1/25/2023
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The Spokesman-Review
County withdraws lawsuit over Camp Hope in show of good faith
City Council signals intent to purchase Trent shelter
KREM
KXLY
The Center Square
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The Spokesman-Review
County withdraws lawsuit over Camp Hope in show of good faith
Spokane County has withdrawn its lawsuit against the state of Washington and the state Department of Transportation over the closure of Camp Hope in an apparent show of good faith.
The county filed the suit in November seeking a judge’s blessing for local law enforcement to clear the homeless encampment, though county officials maintained that they could have done so without a court’s approval.
On Monday, Superior Court Judge Charnelle Bjelkengren dismissed the case at the request of Spokane County. The suit was dismissed without prejudice, meaning it could be filed again.
A separate lawsuit, filed by residents of Camp Hope and affiliated organizations against both the city and county of Spokane, is ongoing. The next hearing in that case is scheduled for Friday.
Mark Gregory, a spokesman for the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office, said the decision to pull back from a court battle came amid commitments from state officials to work with the county on a plan to close the camp.
“(Sheriff John Nowels) spoke with officials at Commerce and DOT and said he was promised, if the court case was dismissed, that they would come to the table and work with us to address the problem of the camp,” Gregory said.
The focus going forward, Gregory added, needs to be on getting the residents of Camp Hope the help they need, while returning the neighborhood where the camp is located back to its residents.
In a statement, WSDOT Eastern Region spokesman Ryan Overton said the agency learned of the county’s decision to withdraw its suit late Monday.
“We appreciate this good faith effort by Spokane County and the Sheriff,” Overton wrote. “Dropping the lawsuit will further the good work being done to downsize and eventually close Camp Hope permanently and to rebuild partnerships between WSDOT, Spokane County and the Spokane Sheriff’s Office as we all work to resolve and disband Camp Hope.”
Emry Dinman can be reached at (509) 459-5472 or by email at emryd@ spokesman.com.
City Council signals intent to purchase Trent shelter
By Emry Dinman THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW
The Spokane City Council has signaled its intent to purchase the former trucking warehouse on East Trent Avenue that now serves as the region’s largest homeless shelter, despite resistance from the mayor and concerns over fiscal sustainability.
Citing a desire to own the building before investing in improvements, the Council voted 5-2 to inform developer Larry Stone, who owns the building through an LLC, of its desire to purchase the building. Stone purchased the warehouse in March for $3.5 million.
“We’re looking at hundreds of thousands, if not millions in investments in that building in the next few years,” Council President Breean Beggs said. “A majority of us this summer said we should purchase the building so that the benefits of those improvements benefit the city.”
When Spokane City Administrator Johnnie Perkins negotiated the lease for the building, he included a clause that expires at the end of the month that allows the city to seek to purchase the building.
Following the Council’s vote, a third party will conduct an appraisal of the property’s value. That appraised value will act as a starting point for negotiations, but is nonbinding, Beggs said.
After the appraisal is complete, the city and the property owner will have 15 days to come to an agreement over a price.
If a price is agreed upon, Beggs said he expects the city will pay for the building using funds from leftover pandemic relief and real estate excise taxes, as well as loans and unallocated reserves.
Mayor Nadine Woodward has opposed purchasing the former warehouse, saying she has concerns about adding to the city’s real estate portfolio.
“We have a challenge maintaining the buildings we already have,” she said in a December interview.
Council members Michael Cathcart and Jonathan Bingle voted against pursuing the real estate acquisition, voicing concerns about the long-term fiscal sustainability of homeless services in the shelter.
“We’re talking $12 million to $15 million per year, once we start talking services, wraparound – the $25,000 we’re spending (per month) on the lease term, that’s a pittance compared to the cost of this project,” Cathcart said.
“I just question whether this thing is going to be able to exist next year,” he added. “I don’t know where the money comes from.”
Bingle also argued that the council was sending the wrong message to those living and working near the shelter.
“As soon as we purchase this building, it goes from a temporary facility to a permanent fixture in this community,” he said.
Bingle added that he generally prefers purchasing a building instead of renting it, but echoed Cathcart’s concerns about whether the city will be able to afford the Trent shelter’s robust services in years to come.
Those concerns were not lost on the other members of the City Council.
“We’re between a rock and a hard place,” Councilwoman Lori Kinnear responded to Cathcart during Monday’s meeting.
The city should consider selling the Cannon Street Shelter and consolidating its services at the larger Trent shelter, she suggested.
Beggs added that funds from outside sources, such as the state, could make it possible to keep current services afloat.
Councilwoman Betsy Wilkerson added that if one day the city no longer needs the Trent shelter, it could sell it.
Emry Dinman can be reached at (509) 459-5472 or by email at emryd@ spokesman.com.
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KREM
The response was issued regarding Jewels Helping Hands' motion for a preliminary injunction surrounding the camp.
SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — Spokane County has issued a response to Jewels Helping Hands and Disability Rights Washington's motion for a preliminary injunction surrounding the I-90 homeless camp.
Ultimately, the County requested the temporary restraining order to be lifted and for the motion for preliminary injunction to be denied
In the 29-page response, Spokane County argued that the temporary restraining order from arresting and removing residents from the property would prolong "the persistent and overwhelmingly common drug and associated criminal activity in and around the encampment."
The county also noted that the existence of the camp has taken a significant financial toll on the city of Spokane and its taxpayers as calls for emergency services and law enforcement continue to pile up. The response also highlighted illegal drug activity, trafficking in stolen property, theft, vandalism, vehicle prowling, assaults, rape, indecent liberties, littering and other unsafe and unsanitary practices.
"Residents of the encampment, their associates and visitors substantial and dramatically interfere with the use and enjoyment of the business and residential properties of neighbors in the area, preventing quiet enjoyment of their property," the County said in the response. "Threats and intimidation to neighbors and members of their families, business patrons and passersby are a fact of life."
Later in the response, the county took aim at the state of Washington, claiming that officials have "simply refused to take appropriate action to abate the nuisance."
The city's efforts to provide housing for the camp's population were also acknowledged, as the county noted the recently established Trent Resource and Assistance Center (TRAC).
"The City’s TRAC facility on East Trent has opened since the inception of Camp Hope," The county said in their response. "TRAC is a low barrier shelter with capacity for at least 350 homeless individuals in a building that is heated, has shower and toilet facilities, security for property and supervision and security for the protection of residents and staff.”
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KXLY
SPOKANE, Wash. --- Dozens of vendors and services under one roof to help those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
Homeless Connect is back at the Spokane Convention Center on Wednesday, Jan. 25 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Homeless Connect has 85 vendors and services this year, providing everything from employment to healthcare to hair cuts, behavioral health services and so much more.
Committee Chair Kari Stevens says the pandemic took a toll on Homeless Connect in the last two years.
The event was canceled in 2021 and delayed to March in 2022 because of an increase in COVID cases.
According to organizers,1,100 people were in attendance at Homeless Connect in 2020, serving 70% of people experiencing homelessness in Spokane at the time.
They’re hoping for and expecting a bounce back this year.
"This reduces barriers, increases the amount of networking, wrap around services that we’re able to offer people and moves them through the process so much faster than if they had to make appointments and find transportation," said Stevens.
Stevens also says there are more “direct” services this year.
New services at this year’s Homeless Connect include more housing services and a computer lab for filling out applications and renewing documents.
Licensing services brought to Camp Hope just months ago will be at Homeless Connect in a limited capacity.
A member of the planning committee, Maurice Smith, also works as the Day Manager at Camp Hope.
He says services for those who are homeless have changed over the years and that’s reflected at Homeless Connect.
"They need to connect with housing people, they need to connect with medical people. We try to bring all of that under one roof for five hours and it does amazing things," said Smith.
For more information on Homeless Connect and to see all the vendors, see the official page on Facebook.
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The Center Square
A man carrying a sleeping bag looks at a sign on the door of the Bread of Life Mission in Seattle's downtown Pioneer Square neighborhood that says the facility will not be accepting new overnight guests, Monday, March 30, 2020 in Seattle. On Saturday, March 28, 2020, public health officials in King County announced the first positive new coronavirus cases among the county's homeless population, (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
(The Center Square) – King County is stuck paying $330,750 a month for a former hotel in Renton, WA.
The former Red Lion Hotel in Renton was leased by the county and used as an emergency shelter during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic to reduce crowding at mass shelters and control the spread of the virus.
King County was using the shelter initially in April, 2020. Therefore the lease is estimated to have cost the county $10.9 million so far.
Public reaction to the hotel housing homeless people was not welcoming and caused the Renton City Council to pass emergency legislation that led to the eviction of hundreds of homeless people from the building.
Chase Gallagher, communications director for King County Executive Dow Constantine’s Office, said the county moved the residents out of the facility and into other shelters including Health through Housing locations. The county did not have the exact number of residents that were removed from the shelter, but some reports stated it was 200 residents.
The county continued the lease in case the space was needed again.
Gallagher added that King County is in negotiations with the property owner to fix damages to the building or account for repairs, as part of the lease closeout. Notably, six rooms were damaged from smoke and water when a resident started a fire in his room when the hotel was used as a shelter.
“King County is in the process of terminating the lease on the Renton COVID de-intensification facility,” Gallagher said to The Center Square in an email. “Since we now do not see the need to retain the property as a contingency, the lease will end when we settle with the owner. We expect to come to an agreement on those terms and end the lease in the next month or two."
Because the former hotel is still being leased by the county on a month-to-month basis, the King County Facilities Management Division has security patrols and has been installing plywood to cover windows to prevent any further damage or vandalism.