Stop Seattle From Turning Our Parks Into Homeless Encampments

This plan of opening city parks to the homeless failed in Portland. Can Seattle City Council please consider other options and take a lesson from Portland?

Stop the madness.

This strikes me as a short-sighted solution to a complex problem. Most taxpayers are willing to invest in helping the homeless I believe, but not at the expense of disrupting and endangering public spaces. Patrick Supanc Queen Anne

4 miles of Lake Washington waterfront property available for free camping? There isn't a camp ground in the northwest that would allow this - without anyway to track campers only encourages mayhem - an unsafe, environmental hazard to the lake plan.

Nope.

The Seattle City counsel has lost its mind on this one. Why did the City go through all the gyrations of cleaning out the jungle, just to move all those people to our public parks? It should of let everyone stay in the jungle. I support homeless encampments in church parking lots and city-owned industrial Lots... but I refuse to pay tax dollars to support homeless people in a park where the sanitation and drug use will impact my family negatively.

I feel sympathetic to the homeless experience, but there is a better way than this. City Council can do better. And everyone - those who are experiencing homelessness and those who are not - deserves City Council to do better.

Please don't pass this ridiculous bill opening our parks for camping.

This is not the solution. This has created an unsafe environment for me to take my kids out on walks and to the park. When will you put the safety of the masses and the hard working tax payers before the minority?

As so well summarized in Danny Westneat's column, let's learn from the mistakes of our neighbor Portland and not make the same mistake!

Stop this nonsense

I am not against of the homeless people but I am worried the safety of the people wants to go to the park to play, jogging, have birthday party, etc... I dont want to judge them most of them use marijuana, illegal drugs, syringe. I've been there at the park and I see a condoms, syringe, underwear at the park. Its very nasty place. they need to be responsible cleaning their place. They need to go to the Homeless Shelter where they live peacefully and happy. Thank you!

These people need mental healthcare, or jobs, or real homes. This is a ridiculous solution. Taking parks away from families and individuals is not the solution to help the homeless.

Seriously?

What are you thinking? This was trialed in Portland and failed. This is a terrible idea

Maplewood Park on Beacon Hill borders Maple Elementary School. The entire school and Kindergartners take daily walks around the park and utilize the park for afterschool activities as well as play. This location for an encampment would put our entire neighborhood and school children at risk and exposure to unsafe behavior.

Please stop turning our beautiful city into a homeless camp!!!

Please keep our parks safe for children and adults to enjoy.

I know the city council and Seattle government can do better than this!

Please stop!