Olympia businesses using private security to curb downtown homeless

A group of activists are protesting businesses in downtown Olympia that are using private security to curb the homelessness in front of their storefronts. The security guards patrol during the overnight hours, so the businesses don’t have homeless people camped out in front of their entrances in the morning when they open.

According to The Olympian, the Olympia Downtown Alliance contracted Pacific Coast Security for nightly patrols, patrols that the Olympia Solidarity Network finds “unethical and discriminatory” for targeting the people sleeping in alcoves.

RELATED: Violence prompts Olympia to close city park

“How many homeless people do they have living in their home? Did you give up an alcove at your home?” asked KTTH’s Jason Rantz. “There are shelter beds available all across Washington. Will they have to be inconvenienced a bit? Maybe, but do you know what’s better than living out on the streets? Being inconvenienced.”

Many of the businesses using the private security have been sent letters demanding they cancel their contracts, some of which stipulated that they will face “further action” by the activist group if they don’t.

The letters say that “The repeated displacement of our unhoused neighbors from downtown only serves to further traumatize and endanger a vulnerable population.”

Downtown Olympia businesses plan to continue using security

None of the guards are armed, according to the Olympia Downtown Alliance. “They just ask them to leave if they’re sleeping or staying on private property,” Jason noted. “If they don’t leave, that’s when they call the police. They’re not shaking people and throwing them into the streets.”

Recently, the Olympia Solidarity Network organized a march in protest of the closing of Artesian Commons Park, as well as local ordinances that prohibit sleeping on public sidewalks and city property. The Artesian Commons Park closed recently because of ongoing violence and threats against park employees.

RELATED: Violence prompts Olympia to close city park

Despite the pressure from activists, many of the downtown security program participants plan to continue with the service.

“If you don’t like that, you should go with these security guards,” Jason said. “And every time you find someone sleeping where they’re not supposed to, you can offer them access to your own home. That seems like a happy medium to me.”

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