‘We’re ready to do more’ HomesNOW! chairman says of future after alleged embezzlement
A week after its former president and co-founder was arrested for allegedly embezzling more than $75,000 from the nonprofit, HomesNOW! says it’s working on putting new policies in place and is excited about the future.
Current HomesNOW! Board of Directors Chairman Doug Gustafson said the new policies are a work in progress, but that the nonprofit is moving toward implementing sexual harassment and financial control policies to prevent future misconduct.
“Operations continue to run smoothly, and we’re ready to do more, and we’re excited about where the future’s going for HomesNOW!,” Gustafson told The Bellingham Herald.
Former HomesNOW! president and co-founder James Lee Peterson, 62, of Bellingham, was arrested Nov. 1 on suspicion of first-degree theft for allegedly embezzling more than $75,000 from the nonprofit. Peterson was released Nov. 4 from Whatcom County Jail after a friend paid his $10,000 bail in cash, according to Whatcom County Superior Court and jail records.
Peterson was formally charged with first-degree theft Nov. 7, according to court records. His charge includes two aggravating circumstances — that Peterson’s alleged offense was a major economic offense or series of offenses and that Peterson used his position of trust, confidence or fiduciary responsibility to commit the crime, court records show.
An aggravating circumstance allows the court to sentence Peterson above the standard range if convicted of his alleged crime, Whatcom County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jonathan Richardson said. Because Peterson has no known prior felony criminal history, his standard range is 0 to 90 days, Richardson said.
New policies and people
Gustafson said he came to police with allegations of financial misconduct after noticing discrepancies with the nonprofit’s funds about a month ago. Unless more information is brought forward that furthers the investigation, Peterson is the only person associated with HomesNOW! who will be arrested, Bellingham Police Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Herald.
HomesNOW! is a nonprofit organization that operates a tiny home encampment for the homeless, called Unity Village, in the city-owned parking lot at 210 McKenzie Ave., near the Post Point Water Treatment Plant. The tiny home encampment, which can house up to 28 people, is permitted to operate at its current location through April 2020.
Gustafson said since the police investigation a month ago, three board members have been removed. The board currently has six members, and they are considering adding a seventh, Gustafson said.
More board members may be added in the future depending on the skill sets needed, but Gustafson said the nonprofit plans to get stabilized with seven.
Gustafson said the nonprofit is moving toward a decentralized system. Rather than having everything go through one or two people, it will be more of a collaborative team effort, Gustafson said. He said the residents are now involved in helping form some of the rules at the tiny home village.
“Instead of telling them what to do, we’re getting them to take part in forming the rules and standards. It works, they feel like they have a stake in it. It’s really great,” Gustafson said.
HomesNOW! also is working with a professional accountant who is going through the organization’s finances and receipts, Gustafson said.
Gustafson said the nonprofit is working on creating a code of conduct handbook for board members and volunteers that outlines the organization’s policies, including financial and sexual harassment policies. He said once that has been completed, it will be released to the public.
Gustafson said that a case manager from Sunrise Services, a social services agency, has been added to the organization as an on-site case manager to help residents and to be a liaison. Gustafson said they currently have a nurse who has been helping, but the new case worker will help add options for residents.
“It’s another tool in our tool chest. Both are helping, just in different ways,” Gustafson said.
A future location
Bellingham’s planning department announced last week that it was allowing HomesNOW! to move forward with admitting new residents into Unity Village. The planning department had previously barred the organization from allowing new residents into the tiny home village until it updated its policies and procedures to prevent future misconduct, repopulated its board and the criminal investigation had ended.
Gustafson said earlier this week, there were five vacant tiny homes at Unity Village. As of Friday, Nov. 8, three of those homes had been filled. But there are now four vacant tiny homes left to fill because one resident got into permanent housing and another was evicted, Gustafson said, though he said he expects the remaining vacancies to be filled within the next several weeks.
Gustafson said HomesNOW!’s main issue is finding a new location for the tiny home village after April 2020. He said they’re still hoping for a possible extension at the current site, but that they’re also lobbying private individuals to potentially lease land and looking at other options. The city has previously said it will not provide another site.
“Everything is going smoothly here, and we’re looking to open up more villages as soon as we can, but first we need to find a second site for this village,” Gustafson said. “Our main issue is land, but everything else is going pretty smoothly.”
Gustafson said he’s hoping that since HomesNOW! has opened Unity Village and operated it successfully, it will make finding additional sites easier.
Despite the recent arrest, Gustafson said the nonprofit isn’t struggling when it comes to donors. He said most of the donors said that while Peterson’s arrest was shocking, they were glad to see some of the nonprofit’s problems being fixed.
“Why we want this to continue, and not shut down, is it does help 22 people,” he added. “It would be a shame if it had to shut down.”
Residents at Unity Village echoed Gustafson’s sentiments, saying that while the allegations of embezzlement hurt them all deeply, the tiny home model works for pulling people out of homelessness.
HomesNOW! is entitled to apply for another site for a tiny home village, but the city will not be supplying another site, according to Rick Sepler, Planning and Community Development Director for Bellingham. Sepler said each application is reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
“There’s a housing crisis and groups like HomesNOW! want to help alleviate homelessness. Our slogan is ending homelessness one person at a time. Each person has individual needs and reasons for becoming homeless, it’s a multi-pronged problem,” Gustafson said. “I want the community to know that there’s people waiting to solve these problems.”
