Senate bill aims to prohibit use of hostile architecture preventing homeless camps

Several Washington Senate Democrats are backing a proposal that bans cities, towns, and counties from installing ‘hostile architecture’ aimed at preventing homeless camping.

Senate Bill 6231 defines hostile architecture as “elements designed to restrict the use of public spaces by individuals experiencing homelessness.” (A PDF of the original bill can be viewed here.)

In the past, those elements have included fencing, large boulders and gravel. If the elements are erected specifically “to prevent people from sitting or lying at street” level, they would be prohibited.

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Sen. Liz Lovelett, D-Skagit/Whatcom County, told the Senate Committee on Local Government, Land Use & Tribal Affairs Tuesday she sponsored the bill on behalf of some unidentified students. The legislation only addresses a ban for local government and doesn’t prohibit the state from installing the elements on state lands such as highways.

A spokesperson for the Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) told The Olympian nearly $700,000 has been spent on the placement of boulders in areas where homeless camps once stood — $643,000 of that money was spent at one place, Interstate 5 and Sleater-Kinney Road.

“Come on, that’s spending money on rocks when it could be housing people, building tiny home villages, doing something that could actually improve people’s lives,” Nicholas Jeffries, an advocate for Seattle’s Central District, told the committee.

Michelle Thomas with the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance told the committee says the use of these elements delivers a message about the government’s view of homelessness.

“Using public dollars on hostile architecture is a sign to everyone housed or unhoused that our government is not serious about addressing the root causes of homelessness,” Thomas said.

She said boulders along highways are there specifically to prevent camping.

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“Those boulders were explicitly to stop people from lying down,” Thomas added. “And it’s not to stop you from getting to the freeway. You can climb over those boulders and get onto the freeway.”

The bill excludes design elements aimed at preventing activities such as skateboarding or rollerblading, as well as those intended to restrict vehicle access.

It would take effect on Jan. 1, 2025, allowing local governments time to adjust and comply with the new regulations.

Matt Markovich often covers the state legislature and public policy for KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of Matt’s stories here. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, or email him here.

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