Tag: Herbold

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 1/21/2016

Councilmember Herbold's Statement on Homelessness Emergency Order Ratification

SEATTLE - Councilmember Lisa Herbold issued the following statement following Council's amending and ratification of Mayor Ed Murray's Order of Civil Emergency relating to creating safe parking lots for people using vehicles as residences:

"Last year in the One Night Count, volunteers found approximately 760 vehicles with people living inside them.  I thank the Mayor for acting on the clear need to assist these people and, in doing so, addressing the impacts on people living without access to water, garbage, and bathroom facilities. 

"Today, Council amended the Order before it took practical effect.  If we hadn't acted within 48 hours, it would have gone into effect without our changes. Firstly, it was important to explicitly ensure we are collecting demographics on the people served in the safe parking lots.  As outreach workers attempt to find solutions to find permanent housing, it's essential we track the barriers they face.  We must also track perceived and actual impacts on communities and the City's response to those impacts. Looking forward, we also need to hear from Executive departments how the City intends to address vehicle camping after the terms for these particular safe lots end.  This was all addressed in the amendments adopted today.

"Secondly, we memorialized operational commitments that were not included in the original Order relating to site management, sanitation, electricity, and potable water, and defining a length of term for the individual lots (six months, with the option for a one-time six month renewal). In addition there is an expectation that these lots will not be reserved for vehicle residents from one particular set of neighborhoods, rather the City will do outreach to all neighborhoods where people are living in their vehicles.  The amendments also require the Executive to justify site suitability and name the factors used to justify that selection.

"Moving forward, it's important that the Seattle community serves their unhoused neighbors in a way that best meets their needs.  Choosing a remote location with little access to grocery stores, transportation, social services, showers and laundry facilities simply because it's the easiest choice helps no one.

"Further, these lots cannot be opened to simply serve people living in RVs in Magnolia.  There are vehicle campers all over the city, including Delridge and South Park. If we are to continue this model I want to see the City use a race and social justice lens to fully analyze the properties available citywide and identify choices that are best for those whom we wish to serve, as well as the surrounding community.

"Lastly, I'd like to thank my fellow Councilmembers Sally Bagshaw, Debora Juarez, and Lorena Gonzalez for working with me to develop amending language to the Mayor's Order of Civil Emergency. I'm pleased with our vote today, and we intend to continue our efforts to find housing for people who need it most."

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Seattle City Council meetings are cablecast live on Seattle Channel 21, HD Channels 321 Comcast, 721 Wave and on the City Council's website. Copies of legislation, Council meeting calendar, and archives of news releases can be found on the City Council website. Follow the Council on Twitter and on Facebook.

[View in Council Newsroom]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 1/19/2016

Councilmember Herbold's Statement on Homeless Encampment Removals

SEATTLE - Councilmember Lisa Herbold issued the following statement following this morning's briefing on encampment removals from the Mayor's office, Human Services Department, and Office of Finance and Administrative Services:

"Thanks to Executive Departments for responding to Council's concerns and sharing procedures used to address issues related to outdoor camping today. Thank you as well to the Council's Human Services and Public Health Chair Sally Bagshaw's commitment to continue this discussion in her upcoming February committee meeting.  

"Development of the 2008 encampment removal protocols included a public process.  Several Councilmembers requested that the Executive consider a new public process to review the existing protocols.  I support that request, but in the interim, I'd ask that of the approximately 171 encampment sites that the Executive has identified, that the Council and the public receive information about the number of the locations that are deemed to be priorities for removal because of public safety threats to residents and/or surrounding communities.   I would like that information to be shared as soon as possible in the hopes we can quickly find some common ground around how best to address the safety of the people there.  For those sites that are not priorities for removal, I would request that we consider using this discussion to design a new public health approach to outreach to those individuals, rather than using limited resources that may only displace people to even less safe locations.

"I remain concerned about the resources that we have for the people staying in encampments that have already been removed.  Of the approximately 184 people staying in the 38 encampments removed since early November, only 74 received shelter.  We need to know more about whether the approximately 110 people who didn't receive shelter were offered it and refused, and if so why, or whether there wasn't sufficient capacity.  In their November letter, the ACLU, Columbia Legal Services, and the Seattle King County Coalition on Homelessness stated that the ‘City's practices appear to include referring people from encampments to shelters that are already at capacity, effectively displacing people who are already in shelter or waiting in line for shelter, and forcing those indoors back into the streets.'  I appreciate that since the declaration of emergency more than 200 shelter beds have been added to the system, but I remain concerned that it is not sufficient to meet the emergency survival needs of the people our encampment removal practices displace."

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Seattle City Council meetings are cablecast live on Seattle Channel 21, HD Channels 321 Comcast, 721 Wave and on the City Council's website. Copies of legislation, Council meeting calendar, and archives of news releases can be found on the City Council website. Follow the Council on Twitter and on Facebook.

[View in Council Newsroom]