Heya Heya
- That's my great Indian word.
Lots of people hear it all the time.
Heya Heya,
but my real name is Ana'oi.
I was four years young.
When my grandpa called me on Ana'oi
it means grizzly spirit
Thats why I'm faster that lightning
and strong as thunder
even though I'm crippled up I'm still the same way.
I ran up in Seattle on and off for 10 years.
And I was, I ran them streets.
Hey, this is my family.
Heya heya
- [Man] The river and the river front property
our folks are very well versed to respond pretty much daily
to that section of the city.
- That place has been there since 1945.
It was hobo beach.
- [Woman] Yeah. And I remember I was a teenager when
the timber industry crashed
and I remember loggers going door to door.
And I remember people becoming homeless
- [Councilwoman] Finding in consideration of the event
The city council finds the river street property
in its current condition to be unfit for either
human habitation, or open public access.
- [Councilman] This is purely a safety action.
I know from the public hearing that there was a lot
of comments about the homeless individuals that are
on the property and implications this can have to them.
And that's something that I definitely have
a place in my heart for. And I definitely want to find
better resolutions to help me address homelessness in
this County and in this nation.
I have worked with several different organizations
to those ends.
[indistinct chatter rising]
[overlapping chatter crescendos]
And I think the balance of what is
of what is safest
for the community
and for the public's safety
is the closure of the sight
[chatter stops]
[static noise]
- [Speaker] All right it is 7:18 call to order
council meeting for April 24th.
I was not at the
at the meeting where the first reading was brought forward
and this was brought forward on my behalf.
And so I feel
like I should provide a little bit of background
as to the reasoning behind this.
The riverfront property.
We respond pretty much daily to that section
of the city.
Fire department responds there quite frequently as well
for a variety of different medical issues,
overdose related issues.
And that's, unfortunately that occurs quite too often.
You know, if this were a property that was safe
I would be making a recommendation to council
that we create a sanctioned facility there to
take what is an ad hoc grouping of homeless individuals
and turn into something that mirrors some
of the facilities that exist in other parts of the state
but it's not a safe property
and it's never been a safe property.
And there's a lot of data that's been collected
over the last year that demonstrates that.
[man over radio]
- We've had individuals who are within the community
at the riverfront who have fell victim to crimes
whether they're assaults
or theft that occur, you know, to themselves
we may respond to, it's just a, not a safe location.
And then as you're aware, the female who lost both
of her legs.
-[Officer Capps On Phone] You know,
we're wrapping up this investigation.
I hear what sounds like screaming, blood curdling scream
some crazy what's going on.
I heard that several blocks away generally
towards the train tracks area.
And so I saw a lady named Shauna bent down
and it looked like a lady laying
on the ground and saw that she was missing her leg.
- [Interviewer] Where were her legs severed?
- [Man On Phone] Just below the knee, four inches
below the knee.
Keep her talking, you're going to be okay.
You're going to be all right, keep talking
keep breathing. on the other side,
they're like, what's going on.
People approaching.
You're trying to get people to back away from the tracks
because they're only putting themselves in danger.
We were on the tracks at this moment too
It's built into you
You know, training experience was like by the numbers
but it's really a chaotic moment, you know?
- [Speaker] And I think the balance
of what is safest for the community
and for the public's safety is, is the closure of the site.
So that is why this has come before you
and I'll leave it to the, the debate from the council.
Is there any other comments?
Seeing none all in favor?
[in unison] Aye.
- All opposed.
Alright the aye's have it.
We'll move to the third rating of the may eighth meeting.
And with that, I believe we'll move
to the public comment period.
Please limit your comments to three minutes
but it can be about anything
- It's never ending. There's no solution.
You're just pushing it from one place to another.
- That's what we need to know.
What is the solution?
There still, hasn't been a solution.
You guys haven't said anything
about a solution.
- Its not going to be safe
for us to walk our grandchildren.
I'm not even comfortable walking downtown now
to be honest with you.
- I was homeless for quite a while.
Down on the river.
Not only people's kids also the homeless people
that are going to get into it with shop owners
the person that is angry
because we're out on the streets
coming in the middle of the night and attacking us.
- As my daughter's case
she lives down there full-time
I brought her in my own home
to help her,
but in turn she's stolen from my family.
Got herself kicked back out,
and it would be great to have something being done.
But for myself, I personally don't know what it would be
because if they're not willing to help themselves.
Then it's not our fault that they're there.
It's what they've done.
Not us.
That's why I look at it.
- And most of you know my story.
I'm a non-active recovered addict
because the people that I love decided to
choose to not enable me anymore.
I hit rock bottom.
And when I hit rock bottom
I had to come up because there was nowhere else to go.
There's beds at the mission open every night
there's beds at friendship house open every night
you can take a shower every day
at the friendship house for free
- [Audience Member] For certain hours of the day.
- What else are you doing?
-[Mayor Larson] Okay.
This isn't the Arsenio hall show,
you're not the dog pound
no hooting and hollering while the persons talking
clapping afterwards is fine.
But please, any comments while someone is testifying
it's their turn to speak.
- You don't depend on a city
and other citizens to take care of you.
You gotta take care of yourself and you have to
want to help yourself.
And you gonna have to want to stop numbing
yourself and face yourself and look in the mirror
and love yourself so you can get better.
Thank you.
- But that doesn't mean that everybody down on the
river has denied help or doesn't want to help themselves
or is just wanting to mooch off of everybody else
because that's not the case.
And for you to just to tell me that next week
I don't have anywhere to go.
Isn't fair.
- [Audience Member] That's right.
- My name is Tom Davis.
- [Mayor Larson] ward or city? Which ward do you belong to?
Or which city do you reside in?
