Seattle moving toward creating permanent homeless camp

mamaseattle007 said on November 4, 2010 at 4:15 PM

They want a stable home work and get it. Too bad for them who are complaining with having hand outs. This is way they are homeless. Its always someone else fault.

mamaseattle007 said on November 4, 2010 at 4:12 PM

What is going on with you guys. I have had been on hard times, but I didn't set up tent and expect everyone to pay my way. I have had up to 4 jobs at one time. To say these guys are just there because of the economy is crazy they have been around much longer then that. There are other options. I wish some one would give me a piece of land for free. I will fight for my neighbors who live around me to keep them away from us. What they don't say about the land on Stone is there is a 2 Mobile home parks very close to that site, one filled with elderly who are easily taken advantage of, and the other is a family park filled with little kids. People of tent city are not part of main stream society and would you like to have them living right next to where your kids live and play? You can't say these guys are totally safe and have no problems. Get a job any job and get off the street I am tired of helping people who will not help them selves.

hebeshebewebe said on November 1, 2010 at 2:48 PM

Let me get this straight. THEIR OWN families won't help them/ take them in, but you dogooders think YOU should provide a place for these bums..................

ibukole said on October 28, 2010 at 1:21 PM

October 28, 2010 An Open Letter to Our MAYBE (maybe not) Future Neighbors: Here's a Greeting and Invitation from the men, women, children and pets of Nickelsville! We cordially invite you to a Halloween Open House this Sunday, October 31st. Our Halloween Theme this year is 'Face Your Fears!.' This event will be held from 2:00 to 6:00 PM and will feature fun and entertainment for the whole family. There will be tours, treats, and opportunities to get to know each other one on one! So come on out and celebrate with us! We are located on the NE corner of NE 45th Street and 15th Avenue NE in the parking lot of University Congregational United Church of Christ in the University District. BE THERE OR BE SCARED!

laustr1123 said on October 27, 2010 at 9:01 PM

We also have two wonderful non-profits in the Seattle community. Plymouth Housing Group and Housing Resources Group. Being as these are 501c(3) organizations, they do rely on donations from "us" in the community. Without proper funding...these two organizations cannot fully function for this economic downfall and influx of families needing food and shelter. A very small percentage of the others, who CHOOSE to live on the streets, will continue to do so. If we want to live without tent cities, then get out there and do something about it. If you have a job to offer...go talk to these people. You may find exactly who you are looking for. These individuals are, yes...currently destitute but again...not asking for this situation...just asking for a place to bed down, keep family close and try to move forward. What is the hurt in that?

smithrock said on October 27, 2010 at 6:27 PM

Share organization wanted to create a permanent homeless camp over a year ago. Remember Nickelsville? Now the City needs to find a non-profit organization to run the proposed camp. What about Scott Morrow and Peggy Hotes at Share which already receive City funding for two mobile tent cities and a dozen indoor shelters which get heavy support from churches? Please do not give the job to the Union Gospel Mission.

silverton said on October 27, 2010 at 5:54 PM

Their are some really sick, demented people who post on this site. People that hate the homeless and any minority they can think of. Kinda funny when you think about the average hateful person in this world, because they seem to have no idea how poor and wretched their relatives were way back when. Glad to see that the homeless will get a camp and maybe 2 or 3 in the future.

jackwong said on October 27, 2010 at 4:41 PM

That's great... put it behind the Home Depot, so they could shoplift and sell their sh*t back to HD for gift cards, in turn sell it on the street for half price.

walkonwater said on October 27, 2010 at 4:15 PM

It is important to be close to a 24-Hour Fitness, bus stop, grocery store, laundromat, hospital, etc. I was happy when I heard the evening news. I think that the city needs to look into a warehouse for the tent city. I also am concerned about its residences safety. This is excellent news!

dingding said on October 27, 2010 at 2:24 PM

The Snoqualmie/Airport way location is right by Georgetown playfield and a 24 hour Shell gas station, soon selling hard alcohol.Let's get real here.Quit condoning failure by allowing this b.s. If you want to live in your tent, go camping in the woods. Residents are trying to clean the neighborhood up, Stop denying that these people are panhandlers. Did we already forget about the pitbull attack right down the road on two people, initiated by a homeless couple? Gimme a break! Maybe the mayor's kids want to go camping here in town,too. Snoqualmie is two blocks from the Georgetown.

