Homelessness
What’s going on in Seattle is more than a political failure – it’s also a humanitarian failure. Spending has doubled, but the number of people experiencing homelessness has skyrocketed. Our homeless neighbors are not a monolithic block, these are individuals with very specific needs. Unfortunately, the city has pursued one-sized-fits-all policies that ignore the realities on the ground. These policies have wasted more than tax dollars – they’ve wasted lives. We can do better. But first, we need to tackle several big challenges:
The City must fundamentally restructure our response to the homelessness crisis and put in place a model proven to work in other cities.
We must quantify the number of people experiencing homelessness in Seattle, understand why they became homeless, identify their specific needs, and determine the cost to deliver those services and housing. Right now, City spending is based on guesstimates extrapolated from the county-wide Night Out count. For the money we’re spending, Seattle’s unhoused deserve better.
We must implement individualized case management and a real-time, centralized database or portal that’s accessible to service providers and City agencies to ensure continuity-of-care and help individuals get into the housing that meets their immediate needs. Right now, the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand’s doing and there is no coordination among providers.
The City of Seattle must directly fund mental health and substance abuse treatment services, contract with those providers, and get individuals into that treatment. Right now, King County directs resources for these services and there’s not enough capacity to meet the need in Seattle.
This isn’t rocket science and we don’t have to recreate the wheel. We just have to have the political will do do something different that actually works.
The City must ensure it’s funding truly effective social service organizations and programs, including enforcing the standards it already has. To tackle this difficult problem, Seattle should only partner with organizations with a proven track record of delivering results and implementing metrics to hold them to it. Unfortunately, the city has a poor record on both monitoring and accountability.
Here are my promises to you:
I’ll work to ensure clear, evidence-based benchmarks. Words aren’t enough – when lives are in the balance, we need to measure result.
I’ll fight to end the practice of allowing providers to repeatedly miss basic benchmarks without consequences.
I’ll look for new ways to keep citizens informed about what approaches the city is taking to homelessness; what’s working, and what isn’t. This is a problem we must tackle together. You deserve to know what the city’s doing, what it’s costing, and how it’s turning out.
In the short-term, we should address dangerous living situations with real alternatives.
Unfortunately, it’s increasingly clear that encampments are a safety risk for both residents and surrounding neighborhoods. From exploitation and crimes committed against homeless residents, to property crime issues in surrounding neighborhoods, to health and hygiene issues, encampments are a problem – not a viable solution. Seattle owes it to all of our neighbors, housed and unhoused, to find another plan. Here’s what I believe:
Every individual deserves safety, dignity, and a fair chance at opportunity. Our current system of unregulated encampments can’t provide any of that. It needs to end.
The “Housing First” model is the most effective way to provide stability for individuals in crisis.
Ending encampments can open doors, not close them. We need to give folks a place to go to get off the street and introduce some stability. That means doing a better job of coordinating repeat contact tracking and connecting those who are willing to get help with resources.
Temporary housing is a crucial part of the solution. “Stopgap” measures like tiny home villages can help provide safer, stabler housing to homeless individuals waiting for permanent placement. That’s where lives change for the better – not under overpasses.
We must target investment in shelter and permanent supportive housing for women with children. Right now, their numbers far exceed capacity.
In the longer-term, we need more permanent supportive housing and a coordinated regional approach. The truth is, Seattle can’t go at it alone. Most resources related to homelessness are at the county, state, and even federal level. I support working to strengthen those partnerships. Here’s what I will make sure that partnership entails:
Increase information-sharing between agencies to reduce crossed wires.
Prioritize securing long-term, stable housing by tracking local need and housing stock. An effective regional system will match individual-level needs with regional resources.
Invest more long-term resources in providing drug and mental health treatment to those ready to receive it. We know it’s the most single cost-effective ways of ending the cycle of homelessness.
The bottom line: We need to get folks out of tents and RVs. Unregulated encampments are unsafe and inhumane. As we address this crucial public health and public safety issue, it’s important to provide short-term and long-term alternatives for our homeless neighbors. I’ll make sure the city is working with the most effective partners and solutions. Our neighbors, housed and unhoused, deserve nothing less.
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