There used to be a homeless encampment near Bellingham’s mall. How it’s been reclaimed
A large plot of land near the Bellis Fair mall that was previously the site of a homeless encampment is now being turned into an 18-hole disc golf course.
The 20 acres of land directly between the mall and West Bakerview Road was recently cleaned up by the Whatcom Disc Golf Club after Mikkel Hong, a member of the club’s board, reached out to the owners of the land.
“I was like, ‘Hey, how would you like to have people walking through here every day doing something cool, enjoying themselves and keeping eyes on the property?’” said Hong in an interview with The Bellingham Herald.
So the club signed a month-to-month lease in March that allows them to use the land until it is developed.
“I think we’ll get a good two years out of this and I think it will transform this whole area,” Hong said.
The club picked up and removed more than 2,000 pounds of trash left on the land from the encampment.
“We found about 100 needles, a lot of food wrappers and hangers, other drug paraphernalia and even a portable AC unit,” Hong said.
A fundraiser to help build the disc golf course raised $16,341. That money will be used to buy 19 baskets, materials for tee pads and liability insurance. It will also help pay for the cleanup and disposal of the garbage.
Temporary baskets were installed at the new course on Wednesday, March 29. The club plans to have more permanent baskets on the course by May 7.
The Whatcom Disc Golf Club is leasing the land from the RJ Group, Bellis Fair mall and Mark Schintaffer.
This story was originally published April 2, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