comcaststinks790 said on October 27, 2010 at 2:10 PM

BRUNS8407 I believe you have a very good idea. I would ask other individuals with ideas on who would be inhabiting the proposed tent city to access archives (right here on NWCN) and check out the video interviews as well as reported script, to better enlighten yourselves with that actual people and their families who are "forced" to live in a tent, or a car. I have volunteered my time at homeless shelters and the difference between the individuals referenced (derelicts, drug addicts, etc.) are not the people you are going to find living in these cities. They have chosen their life path and are mostly content with their lives in and out of shelters...living on the streets. For many, it is a life choice they made. Individuals...not families. The individuals living in tents...are cause and effect of a weakening economic system. Losing their jobs due to layoff, losing their homes...these individuals still have children to take care of. They didn't ask for any of this. Thank you.

chevelle70ss said on October 27, 2010 at 2:09 PM

hologram5, I dont think you have any idea what your talking about.

republicrat said on October 27, 2010 at 1:16 PM

We obviously have very different opinions about the characteristics of the people who make up the tent cities. At a minimum, if the homeless expect broad public support, the city council and local TV stations need to do a better job of letting us know exactly who is requesting our help, what circumstances led to them being homeless, what are they doing to help themselves, how long will this tent city last, what have their own families done to help them and why should the tax paying public bail them out? Other than alcoholics and drug addicts, what I've seen on TV and face-to-face downtown are lazy, single men who could mostly be in the Army if they wanted. You need to show me all those working families who are 'no fault' homeless.

bruns8407 said on October 27, 2010 at 12:42 PM

Just read some of the comments. Shame on most of you. I have been blessed to have a home and family. I did not see the Sandpont Naval Station on the list. The buildings for most of the base are empty. The city owns it. There is a bus line on Sandpoint Way. It would be a lot better than a tent. At one time the city said it did not (the buidings) meet standards for living. What are the standards for a tent and porta potties. If you are a criminal with a warrent out, to bad you can't live here. Illegals same thing, not allowed. Come on people, let's get these people in buildings and out of tents.

hologram5 said on October 27, 2010 at 11:38 AM

Most of you who state these people are addicts or alcoholics or just lazy are idiots who have never been there to see first hand. These are decent hard working people that fell on hard times due to the recession and lost their jobs. Remember, YOU are one downsize away from being their member. Besides, some of these are mentally ill, if I remember correctly our state legislature is cutting another I think 85 beds from western state, meaning there will be MORE out there so give it a rest or go see for yourself. Some of these people are families with children, shame on you!

dakotanative said on October 27, 2010 at 10:33 AM

I am all for helping those that help themselves. If you drink away all of your housing money, no help. If you have 3 kids that heve never met their daddies because Maury has called yet, no help. If you lost your job, but are not willing to work for "less than you are worth", no help. If you can't stay with friends or family, there is probably a reason they gave you the boot. No help for you. If you are a true victim, you will get help.

underserf said on October 27, 2010 at 10:03 AM

xlnt way to concentrate those who will NEVER find housing (who rents to sex offenders?) and make it simple for cops to pick up warrant suspects. Great for bounty hunters too. Some homeless will NEVER concentrate where they're told to - unless you seriously believe illegal aliens will locate to State-sponsored "shelters"

vancewebster said on October 27, 2010 at 9:33 AM

These are certainly hard times. Many of us are one pay check away from joining the homeless. Those families who have lost their homes, or those of us who are suffering from mental illness is the best we can offer them is a place to pitch their tent? Here is this blog we don't have all the information to decide how to address this. Perhaps we should consider electing people who will find an answer? A place to pitch a tent seems like a pretty sad attempt?

awol50 said on October 27, 2010 at 9:15 AM

My choice for where this permanent shelter should be located is right next to where the mayor lives. Then he can see firsthand what this does for any neighborhood. And instead of just having to deal with a few angry emails or letters which will mostly be ignored or answered by the mayor's handlers, the mayor can meet face to face with his neighbors and have a nice, friendly exchange. Second choice is the idea of a bus ticket and $20, but not to Portland, that is too close, just as the sea lions came back to seattle, so would these individuals. Needs to be alot further away...east of the mississippi river at least..way east. I am thinking more.. like the other washington.

