The City Council met for five and a half hours this afternoon. The official topic was a proposed bill that would codify restrictions on the removal of unsanctioned homeless encampments, and from time to time the bill garnered a mention or two. In the end there were no votes today on amendments or on the bill itself, and for the most part things concluded right where they began. But there were the occasional nuggets of wisdom shared, and if you squinted you could see hints of a path to get the city to a better place in its attempts to …
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Notes from today’s Council meetings
For a Tuesday, it sure felt like a Monday.
Continue readingLocal “unlikely alliance” proposes plan to solve chronic homelessness — and this one could work.
Yesterday the Third Door Coalition, a self-described “unlikely alliance” of representatives from the business, human services, government and advocacy worlds, unveiled a proposal to bring an end to chronic homelessness in King County. Their pitch, which they call “an invitation to the entire community,” is the result of two years of effort to put their differences aside and focus on a solution.
Continue readingCouncil, Mayor warring over homeless encampment cleanups again
It feels like Groundhog Day: once again, the Mayor’s office and the City Council are at war over when it’s appropriate to remove unsanctioned homeless encampments. But COVID-19 puts a new twist on this never-ending debate.
Continue readingCouncil members attempt to further restrict “sweeps” of homeless encampments during COVID emergency
This week, Council members Morales, Sawant and Mosqueda are introducing a bill that would further restrict the city’s cleanups of unsanctioned homeless encampments during the COVID-19 emergency.
Continue readingCatching up on court cases: May edition
The wheels of justice are continuing to turn, albeit slower, during the COVID-19 shutdown. Let’s look at four cases the city is involved in, and catch up on the most recent actions.
Continue readingA trio of COVID-19 response announcements from the city (UPDATED 3/18)
Today the City of Seattle made three separate announcements of actions it is taking as part of its response to the COVID-19 outbreak. (UPDATE 3/18 — see below on encampment cleanups)
Continue readingEditorial: here’s what the city should do about the Navigation Team
Yesterday afternoon’s Council committee hearing to review the most recent quarterly report for the Navigation Team was nothing short of a bloodbath. You can watch the video here, if you are so inclined, and read Erica Barnett’s summary. In a nutshell: the Human Services Department tried to put lipstick on a pig, obscuring the struggles that the Navigation Team faces. And the Council was having none of it. Prior to yesterday’s meeting, there were already some vocal critics of the Navigation Team, including Council members Sawant and Mosqueda, but the rest of the Council appeared to see the team as …
Continue readingSpat over LEAD budget appears to be sorted out
Over the past month an ongoing disagreement over the budget for the LEAD program flared up again, as Erica Barnett has been reporting for the last several weeks, but as of late last week it seems to be getting resolved.
Continue readingCouncil advances expansion to sanctioned encampments and “tiny home” villages
Late this afternoon, the City Council advanced out of committee a bill that would increase the maximum number of permitted homeless encampments and loosen the rules for extending their permits.
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