“Nickelsville” homeless-camp update: Organizers defiant

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(photos by WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli)
A few more tidbits on “Nickelsville,” the homeless encampment set up near the southeast corner of Highland Park Way/West Marginal Way in eastern West Seattle (here’s our first report). So far as we can tell from the people we talked with at the site, they were unaware that they happen to have set their camp up at one of two West Seattle locations on the “final four” list of potential city-jail sites; just a coincidence. We told them we had just seen the mayor interviewed on TV, saying the city would treat this camp like any other – post a 72-hour warning, then clear it. Here’s what spokesperson Anitra Freeman said in response to that:

We pressed for more specifics – so when/if the posting goes up, what exactly will you do? She said the camp is not operating “top down,” so they would call residents together for “a meeting.” We’ll keep an eye on what happens here; as mentioned in our previous report, it will come up at tonight’s Highland Park Action Committee meeting (7 pm, Highland Park Improvement Club at 11th/Holden); in fact, HPAC chair Dorsol Plants just confirmed to WSB that he has visited the site and “has representatives coming to the meeting.” (5:35 PM note, just saw TV pix of city crews already delivering the 72-hour warning to the scene, while organizers promise “a standoff.”) Meantime, while WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli was shooting the photo you see atop this report, he also happened onto a not-so-trumpeted encampment in the nearby woods, where he caught these scenes:

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P.S. If you are interested in reading some backstory, Blogging Georgetown points to this blogpost by an organizer;

28 Replies to ""Nickelsville" homeless-camp update: Organizers defiant"

  • JanS September 22, 2008 (4:59 pm)

    I love the sign, I love the colorful tents…definitely brightens up the dreary landscape. Sooner or later the city is going to have to address the homeless problem. This is perhaps a future prison site? These homeless people are in a kind of prison already…and the economy ain”t gettin’ better any time soon. My heart goes out to them, knowing that many of us aren’t that far away from being homeless ourselves.

  • Alcina September 22, 2008 (5:15 pm)

    Tracy,
    Can you ask the Mayor’s office how he plans to post and clear the encampment if Nickelsville is not actually on City owned property? The current Seattle campsite clearance policies appear to only apply to property owned by the City.
    http://www.seattle.gov/humanservices/news/public_comment.htm
    Thanks

  • Michael September 22, 2008 (5:24 pm)

    Sanitation and habitation laws still apply there – and if it’s private property it could actually be worse if the owner decides to press trespassing charges. Hopefully the garbage and feces won’t pile up too high before they’re left behind.
    .
    I personally would not have nearly as much of a problem with homeless encampments if they actually cleaned up after themselves. Every one I’ve seen has been a sanitation/health nightmare.

  • Baxter September 22, 2008 (5:28 pm)

    Michael, I would challenge you to check out tent city which is currently on Mercer Island. It’s well organized and clean.

  • JenV September 22, 2008 (6:02 pm)

    Michael – someone has donated a porta-potty, according to the interview I heard on KUOW today. This is a statement as well as a homeless encampment – but Mayor Nickels is too short-sighted to see that.

  • tpn September 22, 2008 (6:16 pm)

    People with almost nothing materially are standing up to the mayor. Old Seattle rears its head once again.

    Managing their waste and garbage, no drugs are allowed, and they are not tearing up the native vegetation–the way to get them out of the neighborhood is to force the city to provide for these folks. Lots cheaper then “jail”.

  • Proud Puget Ridge Resident September 22, 2008 (8:38 pm)

    Unbelievable!

    If “making a statement” were these folks’ goal then why didn’t they chose to set up their encampment in one of our city’s affluent neighborhoods—where they would really draw attention to their “cause”?

    The absolute reality is the majority of the people living in this new encampment are the same folks who steadfastly resist using any of the existing downtown shelters. Once they realize that organized community living is not their preference then they’ll start migrating into the nearby greenbelt areas. The end result is exactly what we need to protect against—unorganized homeless people roaming the brush behind all our homes.

    It’s frustrating to see so much potential risk snowballing and be absolutely powerless to stop it.

    I sat in for a few moments at tonight’s Highland Park community meeting. Although I’ve lived here for my entire adult life I didn’t recognize a single sole at this “neighborhood” meeting.

    My message for the our Honorable Mayor and Chief Kerlikowske is simple…stand your ground and enforce the existing laws that protect us from this type of activity!

