While the research didn’t just focus on Seattle (it looked at cities around the state), it found that cities used “288 new ways to target” the homeless population in the last 15 years, a sharp increase compared to the past, with means such as ordinances against panhandling, loitering and public urination, according to an article by Thinkprogress.org. As the article noted, most cities didn’t provide people with restroom facilities, for instance, which essentially forced them to break the law.
The article also noted that “Seattle was the most aggressive, with a total of 5,814 citations over the last five years, which comes to an average of three a day.” And this isn’t cheap, either, with the report determining that Seattle and Spokane used $3.7 million in just a few years to criminalize our most vulnerable citizens. Seattle U’s report shows that if that money were instead reinvested into the homeless population, for affordable housing and the like, it would save the city money in the long run.
This report shows what we already know and many city leaders have talked about, but there also seems to be few long-term solutions proposed or implemented to help the homeless population. This year’s One Night Count found more than 10,000 people without permanent housing in King County, with more than 3,700 sleeping on the streets — that’s a 21-percent increase over last year.
By offering facilities, like accessible restrooms, washing areas and affordable or transitional housing, we can get at least a percentage of the homeless population back on its feet and work toward decreasing the numbers, rather than continuing the steady growth. Homelessness is a complex issue that frequently has ties to mental health and drug addiction, but when someone’s most basic needs aren’t met, focusing on their other issues won’t be a high priority.
At the same time, providing proper housing can impact existing neighborhoods. In Ballard, a new Nyer Urness House, for formerly homeless adults, created an increase of 410-percent more responses from the fire department and 91-percent more calls to police, according to a KIRO-7 investigation. While it’s important for the facility to sort out why it’s using these resources so much more (it’s partially doing this by adding a full-time staffer to deal with drug and alcohol addiction), it’s important for neighbors to understand that these people lived among them before they were able to access housing. People with mental health and addiction issues will call for more emergency response, so it’s up to the city and those types of facilities to provide care and resources. While it may be annoying for neighbors in the short term, getting these people help will be better in the long run.
It will take a long-term, multi-pronged approach to make a dent in Seattle’s homeless population, but it’s a cause worth fighting for. In the city that will see unimaginable growth and wealth from tech and other industries in the coming decades, it’s just as important that we care for those on the “lower ends” of society.