WA program to clear homeless camps along freeways running out

Program to clear up encampments running out of money

Governor Jay Inslee touted the "Encampment Resolution Program," which rolled out in 2022. Since then, it’s funded 46 encampment cleanups across Washington, and more than 1,000 people have been placed in permanent housing.

SEATTLE - Washington calls the issue with homelessness across the state a "humanitarian crisis."

The Washington Department of Transportation reports thousands of encampments dotting our area highways and underpasses. Now, a program that’s funded their work to repair the land and relocate people living there to permanent housing for the last two years is running out of money.

Governor Jay Inslee touted the "Encampment Resolution Program," which rolled out in 2022.

Since then, it’s funded 46 encampment cleanups across Washington, and more than 1,000 people have been placed in permanent housing.

Before the funds run out, WSDOT is using $1,900 to complete cleanup number 47 in the North Seattle area off Weedin Place NE and NE 69th St.

(Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

"Our right of ways are not safe locations," explained WSDOT Assistant Communications Manager James Poling. "We have cars. I-5 is right there, individuals driving very quickly."

Five people were living there on state right-of-way land, but neighbors tell FOX 13 Seattle over the last five years, that number fluctuated, sometimes bringing violence with it.

A neighbor who declined to be identified said they have heard gunfire ringing out from the camp. Another neighbor said they stopped walking by the area for their safety.

"This site took priority because there was a high number of people living on a small spot of land," said Poling over the sound of state-hired contractors clearing out abandoned tents and trash. "Our crews need maintenance access to a location very near to here."

Four weeks prior to the cleanup, the organization "Reach," also contracted by the state, came in to figure out what kind of housing the people staying there needed to hopefully get them off the streets for good.

Reach said all five people accepted the assistance, which is paid for with separate funding from the same program.

Housing costs are covered by the state Department of Commerce. Cleanup and restoration is funded by WSDOT.

Other statistics from Reach conclude: 90% of the people they approach accept the housing and 80% successfully stay off the streets.

"These places aren’t re-populating and that’s really what these neighborhoods are asking for, is to not have this be an issue anymore for them," said Meagan Kineko, an ERP systems coordinator for Reach.

For less than $2,000 from the State "Encampment Resolution Program" WSDOT permanently closed the Weedin site, but that is on the cheaper side.

"We have to make tough decisions at times," said Poling. "Fencing may not be an option here because fencing costs quite a lot."

In the first two years of the program, WSDOT used all $7 million allocated from the state budget to shut down and clean up encampments, fencing them off, and monitoring the sites to make sure they stayed clear. Even with additional funding from some cities like Seattle to do this, the cost pushed them over their budget.

Small to medium encampment cleanups can cost up to $50,000 to clean up and fence off. Larger ones cost double.

If you take I-5 south towards Olympia, you’ll see nearly $700,000 worth of boulders and some fencing set up to keep people from camping near the Sleater Kinney Road exit. They were installed in January and since then some area businesses tell FOX 13 Seattle its been a huge improvement for them and their customers.

WSDOT's controversial approach to fixing homelessness

Boulders placed on the shoulder of I-5 in Olympia send an undeniable message: the unhoused are not welcome here.

This year, WSDOT asked for $10 million more, but only received $2 million. To continue clearing out the hundreds more encampments across the state, WSDOT will need a lot more money.

Data shows the project is starting to make a difference.

In 2022, the first year of the program, the Seattle Fire Department was called to 1,538 homeless-related fires.

In 2023, that number dropped to 1,323 fires.

So far for this year, we’ve seen 507 fires and are hopefully on track to see a 25% cut.

WSDOT officials said they would like to continue with the program.

"Our commitment to the public is really important, even though this is not something we envisioned in dealing with road maintenance," said Poling. "We think of maybe the more mundane things. Road drainage. Filling potholes. But ultimately, this is still our right of way. And ultimately, we have to keep it safe for the public. Safety is our number one priority."

It’s unclear what support the Inslee-era program will get in the future.