Advocate says City Hall encampment ‘is a human rights issue’ as city prepares cleanup
Advocates for the residents of the temporary tent encampment on the lawn of Bellingham City Hall say negotiations with elected officials have broken down and that the impending cleanup notice is forcing campers to move with nowhere else to go.
At around 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 19, the City of Bellingham notified residents of Camp 210 that they have to stop camping within 25 feet of City Hall and move their belongings outside that boundary by 9 a.m. Friday, Jan. 22.
Camp 210 is a group of homeless campers living in tents on the lawns of City Hall (210 Lottie St.) and the Bellingham Public Library (210 Central Ave.).
It was set up in November to protest the lack of shelter in the area.
Advocates say negotiations and communication with city and county officials has slowly dissipated, leading them to believe a cleanup was a possibility, according to Eve Smason-Marcus, an advocate with Camp 210.
Negotiations Smason-Marcus was involved in came to an impasse and then stopped, she said.
Smason-Marcus said Camp 210 has had roughly 90 to 120 campers per night, with numerous other people coming through daily to get supplies and food. She said advocates and organizers are asking community members to come to Camp 210 around 7:30 a.m. on Friday to “hold space and to help move campers.” Smason-Marcus said the ongoing presence will be needed.
The cleanup notice at Camp 210 “means that in the middle of winter, in the middle of a pandemic, folks who do not have housing will be forced to move even though there is nowhere to go,” Smason-Marcus said.
Creating a safety zone
The 25-foot boundary around City Hall is being established as a fire protection area, according to the city.
The cleanup notice provided Tuesday afternoon states that if campers remain within the 25-foot boundary, they could be arrested for trespassing.
The city will remove garbage, litter, waste and personal property that is left within the 25-foot area. Personal property that poses a health or personal safety risk will be thrown away, according to the notice. Other personal property that is left will be collected by the city and stored at no cost for 60 days. After 60 days, the property will be discarded.
City officials asked that a safety zone, free of campers, fires and belongings, be left around the perimeter of City Hall at the beginning of the tent encampment, Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood said in a prepared statement. Throughout the duration of the encampment there has been an increase in fire pits, burn barrels, propane tanks, wood and structures. Fleetwood said this increase of combustible materials has increased the risk of fires and explosions.
The Bellingham Public Library stopped its curb-side pickup service temporarily in December due to increasing tensions in the homeless encampment and also so a fire protection boundary could be set up. The library resumed its curb-side pickup service in late December. The fire protection boundary at the library was set up after two propane tanks exploded.
“This step is a reasonable measure to increase safety around the building for the duration of the camp, to protect campers, volunteers, city employees and members of the public using City Hall,” Fleetwood said.
Campers and volunteers were given a notice of several days, and city officials have been checking in daily, Fleetwood said.
“Just like when we created the fire safety area around the Central Library, we will be humane, helpful and flexible in making this move. Our goal is creating a safety zone around City Hall,” Fleetwood said.
Fleetwood said conversations with Camp 210 representatives continue, and that the city is working with county officials on short and long term solutions to provide safe shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
“This is an incremental step to meeting our stated commitment to ending the encampment this month,” Fleetwood said.
‘Failing its residents’
Smason-Marcus said the city and county have failed hundreds of its residents. They said the Whatcom County community is capable of housing its houseless population and of building community among one another.
“This is our community. These are our neighbors. … Access to affordable housing is limited, variety of services is limited, housing first programs are limited, harm reduction programs are limited,” Smason-Marcus said. “There is zero emergency winter shelter. It is cold, it has been so stormy, and there is snow in the forecast. Bellingham claims we’re a progressive community, but with hundreds sleeping outside in the middle of winter, in the middle of a global pandemic, how are we not ashamed?
“Camp 210 is strong, Camp 210 is resilient, Camp 210 is community.”
Smason-Marcus said the support from the community has helped the encampment and its campers survive. She said she wants people to show up to help ensure campers’ safety this weekend.
Moving homeless encampments during the COVID-19 pandemic is against the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, and is traumatic for the campers themselves, as they’re moved again without anywhere warm or dry to go, Smason-Marcus said.
Camp 210 wants accessible and affordable housing with access to social services for all in Whatcom County. Camp 210 also wants emergency shelter space, she said.
“This is a human rights issue. … We have the resources to house every single person in Whatcom County. We need real solutions not hotel vouchers or two-year wait lists. Diversify the programming and lower the barriers. Housing is a human right,” Smason-Marcus said. “We will not accept inaction. Our county government and the cities of Whatcom County have failed our unhoused neighbors.”
Base Camp space
Fleetwood said residents at Camp 210 are being asked to move 25 feet away from City Hall, and that he hopes they take the opportunity to check in to Base Camp and access services there.
Base Camp, a homeless shelter operated by Lighthouse Mission Ministries, has started distributing a flyer encouraging people to utilize the shelter.
The city and Whatcom County are leasing the space for Base Camp at 1530 Cornwall Avenue, which has room for up to 200 people. The shelter has been averaging approximately 130 people, said Hans Erchinger-Davis, executive director of Lighthouse Mission Ministries, in an interview with The Bellingham Herald.
The flyer is encouraging people, including those who have been restricted in the past from entering, to show up to Base Camp or call 360-733-5120 ext. 215 to schedule an appointment for screening, including a rapid COVID-19 test.
Lighthouse Mission Ministries also said it will open an overflow shelter at its former Drop-In Center at 1013 W. Holly Street on Sunday for a week in in preparation for the inclement weather Whatcom County is expected to experience. The space can accommodate up to 39 men during the cold, winter months.