couchbull said on October 27, 2010 at 8:26 AM

For all the money that's going to go into panels and consultants and planning, I think people who are homeless need a better option than a tent during the winter. I would like some of that energy and planning to go into why there are so many homeless people in our city to begin with - ways to deal with chronic addition and lack of medical care for the mentally ill for instance so that a portion of the chronically homeless get off the street and not into a legal squatting situation. Sticking them all in a "camp" somewhere sounds lazy and like a really bad idea. Oh great, now over time we'll have the camp-ghettos like in Cape Town and India. That doesn't seem helpful at all - but it does seem like an easy way for politicians to pretend like they care and are say they are doing something.

telman said on October 27, 2010 at 8:16 AM

OK so we get these homeless camps. What next? Do we force the homeless to live in them? Do we make laws that they must hang there hat there? I know some homeless people who are afraid to stay at the missions because of some of the people who stay there. What about fires? What about the unsanitary conditions? What about the public money used to protect these people from the predators that are sure to come? These are just a few concerns I have.

collegeguy said on October 27, 2010 at 8:13 AM

Amen to that Stryker. All these people who think that the homeless are parasites need to be made homeless so they can understand just what they go through.

gritz said on October 27, 2010 at 7:49 AM

It is very naive to think that those people will move to the locations that are proposed. There is a reason the homeless congregate where they do. They are where the easy money is, areas of high pedestrian traffic and public areas where they can legally loiter. If you move them to a location that is too far to walk to and from, then they will not go. Secondly, making limitations on drug and alcohol use in the encampment only means that those people will be right where they are now. This proposal will not solve any problem, the only thing it will do is create an atmosphere where the eyesore is not in public view. Just how much is that worth?

brentallica said on October 27, 2010 at 7:14 AM

Give em $20/ea and a bus ticket to Portland! Problem solved!

dakotanative said on October 27, 2010 at 6:56 AM

All we need is a real good hard winter and mother nature will fix the problem. A couple nights on the street in sub zero weather will make a job look good for these bums. People don't just end up on the streets. Any person can ge off the streets if they want to.

logic14 said on October 27, 2010 at 6:33 AM

EUTHANASIA - 85% of these people are hard core drug addicts or so badly damaged from drugs or a toxic life from birth. They can not be repaired and will never contribute to society. It is sad and unfortunate but true. You could give them a house, a car, a job and it would all get destroyed within a week. No medical or mental help will fix decades of their lives. It is called freewill and choices. Their parents and/or themselves made these choices and this is where they ended up, parasites.

skyhawkcva19 said on October 27, 2010 at 6:18 AM

The homeless for the most part do not want to be governed at all, the city will create a camp maintained with our taxes, set up rules and regs to follow and the homeless will leave and go where they want anyway, waste of time and effort.

stryker said on October 27, 2010 at 6:14 AM

How about all of you turds adopt one of the homeless... Not all of these people are druggies and rapists. True, I dont necessarily want it next door to me but, its unbelievable how stupid some of you are. I hope you loose your job and become homeless yourself!

laranch said on October 27, 2010 at 2:57 AM

I agree with Seaweed, I have had trouble myself, raising 3 children with ho help except the food bank and working very hard. I was close to being homeless many times. It takes a lot to pull yourself out. and "heshebewebe" are not addressing the real problem, narrowmindednes will not help at all. Let's get some ideas to help people. One day one of them be one of your family .You are right there are some people who have gotten themselves homeless my being alcoholics, or drug addicts but the majority of the homeless people did not choose this course for their lives and I believe they deserve the respect and help to get themselves out of it.

hebeshebewebe said on October 27, 2010 at 2:34 AM

Seaweed you are part of the problem. You think that these irresponsible people have a right to live in a house and not a tent just because they live in America. These people are bums who have drank themselves out of whatever family, house, and life they had. Meth heads, pot heads..... losers. I don't think anyone should give them a dime and certainly not the collective city. Why? Instead if there is extra tax money laying around the city, provide more services for those that actually PAY the taxes.

javajoe said on October 27, 2010 at 1:50 AM

What corner in Seattle can I use to set up my tent city latte stand? I'm claiming my right as a business-less business owner in America. The only obstacle in my way is the government that gives my hard earned dollars to bums that due nothing for their own sustenance. This is thievery by our government, not compassion, as they like to portray it as.

seaweed76 said on October 27, 2010 at 12:11 AM

The survey of desired locations for a homeless camp shows the most votes for "nowhere". I hope that these voters mean that there should be no homeless camps and that all homeless people should be able to stay in safe, comfortable housing rather than in tents. This is the United States of America. This is Washington State. This is not a third would place somewhere else in the world. There should be no one who has to be homeless. A permanent, safe location for a tent city must be established for those who need it. I am not that familiar with all the camp addresses shown in the quiz, but from all of them the safest, most desirable location must be chosen. Ask the people in the tents. Find out where they think would be best.

