Stop Seattle From Turning Our Parks Into Homeless Encampments

House the homeless! Sober ir substance abusing. Tax us if necessary. Those who will not accept offered housing should be offered designated safe camp sites. Do not repeat the failed Portland experiment. Protect our parks for the use and enjoyment of all Seattle citizens.

I strongly oppose this Council Bill 118794

This is totally irresponsible of the City Council. Open space is for all to enjoy and not a homestead. The council is provide public land to unpaid permanent resident, totally unacceptable.

I spent 17 years on the East Coast, returning to Seattle 6 years ago. This is not the city I grew up in. I am embarrassed to show people around the city as it has become a disaster area. To willingly allow this to spread to our park system and other public spaces is insane.

Please don't turn our parks into the dump.

Allowing the homeless to just camp wherever they want will destroy and endanger the neighborhood's that we live in with all of the trash, needles, human waste, not to mention undesirable activities that I do not want where I live and have my family.

Please save our parks for our kids and not the homeless. This is ruining our Emerald City and making it just another Downtown Detroit, Terrible .......This is not fair to our children to have to worry about our parks and having to deal with the homeless!

This is insane!! Look at the weather outside...want to "camp" in that? This will cause public health issues like rats and illnesses, damage to already stressed ecosystems, and a rise in crime. I live 1 block from Greenlake and since the increase in homeless people sleeping at Greenlake over the last 2 years our cars are carprowled several times per week which NEVER happened before. Other major cities in the U.S. don't tell the homeless to sleep in a park. HOUSE people!!! We are a wealthy city. The resources we have are being used inefficiently by agencies tasked with helping these people. NPR recently aired a show which stated that often over 40% of shelter beds go unused because of administrative red tape. Make ONE agency that oversees all of these organizations that seem to raise a ton of money to support their own administrative costs, yet cannot actually do the job they are being PAID to do which is to HELP and HOUSE homeless people.

Have we learned nothing from Portland's experience with this exact same proposal? This is beyond ludicrous.

This is not a viable solution to the homeless problem in Seattle. Portland has already proven that this will not work. http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/now-seattle-wants-to-copy-portlands-disastrous-camping-plan/

Regardless of what the ACLU or the City of Seattle states, I have read the ordinance. I first disagree with its premise. The first premise is that it is the responsibility of the City, which actually means its citizens and those who pay the taxes, to house all of the homeless. The premise is wrong on its face. The city and its citizens can put in programs to help the homeless, where ever possible, to obtain daily work, find ways to feel productive and move themselves from homeless to a roof over their head. To use an ordinance to that provides entitlement only reinforces the entitlement and creates less motivation for finding self worth in being productive. That is why such a proposal has failed whenever tried. Second, the ordinance makes the citizens and the businesses pay for the lack of direction from city government. The consequences of any action are to be borne by the person(s) or government by which they were created. The businesses and citizens of Seattle did not create the homeless situation. The City of Seattle Government did and to then make the citizens pay for such action is clearly inappropriate. The ordinance, despite what the authors think, does create entitlement for people to use public parks, ball diamonds and every other seemingly far fetched example. Let's not forget, those who are not homeless have equal rights to use public property and if a homeless person is in the way of such use, the homeless person needs to leave immediately, not after a waiting period. To have it any other way is an admission of taking away rights of law abiding citizens. The ordinance is absolutely flawed from the beginning to the end.

Parks belong to ALL of us as remaining green areas in the midst of urban sprawl. They are valuable for health, mental health, and social welfare. Don't turn them into homeless camps for those who do not want to receive other shelter.

I am voting every single one of you out next election.

Please don't limit access to fields where our families grow and play. Seattle needs to address homelessness in a meaningful way, not with a ridiculous bandaid solution that allows our greenspaces to become inaccessible to families who pay for thier upkeep. I support finding a meaningful solution for our homeless epidemic but the impact on the rest of the community becomes a greater burden with this solution and alienates the community around an issue that needs the community to rally, no rebel. We need solutions for homelessness, not more spots to put up tents. Sincerely, Melissa Rubin, DNP, ARNP, CNM, PMHNP

No homeless in Parks, on Sidewalks, period. Sentence them to cleaning up their garbage and drug debris left behind!

This is a monumentally bad idea; we should help homeless people find more permanent solutions, not transfer the problem to public parks our tax dollars pay for. Homelessness is not an easy fix, as the root causes have to be addressed. This proposal creates new problems for those without permanent shelter and does nothing to fix the root problems-- it will just make citizens fearful of using park and community spaces.

Allowing the legislation to happen will negatively affect Seattle and its neighborhoods.

You are ruining our parks are city and taking away everything from our kids to enjoy! Please don't do this save our parks for our kids not homeless

Please reconsider this foolish idea that will be extremely dangerous and totally ineffective.

Agreed