An area Washington State Department of Social and Health Services center providing access to programs including food, cash, and medical benefits that suffered a 2024 closure from damage in a bizarre shooting incident was the site of a hazardous material response Friday afternoon.

Officials say a suspicious letter delivered to the state’s Capitol Hill Community Services Office in the 1700 block of E Cherry was determined to be harmless. Earlier that afternoon, an employee called 911 to report the suspicious envelope and possible toxic material.

Seattle Fire responded and evacuated the building before determining it was safe to reoccupy.

There were no reported injuries.

In 2024, CHS reported as the office was set to reopen after a bizarre shooting incident at the E Cherry facility closed the location for weeks. Seattle Police reported officers were called to 17th and Cherry building early that morning after multiple 911 callers reported a “barrage of gunfire in the area.” Officers arrived as more gunfire could be heard and found the front door of the DSHS’s Capitol Hill Community Services Office smashed and multiple shell casings scattered on the ground.

A suspect was later taken into custody by a SWAT unit after being identified on security video. A Department of Social and Health Services spokesperson declined to comment on the incident at the time, saying the police report on the shooting “speaks for itself.”

The 2024 incident came as the state announced it was backing off plans to shutter the facility over costs and overlap with other nearby office locations.

We’re checking in with DSHS on this latest incident.

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