One of the most recent initiatives being considered by the Washington State Legislature is to prohibit homeless encampments within a 500-foot radius of schools, public parks, daycare centers, and other establishments.
Rep. Cyndy Jacobsen, a Republican from Puyallup, stated that the purpose of her measure is to safeguard the children of Washington state from potential threats to their public health.
“That’s not the place for a homeless encampment or even a shelter,” Jacobsen stated. “You don’t want your kids walking to school past a homeless encampment. You don’t want them stepping on a needle.”
During his speech on Monday, Jacobsen stated that House Bill 1255 intends to provide localities with additional cash for sweeps. She is of the opinion that there is public support for clearing encampments; yet, cities frequently lack the financial resources to do so.
“It is really a big burden on the localities to clean up these homeless encampments,” Jacobsen stated.
However, several residents of Washington have expressed their belief that the legislation will effectively criminalize those who are homeless.
“If shelters are full and you can’t access it, how are you supposed to survive?” Cydney Moore, president of the Burien Community Support Coalition stated.
She is of the opinion that it would be inhumane to prohibit people from camping in public locations.
“Washington state, as of last year, had over 41,000 school-aged children who were unhoused. This bill specifically would ban families and those children from existing in the very areas they need to be,” she stated.
It was Jacobsen who suggested that the plan would be to provide services to the people who were living in encampments.
“I really think that it is not compassionate in any way to allow people to sleep outside in squalor. It’s just not… we should not be allowing that in this state, we have enough resources we can figure something out,” Jacobsen stated.
In the past, Washington has witnessed encampments located close to schools.
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In 2023, there was a shooting that took place in Wallingford, Connecticut, under the Ship Canal Bridge, next to an encampment that was located just a few steps away from John Stanford International Elementary School. That point was the tipping point for many people.
In the year 2023, Jennifer Ricaldi, a concerned mom, expressed her concern by saying, “We know that the people are in need of having a safe place where they can live, but we also need a safe space for our kids.”
That April, state officials went through the encampment and gave the keys to homes to each of the fourteen persons who had been affected.
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However, encampment clearances can be extremely challenging, according to Summer, a lady who was affected by the sweep that took place in 2023.
“To watch all of our stuff just get kind of shredded and put to the dump like that– that hurt,” Summer stated.
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