Stop Seattle From Turning Our Parks Into Homeless Encampments

What is our city council and mayor doing to create better alternatives? I have lived here all my life and the lack of leadership we have now is sinful. How dare you give in to people who don't care!!!

Our parks are natural areas that should be preserved, not trampled and ruined. People need real shelter and assistance.

Please do not pass this ordinance that would make our greenways unavailable to the majority of Seattle residents. They are already being littered and made ugly. This ordinance would only make it worse.

My family lives across the street from Lincoln Park. We have three young children. We use city parks regularly for recreation, family outings, and many team sports. I urge the council to not allow encampments in city parks for the safety and well being of all families in our area. We are constantly under threat of theft in our Lincoln park neighborhood as it is. Car prowls are an everyday reality. Drug paraphernalia, waste, and criminal activity will undoubtedly rise with this policy. For the sake of seattle's children and families, please vote this down. Thank you.

I am a Seattle resident and voter. Lisa Herbold has betrayed my district. Regardless of her ultimate goals the introduction of this legislation was reckless and ill advised.

Please take the time to think through this carefully. Your current draft is hasty and will cause more harm than good. You must serve the homeless, the residents of our city, and the businesses who bear the tax burden with equal measures of compassion and duty of care.

Please grant us this extension. My local neighborhood is gravely concerned about this encampment issue and it has a lot of us afraid and upset of its impact on the growing community of families (both young and old) in this area.

Please stop allowing people to camp and live in our city parks and sidewalks. Parks are for people to visit, not live.

There are many options to have designated safe/monitored encampments.. Having unmonitored homeless ndividials camping out everywhere is not a safe option for those who are homeless or for those trying to enjoy the parks and green spaces their tax dollars pay for. Defeat this legislation it's horribly flawed

It is a terrible idea to move the homeless tents to our sidewalks and green spaces/parks. This in no way helps the homeless or addresses their needs and it would deprive the rest of us from those spaces. Please do not continue considering this plan; please find other plans that might truly help the homeless. Thank you, Jean A Rhodes

We can't move forward with this legislations as it is written.

Yet more evidence of the ignorance over green spaces and natural areas. These are often vital riparian vegetation protecting salmon streams, not just wasteland open for further pollution. What happens upstream affects what happens downstream, When Puget Sound is a cesspit of human waste and drug residue and chemical runoff with dead orcas floating on it, the pro-Bread-and-Circuses City Council will wring their hands and wonder how it could have happened!

I strongly advocate for helping the homeless transition to housing and access to various additional services to maintain a better life situation. HOWEVER, this proposal to open our parks, sidewalks, etc. is not workable. It would take away safe access for many citizens; invite even more homeless to come to Seattle; be a huge financial burden to the city; and shackle the ability to respond to dangerous situations caused by those with mental health issues or do not want to relocate into housing,

It's frustrating that councilmembers are spending so much time on this convoluted ordinance that will only spread the homeless problem around instead of solving it. A similar program in Portland was a total failure, because it was difficut to enforce so instead looking to homeless programs in cities that acually solved the problems, the Council is wasting time and more of our tax dollars on this ineffective policy that most tax paying Seattleites are against.

Pleasew defer action on this misguided proposal

Per today's news your push-back effort seems to have made a significant impact on the Seattle city council.

Establish more long term,transitional housing and defined camping locations with sanitation and safety needs met. Don't waste time,money in allowing homeless to randomly displace citizens from public spaces.

This legislation is ill conceived. It is shocking that we now live in a city where only one councilman cares about making real progress with this complicated problem. The city I already overrun with petty criminals breaking into homes in all neighborhoods to get drug money. Seatlle is a beautiful, thriving city, but that does not last forever. Residents eventually tire of thoughtless politicians and rudderless ships.

This has gotten WAY out of hand!!. You can't visit the locks or many areas of Ballard or Discovery Park without encountering these people and the trash they discard. This plan is short sighted and will lead to conflict. Anyone on the city council that supports this plan needs to be voted out!

Come up with a real solution that actually helps people. Why are you tying your own hands? You can simply choose to either enforce existing rules or not.