  • datamuse September 22, 2008 (9:28 pm)

    The absolute reality is the majority of the people living in this new encampment are the same folks who steadfastly resist using any of the existing downtown shelters.

    Hmm.

    I’m given to understand that the problem is that the shelters are full.

    What are you worried about, PPRR–organized homeless people, or disorganized homeless people? This looks like an example of the former.

    I don’t know, I have a hard time being concerned about this group specifically, as opposed to what the need for tent encampments says about our city. I’m not that widely traveled but the only other place I’ve seen so many homeless people is Cambodia.

    And, heck, I’ve lived in Highland Park for 10 years and I probably wouldn’t have recognized most of the people at the meeting either.

  • WSB September 22, 2008 (10:07 pm)

    Patrick is back from HPAC and I’ll be writing it up/processing video over the next hour. FWIW he reports about 20 people there, down from the big crowds when the jail issue first heated up this summer, and they NEED more people to be active, on lots of issues. Same plea I heard at Alki Community Council last week. Both groups have new leadership, by the way, with new folks stepping forward after folks who had worked their butts off for a long time decided they needed to step back just a little. EVERY neighborhood group in WS could use help from ANYONE who wants to show up and represent. This is one of our cause celebres (we’d go to Fauntleroy Community Association if we weren’t already going anyway because we cover their meetings). Anyway, stand by for the HPAC report in a bit – TR

  • changingtimes September 23, 2008 (9:41 am)

    i did not realize that children are allowed to live in homeless camps. (from the picture above)

  • Green Belt September 23, 2008 (9:43 am)

    I am one of those residents on the greenbelt that they will indeed migrate to now that they know about it (if they are forced to leave).
    I hope that they get to stay and that the people in charge keep it orderly and clean.
    Personally, I am not going to worry about 20 homeless people at the bottom of the hill.

    That is until they are begging for money at the intersection instead of working (sarcasim yet hoping that does not happen).

    On another note, it was nice to see the moto cop on boeing hill to get speeders yesterday afternoon. It just drives me nuts how fast folks go up and down that hill. 30 means 50 to most.

    Cheers.

  • Michael September 23, 2008 (12:07 pm)

    “A porta potty” is about 10% of the sanitation needs for such an encampment. I have personally seen the debris piled high in more than a few homeless “squats.”
    .
    Funny that “homeless activists” never consider a referendum on this – instead finding it more TV-news-inspiring to directly challenge the mayor. Certainly there must be a large number of potantial signature gatherers at their disposal…

  • Benski September 23, 2008 (1:46 pm)

    The city will have an eco-nightmare on it’s hands when it’s ready to build the jail. The taxpayers with jobs will get to fork over more cash to pay for these folks and the mess they’ll create. Sweet.

    How about these folks take the energy and imagination used to put this camp together and work on getting jobs?

  • GW September 23, 2008 (2:19 pm)

    Some of the homeless people that so many of you look down to and frown upon could be the first string of victims of the economy & foreclosure onslaught.
    I don’t think that anybody that lives there REALLY WANTS to be there, but they don’t want to stay in the downtown shelters that have had the same clients for decades, and they’d rather stay somewhere that’s organized rather than “jungling out” with the hobo’s & tramps on the west side of Beacon Hill.
    I wish for a speedy recovery for those that got bucked off of this mad bull called the economy, and hope that the bull just settles down. We don’t need more victims of this economy.

  • changingtimes September 23, 2008 (2:58 pm)

    good statement GW! i second that! :)

  • datamuse September 23, 2008 (3:58 pm)

    Benski, if the One Night Count is at all representative, then about 20% of them have jobs already.

  • Baxter September 23, 2008 (4:24 pm)

    agree with GW!

  • sign of the times............ September 23, 2008 (5:59 pm)

    According to the Seattle Times article published online –
    The majority of the site is owned by the Seattle Department of Transportation; a parking lot is owned by the state; and a private marine-parts warehouse is owned by Greg Jacobsen, of Kirkland.

    So the homeless advocates are linking Nickels to the Depression-era Hooversville wooden and tin shantytowns. Seattle had one of those in the 1930s, twice burned by the city, and twice rebuilt by its residents.

    A spokeswoman for the mayor, Karin Zaugg Black, was asked how the mayor took to having a shantytown named after him.

