Tiny homes trump tents in Seattle homeless study
Jun 30, 2017, 2:55 PM | Updated: 3:12 pm
A man walks past a city-sanctioned homeless encampment of micro-homes and tents in front of apartments and condos in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
If you want to give a person a better shot at moving out of homelessness in Seattle, give them a tiny home.
Seattle’s Othello homeless encampment, which was primarily tiny homes, had more success moving people into stable housing in 2016 than its two counterparts, according to a city-run study. The study focused on the first three homeless encampments Seattle organized through 2016. It does not include the three additional camps set up in 2017.
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Of the many takeaways from the study, Othello — which is 70 percent tiny homes — placed more people into a form of housing: 31 percent (47 people) went into permanent housing; 24 percent (36 people) went into transitional housing. A total of 7 percent (10 people) returned to a place considered not fit for habitation.
Compare that to Ballard, which is 70 percent tents, and Interbay, which is entirely tents.
- Interbay: 20 percent (26 people) in permanent housing; 2 percent (three people) in transitional housing
- Ballard: 22 percent (14 people) in permanent housing; 3 percent (two people ) in transitional housing
Ten people from Ballard went back to a place unfit for habitation and 26 people from Interbay did the same.
But the tiny home results aren’t the only notable numbers from the Seattle homeless encampment study.
Seattle homeless encampments
- 403 adults over the age of 18 served through the three camps
- 64 children part of a family were served through the camps
- 60 percent male; 39 percent female; 1 percent transgender; 1 non-binary person
- 5 percent between the ages of 18-24; 3 percent over the age of 62
- 23 children under the age of 5; 41 school aged children (5-17)
- 26 percent (85 people) of all three camps went to permanent housing
- 13 percent (43 people ) returned to a place not fit for human habitation
Homeless issues
- 177 people suffered from mental health issues
- 134 suffered from a physical disability
- 110 had a chronic health condition
- 63 suffered from a developmental disability
- 25 suffered from drug abuse
- 20 suffered from alcohol abuse
- 10 suffered from both alcohol and drug abuse
- 33 percent reported fleeing from a domestic violence situation
- 57 percent were white
- 19 percent were black
- 10 percent multiple races
- 6 percent Native American
- 1 percent Pacific Islander
- 1 percent Asian
The city wants to look further into the numbers and find out why some figures stray from other Seattle homeless facilities. For example, there are more white participants in the sanctioned encampments than at other programs. The study states that city-funded enhanced emergency shelters for single adults have about 43 percent white participants.
The study also notes that there are fewer young adults (18-24) participating. The camps do not serve people under the age of 18 and who are not part of a family unit.
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