200K pounds of debris removed from encampments along I-5 in Seattle's U-District

SEATTLE — State crews are securing the sites of several homeless encampments that have been cleared near I-5 in the University District of Seattle.

Crews said 28 of the 30 people who were living in the encampments on Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) property accepted referrals for shelter and services.

“Our goal is to really get folks into a way of life where they can sustain themselves and be safely housed,” said Nichole Alexander, an outreach director with Co-LEAD. “The work that we do that everybody sees through the TV, that’s the last 45 minutes of six months of work and daily grind for our folks. When you see encampments, and you don’t see the work, we are there daily in the elements trying to help folks.”

According to WSDOT, 210,000 pounds of debris were removed from several encampments along I-5 between 45th Street and 50th Street in recent weeks. Crews are now shoring up 2,000 feet of fencing and adding 700 feet of new chain link fencing to the area.

RELATED:Man walking with bicycle shot after passing U-District homeless camp along I-5

This was the 32nd encampment cleared under the state’s 2022 ‘Right of Way’ initiative, which allocated around $150 million to help the homeless who were living on state property near highways.

Gov. Jay Inslee visited the site Wednesday afternoon and said around $100 million in new funds are needed to keep the Right of Way initiative going.

“If you drive up and down the I-5 corridor, you are going to see a lot less homelessness than you did a year ago,” Inslee said during remarks to the press.

RELATED:Seattle's violent Ship Canal Bridge encampment has plagued nearby residents for years

Inslee said he was not satisfied by budget proposals from the House and Senate.

“We think more needs to be done than is in those proposals. I will be talking to legislators urging them to find some additional funds,” Inslee said.

Seattle leaders have expressed the need for cities around the region to start accepting additional homeless services to help shoulder the burden of dealing with homelessness.

Inslee echoed those concerns during his remarks Tuesday.

“We have got to site these facilities,” Inslee said. “We need all communities to pitch in here. This is a statewide homelessness crisis. Every city has got to pitch in, suburbs big cities, small cities, everyone.”

Inslee criticized leaders in the city of Kenmore, who recently turned down a proposal to build a Plymouth Housing facility after pushback from residents with concerns about the ‘low barrier’ requirements.

“Frankly, I’ve seen a city not helping. I was in Kenmore the other day, where they spurned a 100-unit facility that was ready to go to get people housing. That’s not cutting the mustard,” Inslee said.

After Kenmore rejected the Plymouth Housing proposal, Redmond leaders approved the project and gave Plymouth a plot of land to build it.