Despite Seattle’s push, residential tent cities a dangerous plan
Apr 1, 2015, 6:17 AM | Updated: 6:19 am
(KIRO Radio file)
The Seattle City Council has cleared the way for three new homeless camps, but what the city is spending money to study has a lot of people raising eyebrows.
Right now, you can erect tent cities on private land or city property (not counting parks), but they have to be in nonresidential zones.
That may change.
When debating homeless encampment legislation, a bunch of homeless people said they were mad that the zoning rules kept them out of residential areas. The Seattle Times reported some of them called it “redlining” – a pretty serious charge that lacks any sensitivity to the historical context of that word.
Related: Kshama Sawant wants Internet in Seattle tent cities
So in response, Councilwoman Kshama Sawant offered up an amendment that passed, compelling the city to study the idea of allowing tent cities in residential zones.
In the case of studies being proposed and commissioned on ideological grounds, it means that regardless of the results, the interest group or ideological push behind the study will always come out saying the study supports their cause.
So just get ready because the next push is for residential area tent cities, which is a bad idea.
Most of the people who aren’t homeless and who push for this haven’t actually lived next to a tent city. I have so I have a unique perspective. While I certainly support the idea and concept behind tent cities (and was one of the few people in favor of the WiFi for tent cities), living near one is not a good experience. It can be a dangerous one.
It’s true that these tent cities have rules of admittance. You can’t be a druggie, or an alcoholic, or violent. They have a good history, so far as I can tell, of self governance. The problem is they attract the people they end up rejecting and those people hang around.
I was reminded of that when, in Queen Anne where I lived at the time, the mentally ill homeless man would scream at the top of his lungs the most vulgar word you could use. He did this frequently in the middle of the night from my alleyway. He did it in a way that scared people. The cops eventually handled the guy, but he’d be back a day or two later. He disappeared when the tent city left.
When people are rejected from tent city for valid reasons, they may not just leave the neighborhood and as much as I want to pretend I’m comfortable with someone potentially violent and mentally unstable walking around the neighborhoods, especially at night, I feel for the mom out for a walk with her kid and how she might feel.
We already have tent cities in residential neighborhoods: they’re called homes. They’re apartments. The people who call for these tent cities have the option, right now, of walking up to a homeless man or woman and inviting them into their home to camp out until they get on their feet.
But instead, they talk about how much they love this idea because they don’t necessarily have to live by it. They get to sound compassionate and push this idea without actually having to step up and do something. Then they’ll criticize you for being against the idea. They’ll call you heartless. They’ll say you want to see homeless people die. They’ll demonize you.
But the reason they don’t invite homeless people into their home is the same reason you and I don’t. It can be dangerous. You have no idea who these people are or why they’re on the street. Are they dangerous? Are they drug users? Or are they just finding themselves on hard times?
There is a significant portion of folks who are in desperate need of mental health evaluations and treatment. We want to help, of course. We just don’t want to risk our safety by letting them in our homes or roaming around our neighborhoods alone without treatment.
Now, I’d rather help these people in the long term and I know most of you do too. Tent cities aren’t long-term solutions. In the short term, wouldn’t you rather these folks sleep in actual beds in actual shelters – not a tent? Wouldn’t you rather give them steady access to a shower, lockers, and services to help them find work, or get healthcare?
Where is that plan?