SEATTLE — Gov. Jay Inslee says the state needs to rapidly pick up the pace when it comes to addressing homeless encampments on state roadways and property.
Inslee spent time on Tuesday near First Avenue and Michigan Street SW, where an encampment is in the process of being cleaned up. It is the fifth site in King County to be cleaned under the state’s Right of Way Safety Initiative that started last year.
According to the King County Regional Housing Authority, the initiative has helped bring 192 previously unsheltered people indoors.
At the First Avenue encampment, the cleanup effort began on Monday. More than 60 vehicles were parked there, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. It’s an area where there have been reports of violence and fires, too.
Nichole Alexander with CoLead, a group that did weeks of intensive outreach at the site, said there were about 35 people living at the site.
Out of the 35 people who were at the encampment, 30 were placed in shelters, according to Alexander.
"This work is not free. Building tiny home villages is not free. Building permanent apartments is not free,” said Inslee. "This is an issue that you can't nickel and dime. Baby steps won't cut it. The Legislature cannot just do half measures this year. We need to step up to the plate and that means billions of dollars."
Inslee says while the First Avenue site is closer to being cleaned, on state property, there are roughly 2,000 more encampment cleanups to go.