Green Lake homeless encampment removed with emphasis on tiny house referrals

Seattle’s recent flurry of homeless encampment removals continued Monday with the city vacating Green Lake Park, transitioning at least 15 into temporary housing in the process.

Seattle Parks and Recreation’s order to remove all belongings from the park by Dec. 20 culminated a months-long process to remove the encampment. Seattle’s Homelessness Outreach and Provider Ecosystem (HOPE) team reports 10 referrals to local tiny house communities— Interbay Tiny House Village and Benu Community Home non-congregate shelter.

Referrals began in October, with outreach conducted by HOPE as well as Urban League, REACH, Seattle Indian Center, Aurora Commons, and the Scofflaw Mitigation Team.

The city also posted “no parking” notices along Green Lake Way N, targeting a number of RVs camping near the lake. The city also closed portions of the street for cleanup, towing derelict or abandoned vehicles.

Gee & Ursula: Someone has to take responsibility to fix encampments

Recent encampment removals have occurred city-wide, with Bitter Lake and Ballard Commons homeless congregates cleared out in weeks prior.

With restoration of Green Lake Park underway, the location has been designed as an “active work area” by the city. That entails damage assessment, environmental impact remediation, and maintenance backlogged in recent months. The parks department will continue to monitor the site and ask potential new campers to vacate.

The intensified outreach is limited to the Green Lake encampment and only partial sections of Woodland Park. The Seattle Times reported earlier this week that of the 31 people identified as living by Green Lake, 13 of those removed on Monday relocated further into Woodland Park. A city official told KIRO Radio that there are no plans for a subsequent removal in that area.

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