encampment

The youth soccer field at North Green River Park is surrounded by majestic trees and breathtaking scenery. And on weekends, it’s usually packed with kids and families who depend on this field. Many come from underserved minority communities in Kent, Auburn, and other parts of King County.  Early Wednesday morning, Dean Aldridge of Valor Soccer says someone drove onto the field and caused more than $100,000 in damage doing donuts. “These fields serve our most economically challenged kids,” Aldridge tells me. Club officials say all weekend tournaments are now canceled and their season is effectively over. “To see it like this, it hurts my heart,” says Ray Johnson, Valor Director of Development. This is just the latest troubling incident along this stretch Read More ›

Where are they now? Last month, Governor Jay Inslee (@GovInslee) took a victory lap after spending millions of dollars to close down the Myers Way encampment(with the swimming pool) and house many of the homeless for the next year. But some of them are now spending time at a new West Seattle encampment nearby doing drugs and simply hanging out. For the past few weeks, I followed and interviewed these men and women. It was a rare glimpse into what happens after someone exits an encampment. Many of them are thankful for the apartments. But they also say the building is like a “sterile warehouse” with “no community” and “too many rules.” They also say cameras and security are constantly Read More ›

“That’s the equivalent of spending… $1,137,256 per person to exit homelessness.” By Ari Hoffman and Jonathan Choe Despite spending over $1.1 million for each of the only 126 people who transitioned out of homelessness, Washington Democrat Governor Jay Inslee claimed that his initiative for removing encampments from state land and getting people into housing requires more money in order to continue. Inslee has failed to adequately address the state’s homeless crisis, which has grown exponentially during his more than a decade in office. Friday, during a photo op at a tiny home village in Olympia, Inslee touted his Rights of Way Safety Initiative (ROW), a program that since last summer has attempted to remove encampments from state land, including from the sides of freeways, Read More ›

Crunching the Numbers Monday afternoon, Governor Jay Inslee (@GovInslee) took a victory lap, taking credit for clearing the Myers Way encampment in West Seattle. However, some of the elderly neighbors at the Arrowhead Apts across the street say it’s too little too late after months of crime, open air drug use, and other issues spilling into the neighborhood. With that said, I was really there to confront Inslee about the rising cost of his Rights of Way Initiative launched in 2022. By the Gov’s own estimates, they have spent around $135 million to close 30 encampments and place 870 people into temporary housing. Without getting too wonky, one of the most important categories on the WA State Dept of Commerce’s Read More ›

Now What? Sweeps continue Monday morning in #Seattle. It’s the only way to keep these dangerous encampments from becoming a liability for neighborhoods like Fremont. Once again, We Heart Seattle (@weheartseattle) and Andrea Suarez (@weheartfounder) tackling some of the most difficult cases. But when severe mental illness and drug addiction are in play, even the most well intentioned outreach becomes an exercise in futility. Listen to “Angel’s” story. This is also why “housing first” will not work for people like her. She’s been given pretty much all the options from tiny houses to apartments. She’s burned all bridges. Every lawmaker about to craft homelessness policy must listen to this. What will be done about the most extreme cases? This has Read More ›