New nonprofit raises +$10K to help stop Kennewick sex offender home
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Group raised $10,200+ to help pay attorneys and related efforts.
- Officials pursue temporary blocks, zoning changes and state intervention.
- Pasco paused applications; West Richland discussed zoning, affecting larger facilities.
A Tri-Cities group has raised more than $10,000 toward paying for attorneys to help stop the placement of a transitional sex offender home in Kennewick.
They’ve also created a nonprofit and have received support from Kennewick leaders.
Kennewick Mayor Pro Tem Chuck Torelli has donated $500 to their cause, according to the donations listed on the GoFundMe campaign. Kennewick School Board President Gabe Galbraith also made a small donation.
So far, the campaign has raised $10,200. They also are accepting donations via Venmo.
A new sign went up this week at the intersection of Edison Street and West 10th Avenue with QR Codes to scan to donate.
There has been significant community outrage after plans for a Less Restrictive Alternative house for sexually violent predators were made public in January.
The home off Edison Street is intended to serve as a next step for sex offenders released from civil commitment on McNeil Island. It is about half a mile from Edison Elementary School.
Under the state’s civil commitment law the state has placed ongoing security and treatment conditions on offenders who have finished their prison sentences, but are still considered likely to re-offend. Residents of the home would not be able to leave without an escort and GPS monitoring.
The state has been criticized for its handling of treatment at McNeil Island. A 2025 Seattle Times report found that sex offenders at the civil commitment center were only receiving two hours of group therapy per week.
The community pressure to stop the facility from opening has led to attempts to change laws surrounding the placement of the facilities, to temporarily block new applications and even the Kennewick City Council calling on Gov. Bob Ferguson to intervene and halt the plans.
The cities cannot outright ban the homes, but Tri-Cities leaders are exploring other ways to exert more local control and potentially slow down or stop the process.
Campaign organizers wrote that placing the home in a residential area raises serious concerns about the safety and well-being of the community.
“We believe every resident deserves to feel safe in their home,” organizers wrote on the GoFundMe page.
“We are a group of neighbors organizing peaceful and lawful efforts to review the plan. We intend to pursue appropriate legal options, and advocate for the safety of our families and neighbors. This work will require time, expertise, and resources — particularly for legal counsel, court filings, and outreach to the community.”
Campaign organizers could not be reached immediately this week about their plans.
Attempts to stop sex offender homes
Tri-Cities area state lawmakers tried filing eight bills designed to slow or stop the progress of the Kennewick facility. Only one received a hearing, but never made it to a full vote. Lawmakers have vowed to try and work some changes into other bills up for consideration.
Pasco City Council put a temporary block in place for applications for all “essential public facilities” including Less Restrictive Alternative Housing and Secure Community Transition Facilities.
Pasco City Manager Harold Stewart told the council that the six-month pause will buy city staff time to gather public feedback and come up with a long-term plan. He noted that the state law does not allow them to outright bar the homes.
The city has set up a webpage where public meetings will be announced, pasco-wa.gov/lrahousing.
The West Richland planning commission also recently discussed the possibility of zoning changes to restrict Secure Community Transition Facilities to light industrial zones.
Though the language in the proposed resolution also included the smaller community-run facilities, which the Kennewick house falls under and referred to that as the reason for the resolution, city staff has said their plan only applies to the larger, state-run facilities that house 15 to 20 offenders.
Also this week, Kennewick City Council signed off on a joint resolution with Kennewick School District calling on Gov. Ferguson to halt the current project and allow more local oversight of future projects.
The Kennewick School Board still needs to vote on the resolution at its regular meeting next week.
This story was originally published February 19, 2026 at 12:32 PM.
