Renton hires homelessness outreach expert from Auburn

Published 5:30 am Friday, March 20, 2026

The city of Renton has hired Auburn’s director of human services to spearhead the city’s new approach on the homelessness problem.

Renton has hired Kent Hay, leader of Auburn’s revamped homelessness outreach, as the director of human services in Renton, according to an announcement by Renton Mayor Armondo Pavone in his February “Mayor in a Minute” video.

“I’ve watched the city of Auburn’s different approach to supporting the chronically unhoused for several years now,” Pavone said. “Their success is built on an outreach model built on trust and relationships by those with lived experience. Kent Hay has been the architect of Auburn’s model, showing a higher rate of success transitioning individuals into permanent housing than other King County cities.”

In 2023, Auburn successfully housed 95 people who were experiencing homelessness, and a city-designed clean and sober housing program successfully helped 30 individuals complete 30 days of inpatient treatment. In 2024, they made contact with 1,366 people, sheltered 472 people and housed 205 people.

“This approach combines compassion with accountability and offers a pathway out of homelessness,” Pavone said. “We can no longer make people comfortable in their misery. It’s time to try something new.”

The Auburn model is stricter on drug use and expects the participants to carry their weight at the facility, such as cleaning up during break times.

“We want this as a place for people to come and get services and then let us help you get you out of here. This is not your forever home,” Hay said. “If you start turning down housing options that are presented to you, then you don’t need to be here because we need to make space for other people who want housing.”

The program is funded by the city of Auburn, while other cities outsource other organizations to deal with homelessness. Hay said these nonprofit nonprofit service providers might not always have the city’s best interests in mind because they have to meet requirements for funding first.

“I think as a city approach, we are responsible to the whole city,” Hay said. “The whole city matters and we don’t care about the numbers. Our job is making sure people are getting assistance, getting into housing and getting out of here.”

The program in Auburn began with the purchase of a building at 2806 Auburn Way N. to be used as a food bank, resource center, community court, a day center and an overnight shelter for those wanting to get off the streets. Pavone previously stated Renton has bought property in the city for their own efforts.

Hay built a similar program in Redmond in 2016 before heading to Auburn in 2020. He was inspired to create the system because he wasn’t seeing results in cities’ homelessness approach while working different criminal justice and human service jobs during the past 25 years.

“I am results-driven,” Hay said. “We pay a lot to service providers and we don’t see a lot of outcomes. Yes, there’s a lot of numbers doled out about all the things and most of that is just giving people things, but it’s not really helping people get out of this situation and stay out of the situation.”

In Auburn, passing a camping ordinance in 2021 was Hay’s first hurdle. He wanted people to understand the city was not planning to arrest their way out of homelessness, but there needs to be a consequence for those resistant to help. Outreach was focused on telling people their options and offering them shelter and resources at the facilities instead of taking blankets and food to encampments.

“Homelessness (outreach) doesn’t just mean saying ‘yes’ all the time and giving all the time,” Hay said. “Really if you are trying to treat people with compassion, and you really care about people, ‘no’ is a part of compassion. There has to be a place where we say ‘no, that’s unacceptable.’”