SEATTLE — Seattle city crews cleared a large homeless encampment in the Ballard neighborhood Thursday morning.
The move comes after a month-long extension by Mayor Katie Wilson intended to provide more resources and alternative housing for those living there.
The encampment, located off 41St Ave. NW on the edge of the Burke-Gilman Trail was cleared two days after the city posted notices.
In total, six people received housing, while many others relocated their tents just two blocks away, continuing a cycle of displacement in the area.
Jordan has been unhoused for almost 20 years and lived in the large encampment for two months.
It is estimated that at least 30 people were staying at the site before the sweep.
“It’s just a musical chairs thing, you know, it’s one person’s problem, now it’s another person’s problem,” Jordan said. “Until these people complain enough, then they’ll push this again, and there’ll be someone else’s problem.”
Ballard resident Jon Birdseye observed the city’s operation and noted a significant presence of law enforcement and cleaning crews.
“They had caution tape all around it,” Birdseye said. “There were two police cruisers and the largest amount of Parks Department crew I’ve ever seen at a campsite.”
Birdseye said that people experiencing homelessness in the area often move between the same few locations. “They’ll go from behind the Fred Meyer,” Birdseye said. “They will then end up under the Ballard Bridge, and then they’ll end up on 17th.”
He believes the encampments have increased crime in the neighborhood.
He also says the encampments can become unsanitary and unsafe.
Jordan says he agrees, “There’s no running water, there’s no power, no garbage. That’s a safety warning, I would think.”
Mayor Wilson addressed the complexities of the crisis: “It’s not just putting tiny houses in place, you actually need the support on site, behavioral health treatment…and that is ongoing expenses.”
Birdseye also opposed a proposed bill in the state Legislature that would prohibit cities from sweeping homeless encampments. “I don’t agree with that because the sweeps at the very least do a good job of cleaning up an unsanitary condition,” Birdseye said.
Julianne Simpson, who works near the swept encampment, suggested that the city should provide more immediate services if permanent housing is unavailable.
“We’ve built tiny house villages, and this area could really use one,” Simpson said. At a minimum, she suggested the city provide porta-potties, trash service and pump-outs for people living in RVs.”
KIRO 7 News asked the Mayor’s Office what they had to say about the encampment moving only blocks away, and received a note from a blog post that Mayor Wilson had written on Feb. 10 saying:
“We can’t keep moving people place to place and calling that progress.” The statement also the city has been falling “dramatically short of the mark” regarding emergency housing and shelter.