Homelessness Response Blog

Due to public safety concerns and serious health hazards, on March 7, the City closed the Royal Brougham encampment. An estimated 37 encampment residents were on location when the City’s Navigation Team and other outreach workers arrived at 7 a.m. A total of eight organizations provided supportive services to the encampment residents, including:

1. Healthcare for the Homeless
2. Downtown Emergency Services Center (DESC) HOST & Crisis Solutions Team
3. Evergreen Treatment Services REACH Program
4. LEAD Program
5. Seattle Union Gospel Mission – Outreach Team
6. Salvation Army
7. SPD – Navigation Team Unit
8. Seattle Fire Department

A tent was set up, staffed with various care providers, including nurse, outreach workers, housing coordinators and case managers. In the tent, encampment residents had access to seating, water, hand warmers, hats, mittens, donuts, sandwiches and hot chocolate.

While the scene at the site today is still very grim, all encampment residents received offers of services and many accepted referrals and offers. Below is a recap:

Individual	Kind of Referral/ Supportive Service	By Organization	Outcome	Notes
Adult Male	Mental Health	SPD (Officer Newburn) & DESC	DESC – Crisis Solutions Center was called out to assess client	Evaluated and transported to Crisis Solutions Center
Adult Male	SUD	Salvation Army	NW William Booth Center	Intake Completed
Young Adult Couple (M&F)	Housing	UGM	Transitionally Housed in Motel	Working with MID to secure housing
8 Adults (M & F)	Housing Assessments	REACH	Completed VISPDAT	Are on waitlist for housing
1 Adults	Mental Health	DESC-HOST	Evaluated for HOST Program.	Outreach to follow.
3 Adult (Females)	Housing	REACH	Referred to Hammond House
1 Adult Male	Veteran Services	REACH	Connected with Vet. Case Manager.	Will be working with REACH case manager
3 Adults (1 Male, 2 Females)	Storage & Reconnect with Family	Salvation Army	Possessions transported and taken to storage.	Pursuing reconnection with family and more permanent housing arrangements. Potentially with family.
1 Adult Male	SUD	REACH	Referred to Seattle Indian Health Board
3 Adults	Identification	REACH	1 Completed the process	2 have appointments with REACH case manager for securing state ID
3 Adults	Case Management	REACH	Reconnected with DESC-SAGE Case Manager	Contact was made with case managers by REACH outreach staff for reconnecting clients.
3 Adults	Family reconnection	REACH	Interested in bus tickets to return to be with family and supports	They are going to get in touch with REACH to determine an exact date.
1 Adult Male	Shelter	REACH	Tent purchased for individual	Individual’s tent was damaged.
7 Adults	Medical	Healthcare for the Homeless	2 people’s feet warmed. 2 people’s hands warmed. 1 assisted with complaints of chest pain (refused to go to hospital). 1 connected with primary care physician and educated on glaucoma.	Healthcare for the homeless nurse provided medical services in addition to education and outreach. Schedules for Mobile Medical van were passed out.
5 Adults	Relocation	REACH	Assisted in relocating to various new locations	At new outdoor locations

Please note: Some individuals accessed services from multiple agencies.

In addition to services provided to the people, the Seattle Animal Shelter checked in with pet owners on site and reported all nine cats they saw appeared healthy, plump and well-cared for. They also provided supplies, including:

• Provided temporary housing for a mother cat and two kittens while their owner transferred to a different location. Later in the day, shelter staff returned the cats to their owner and provided him with a carrier, two cat beds, spay/neuter certificates, 36 cans of cat food and a one-year cat license.
• Provided the owner of a mother cat with five kittens a 16-lb. bag of food, 18 cans of cat food, two plush beds, spay/neuter certificates, six collars, six harnesses and two collapsible travel water bowls.

Finally, approximately 18 people accepted the City’s offer of storage of personal belongings and one person has already made an appointment to pick up his items today. Including unclaimed items left behind, a total of 55 storage bins of belongings and other large items like grills were delivered to the City’s storage facility yesterday. Belongings will be held for at least 60 days and can be recovered by calling 206-459-9949.

 

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Note: More specific details about outreach services offered and accepted can be found at Royal Brougham encampment cleanup — the day after.

Trash, wooden pallets, needles and abandoned tents made an inviting, comfortable home for nests of rats living at the Royal Brougham encampment. But, it wasn’t a safe home for the residents who had lived there. On March 7, the City closed the encampment.“This is about the worst I’ve seen in Seattle,” said Darrell Rodgers of Seattle/King County Public Health, who oversees staff in the environmental health services and has visited a number of both sanctioned and unsanctioned camps throughout the county. “It’s inhumane to allow people to live here.”

 

There were 19 social service providers right outside the encampment, waiting to offer individualized services to the 37 residents remaining here on March 7. United Gospel Mission staff greeted some of the campers, as they have on their outreach visits here for the last several months, while REACH, Salvation Army, and Healthcare for the

Homeless offered such support as shelter beds, medical checks, and even entrance into treatment services for addiction. The City’s Navigation Team, which includes specially trained SPD officers and REACH case workers, have also been on scene offering similar services since the City first alerted residents on Feb. 24 of the coming closure.

Outreach follows the person-centered approach outlined in Pathways Home, the city’s overarching strategy for addressing homelessness. This means that each person identified what would help them, and the outreach workers assisted in coordinating the services. For some, it meant transportation to shelter where they could get a shower, and some hot food. For others, it was storing their belongings with the City or Salvation Army until they have an address, and for others it was needed cat food or beds for their pets.

Additionally, about 35 staff from the City’s Finance and Administrative Services (FAS), Human Services, Parks, Transportation, Seattle Public Utilities and the Seattle Fire Department were adding support to the cleanup in the form of field coordination, establishing the perimeter and traffic control, collection and transportation of belongings, stand-by medical support and more. FAS staff went through the camp first, and hand-picked anything that had been identified by campers as needing storage, and also salvaged anything left behind, such as identification cards or passports, sleeping bags or clothing, that someone might want later. “We found a pair of shoes that were in good condition, just in case someone asks about them,” said Chris Potter, Director of Operations for FAS. Items contaminated by soil, mold or other hazards were not stored.

City staff offered to store belongings for those on site during advance outreach and the day of the cleanup. On the day of the cleanup, staff collect, inventory, photograph and store personal belongings whether or not the individual is present, unless the items are clearly refuse, damaged, contaminated, hazardous or evidence of a crime. Information on how to retrieve items from storage is handed to campers (if on site) and posted at the site, should they return. Items are stored for at least 60 days.

The clean up at the Royal Brougham site is expected to last three days. The City will actively monitor and mitigate potential impacts on surrounding areas, including the East Duwamish Greenbelt, SODO and the International District, over the next several months.