cmeeverett said on October 27, 2010 at 12:08 AM

all big cities, everywhere on this planet have their "homeless district". Seattle tries to sweep this under the carpet, or worse yet, try & create housing for them ---which isn't fair for those on the edge of homelessness. All Seattle needs to do is provide them with water, sewer, & a place for them to make their little community. Have a few cops stroll through every now & then & they have security too. Is that really too much to ask?

seaweed76 said on October 26, 2010 at 11:59 PM

A permanent homeless camp is a responsibility for the city. It is terrible that these folks are homeless and the least we can do is give them a permanent, stable place to stay until they get on their feet. It is unconscionable to make them keep moving around as if they were some kind of undesirables that had to be gotten rid of. These folks are down and out for the most part through no fault of their own. Many were hard-working families with jobs and homes until the recession took everything they had. Mercy, compassion, and help are what they deserve as fellow citizens and fellow human beings. Lets have a homeless camp in a good, safe, location where they can stay and feel as secure as possible as a person can be while living in a tent. Picture yourself and your kids in that situation. Where would you want to be? What would you need? How would you wish people would treat you?

skippythedog said on October 26, 2010 at 11:46 PM

Betcha it's South of downtown. Airport Way does make the most sense...close to buses, industrial area, police precint. There has to be a program to get them off the street and make them self sufficient though. The real problem will still be the drunks. They will not volunteer to participate in programs with rules. It's time to take away their freedom for their own good.....Prisons that leave them with no prison record if they sober up and become self sufficient. We need to be a bit more creative. Maybe everyone who drives a Subaru and shops at REI every weekend should adopt one.

bessy said on October 26, 2010 at 11:27 PM

"permanent homeless camp" isn't that an oxymoron? Maybe our stupid mayor will at least understand the moron part. How about the old adage "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish and he will eat for a lifetime." There are already resources that our tax pays for to help and house the homeless. Handing them a free place to set up a tent and call a home is only teaching them that they can get something for nothing. Maybe someone (DSHS) should talk with each person in the camp and find out the root cause of why they are there and what resource can help them. If they don't want help, then they don't get a handout.

laranch said on October 26, 2010 at 11:20 PM

I don't live in Seattle, I'm in Snohomish County, where homelessness is just as big a problem. Homelessness is nothing new, it's getting a lot worse in this economy. It seems time to make jobs and homes a priority. Homeless families don't want to be homeless, they would rather have jobs and homes. I don't think they are a danger to anyone. Our taxes should be paying for more shelters or assisted living places for our people.

seattlebusinessm said on October 26, 2010 at 11:18 PM

For the love of christ send these people on Greyound to Ohio or something, I am SO over the homeless.

jimmy29s said on October 26, 2010 at 11:17 PM

i think this is a good idea but they will have to have some rules like no drugs unless if its weed and you a medical card for it and no alcohol you get caught with a beer or hard alcohol,wine ect you get the boot they will also have to check names with the cops for sex offender and criminal status like most homeless places do with some simple rules and enforcement it should be fine

whatitdo said on October 26, 2010 at 11:09 PM

Why is this such a big question? Put it in the industrial area. Is it that hard to figure out? The homeless hang out there anyway. No playgrounds, no businesses (other than industrial), no residential. Got it? And make it a little easier to login to your site without being bombarded by requests for spam mail. Thanks!

tango216 said on October 26, 2010 at 11:04 PM

Something needs to be done, to help all these homeless people, especially during the winter. It's inhumane to just let them sleep in doorways or in their cars. I'm all for a permanent tent-city. Even in my own neighborhood.

logic14 said on October 26, 2010 at 10:35 PM

Hopefully at the bottom of Elliot Bay!

republicrat said on October 26, 2010 at 10:34 PM

I think I'm with Gritz. I'm afraid that once the city sanctions a camp it will grow each year and generate more issues (like sanitation) that require tax payers to pony up funds. I would like to know who are the homeless in these camps, why are they homeless and why are they in Seattle? The ones I see downtown and on the Hill appear to be chronic alcoholics, drug addicts or young people who have chosen a vagabond lifestyle. I don't think a city-sanctioned encampment is the solution. I think it will attract more vagrants and create more problems.

