaces. Check for locations and times.

Movie theaters