    “What I heard the mayor say today was that people have political demonstrations to make a point about an issue, and I respect that,” she said.

    http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008197009_nickelsville23m.html

  • Kristina September 23, 2008 (8:22 pm)

    “How about these folks take the energy and imagination used to put this camp together and work on getting jobs?”
    .
    It seems to me that it’s pretty hard to get a job if you have no place to sleep.
    .
    My husband was looking for a job this summer, and it was stressful, difficult work. And he did it with the benefit of a home, an internet connection, hot showers, food, family support, etc.
    .
    My husband is a smart, entirely hire-able employee. (He found a job very quickly.) But if he’d been sleeping on the streets, I have no idea how he could have done it.
    .
    Maslow’s heirarchy – food and shelter are fundamentals for survival. Then you can work on the ‘extras’ that so many of us take for granted.

  • 56bricks September 24, 2008 (7:53 am)

    Maybe the city (greg) could use some of that 5 mil spent on toilets that sold for 12 grand (I actually bid 875 for one) to help. I’ve been both homeless and done some jail time so maybe some of ya’ll could help out and take someone in instead of just bitchin’ about ’em. Think about it. It could be you.

  • amused September 24, 2008 (8:23 am)

    Many of you couldn’t be further from the truth. Most people in the homeless camp are there because they want to be there. They are lazy and don’t want to work. They don’t want to go shelters downtown because they don’t want to follow the rules and they can’t drink or smoke dope. Stop tripping over your bleeding hearts and make the homeless work for living, just like most of us. Keep the encampment there and watch the car prowls, burglaries, thefts, and assaults become commonplace.

  • 56bricks September 24, 2008 (8:39 am)

    amused..apparently,you are

  • rockergirl September 24, 2008 (12:22 pm)

    Take them in – I doubt many people would do that 56 bricks – not many willing to take the chance – it is a rough place to be and some choose to live that way – many with mental or abuse issues. Many people do support agencies who are suppose to help people but obviously the need is more than can be handled in this day and age.

  • justme September 24, 2008 (2:14 pm)

    As long as the city keeps doing away with low income housing, we’ll be seeing more of this in the future, I’m sure of that.
    As far as “taking someone in” that’s a totally idiotic & risky thing to expect ANYONE to do. There’s been too many stories in the news about the disasters and deaths that have occured because someone wanted to be a Good Samaritan. Whatever happened to neighborhood churches taking in homeless families and providing them with donated meals. Seems to me a lot of churches don’t even reach out like this anymore.

  • 56bricks September 24, 2008 (7:15 pm)

    I don’t advocate taking just anyone in as there are many many mentally ill and/or criminal types. Many are voluntary participants in their lifestyle but there are people who just need a hand up. Compassion seems to have been a victim in our disposable society. Once again,we could be any one of these people,given circumstances.

  • justme September 25, 2008 (7:16 am)

    In my earlier post I mentioned churches and wondering where they get involved. I found my answer today.
    http://www.itfhomeless.org/default.html

  • sea-sea October 4, 2008 (9:28 am)

    my blood is BOILING!!!!! This super rich country is giving away BILLIONS to other nations while we are debating about providing housing to the homeless!! How can this make sense???How can we talk crAP ABOUT OTHER COUNTRIES WHEN WE CAN’T PROVIDE FOR OUR OWN??? wAKE UP PEOPLE-WE NEED A REVOLUTION TO STOP THIS NONSENSE!!!tHESE PEOPLE DO NOT NEED TO LIVE THERE PERMANENTLY-BUT THEY NEED SOME HELP NOW! WHAT IF IT WAS THE MAYOR?? I’M SO SICK OF ALL THE POLITICAL BULL. iF WE HAVE MONEY FOR STUPID STATUES WE HAVE MONEY FOR PEOPLE!!! IF WE CAN RUN A STATE WITH LAWS FOR EVERYONE, DON’T TELL ME WE CAN’T HAVE SOME TYPE OF SYSTEM FOR THE HOMELESS. ONE DAY IT MIGHT BE YOU.

  • John October 7, 2008 (1:58 am)

    Some homeless people want to work, and the others don’t want. We can’t say who want to work or not. And I think we can’t have a good solution. Even though we solve this problem, homeless will be in Seattle again. I just hope the U.S rules are changed. People who don’t have legal residence can work! Rigid rules of the U.S have to be changed.

Sorry, comment time is over.