shan79marie said on October 26, 2010 at 9:51 PM

What an excellent idea! :)

yessir said on October 26, 2010 at 9:31 PM

homer... I agree... it's not a simple problem. Contrary to what you might believe... I don't harbor a pollyannic view of the situation and I recognize there are some bad apples amongst those folks. I say we reach out that hand up... and those who take it... get it.... those who don't.... do not. I think Yogi said it well... those who live up to the contract get to stay and receive that hand up... those who don't will face eviction from the camp. The point of having a permanent camp is that we can basically disallow them staying elsewhere.in outdoor settings. They have an option... and they have to live up to it.

homerj said on October 26, 2010 at 9:06 PM

yessir...I volunteer/and help out as well....no not trying to be clever....being serious..I have no problem with a hand up but these guys seem to want something for nothing and alot of the peeps there are up to no good....my problem with this is simple....what is the solution to help them get out the situation they are in....if they want help fine....if not then that is the real issue, most don't want help they want a free ride.

freedomthinker said on October 26, 2010 at 9:03 PM

shanty-town, yay!!!!

finster said on October 26, 2010 at 8:54 PM

I guess they won't be homeless anymore now.

yessir said on October 26, 2010 at 8:20 PM

gosh... you really hoped to be more clever than that... didn't you homer

yessir said on October 26, 2010 at 8:17 PM

we actually feed them at my church... and house them there periodically as well... so homer... you are welcome... it's unfortunate you have no time for anyone.

homerj said on October 26, 2010 at 7:39 PM

thanks for volunteering your backyards, yessir and yogi....I am humbled by your generosity....since they aren't bad people you should be ok with them keeping an eye on your house when you take vacations....the bible belt and tree huggers, along with the aclu will bless you.

yessir said on October 26, 2010 at 7:05 PM

yogi... you are far too reasonable for these blogs my friend ; )

yessir said on October 26, 2010 at 7:04 PM

don't get me wrong... I like Ketchup

yessir said on October 26, 2010 at 7:02 PM

the ACLU suit caused that? Um... Try President Reagan's direct policy to reduce "government spending"... THAT'S what caused de-institutionalization in the early 80's. Remember? Same guy who tried to make ketchup a "vegetable" in school lunches, "because it would be less expensive".

telman said on October 26, 2010 at 6:41 PM

Homeless people are the victim of the times no doubt,but in the early 1980's the ACLU sued to have the mentaly ill released from mental health facilities and won. This is what we have now. A lot of those people would be better off housed at Western Wash. State hospital.Thanks again ACLU for helping us keep our freedom.

yogibear said on October 26, 2010 at 5:14 PM

I think letting them have a permanent place to live is a good idea. These are people who don't have a house. They need a place to live. Just because they are homeless does not mean they are bad poeple. I think they should be given a contract that they have to live by just as you would in an apartment. If they chooose not to live up to the contract they could be evicted.

iammeisall said on October 26, 2010 at 4:44 PM

@luna: You are sadly mistaken my friend the homeless problem is not symptomatic of corporate greed. A broken mental health system is definitely a culprit. As is a lack of available substance abuse treatment for the underprivileged. The believe that all homeless are just poor downtrodden souls who just need the chance to succeed is a fallacy And by the way who elected you to speak for the all the residents of Seattle. I for one when walking to a ball game with my daughter being accosted by a drunken aggressive panhandler do not understand the homeless.

gritz said on October 26, 2010 at 4:17 PM

Since Seattle is the home for the first skid row, it just seems appropriate that we maintain this cultural facet of our namesake. (The skids were made for the tree removal into the water of the Sound, people with no to little income would live in shanties along side of the skids) See you learned something today. Good luck with this idea. Who wants to take care of a community that is filled with alcholics, druggies, mentaly ill and run aways? Better yet, who wants to live near such a place? You'll have people in their garbage and it will become the area of choice for crime. Once you create a safe haven for these people; you will not ever get rid of them, and in fact, the nubers will grow once word gets out to the nomadic types, that this is the place to be.Yes I am aware that their are some people who are down on their luck, those who lost their jobs and homes etc. I am not directing this tirade at them, I am talking about the proffesional homeless.

luna1sierra said on October 26, 2010 at 3:29 PM

The people in Seattle have NOT been the problem. Its been the Seattle city council/mayor. We all understand about being homeless, most of us live on the ices edge. The city council and mayor......should have opened public parks years ago for homeless camping. Everyone has acted like the homeless became that way out of...laziness? well guess what everyone was wrong. dead wrong, again. Homelessness is a corporate greed problem.