- I'm an Aberdeen Bobcat, sir.
- [Audience Members Cheering, Clapping]
I've been here approximate 30 years.
And is it a problem to be homeless?
Is it a problem of being
a drug addict?
Is it a problem of just being
I have to sabotage myself every time things start going
good I'm going to screw it up.
Maybe I want to be out there on my own.
Maybe this is the best I can do.
Maybe I don't have any training
maybe jobs aren't available.
Maybe I'm not really able to communicate with the city
the County so forth
but I think it has to do with the perception.
- I can give you guys one chance just to be out there
for a month.
-[Audience Member] That's right preach it.
and see how you would like to be looked at.
- Its KBKW's coffee talk
It is now 7:13.
And we have in the control room here,
not only two of our guests,
but also camera's and everything else.
So it should be interesting because this broadcast part
of it might even show up
on the documentary film or the documentary film The River.
And with us this morning, we have the producer
Heather Pilder Olson and the director, Rick Walters with us.
Good morning.
- Good morning.
I was homeless for a couple of years, myself.
I'm recovered heroin addict.
I've done intravenous drugs and I've smoked other drugs.
I have all of the addictive tendencies that some
of the folks down here in Aberdeen have.
And I'm at the point in my life where, you know
finances being what they are.
I'm like a stiff breeze from ending up
back in a sticky situation like that.
- No, no, I live on the other side.
- Oh, your mom lives over here.
- Yeah. She moved over here while the whole like lawsuit
and everything with the court case
and the city was going on, they moved over here thinking
like
- They're going to get swept.
So they're going to beat, they're going to beat the sweep.
Something like that?
- Right. Yeah. I guess.
- Where do you think all those folks
are going to filter out to?
- I have no idea.
We're all this is going to span
out and I'm not sure yet.
- How do we find Adalley?
- I hate the sniffles.
My allergies are awful.
This my friend wrapped like herself
for me and gave it to me as a gift.
I don't know what kind of crystal just
it's just a crystal I guess, but the wrappings on it
little like leaves looking parts that are wrapped around it.
by my friend are like woven together.
Like helix's like DNA.
- [Rick] Adalley what's the name of this camp?
- Oh, this has no name anymore.
This is just abandoned now.
I haven't really been like sick, like the flu
or a cold or anything really, except for a couple of times.
But I have had some other issues
like infection and such like that.
Like abscesses and stuff, which just sound kind
of really gross to say so casually like this, I guess.
But no, I've, I've gone
to the ER, at least four times.
I want to say since I've been out here
and luckily my parents put me on a good medical plan
and luckily the ER has my information for that saved.
Cause I don't have my card to remember any of it
but they remember it for me.
- I have a bike that has a 44 CC engine on it.
- [Rick] Oh yeah.
- I call it my car because
it has a basket in the back
occasional people can fit in it.
- How's it been for you?
- Not too bad.
Well, its a little shitty.
I just moved out recently and there was, you know
shit situation and ended up having to resort to this side.
Couldn't find the place.
All I heard was like, Oh, that's
like the Rivertown moseyed around town,
ask a couple people around.
And they were just like, Oh yeah, it's right over here.
So it was a little rough cause coming down
and just like, you know, new face
and everything just kinda like meeting people
and was just like, Hey, like what's going on?
Like what do I do?
Like, do I set up a tent or do I just like claim a spot?
Like how does this all go down?
And pretty much they were just like, well it depends
on whether or not people like you or not.
Because if you're not a good face
and you don't have a personality
you steal rob and cheat fucking all day long
then you're not welcome like it's a really tight community
and people around here don't really fuck around like that.
But yeah, first night was a little rough
because just meeting people and talking to people
no one wanted to really like share anything or, you know
wanna fuck with me,
a couple of people did know little bit further down
I met some really nice people
and they kind of started to introduce me to others.
- Well he had no choice.
- Insight too because I used to do that, that whole house.
- I planned on doing it anyways.
- Have you ever heard of who Shawn Vann is?
- I have heard the name, but I don't really know who he is.
- Sean was advocate for the homeless, but he was homeless.
He lived on this river right here
on this side of this river for 30 plus years.
I'm telling you he died here a couple years ago.
Like everyone looked up to him
and everything like he was the fucking head of everything.
He controlled everything down here
and made sure that everyone was treated fairly out here.
That's what really started out all this down here.
Being family with him matter of fact his ashes
are actually spread down here on this river.
We used to have memorial sites down
in the middle for him.
But with his ashes being spread
on this river and he's always had forever be a part
of this river and that's what he would've wanted too.
He looked at all of us, his own family as if we were blood.
Treated us all like that too.
To me.
It's been my home away from home pretty much.
10, some odd years been here.
- Yeah. I'm a fire buff I like fire.
[indistinct]
I always played with matches.
I never listened to my mother.
Fourth grade was the best three years of my life.
It seems like I like that.
- [Cameraman] Lift it up so I can see it from the side.
- Where's a piece of wood.
wheres a piece of wood here?
Hey wood.
That's me.
I live in Northern Idaho.
- So your name is okay to be in the movie.
- Name is Benji Stevenson its all right to be in the movie.
- My names Dirty Dog Dean
I drink gasoline a lot of gas
I've been high since 1974.
It really doesn't matter what I do.
Got a good rope ill just hang myself.
But anyway, I used to say
that shit that's probably why I need treatments, right?
I love you do your dance wheres your mama's at?
- [Shirley] Every single person down here.
I consider family because I've been
through so much down here with people
that I will never ever go through anywhere else.
You know, it's a tight knit community.
We have a commonality, you know, on being down and out.
And the things that, you know, we feel
like everybody looks at us like we're just garbage.
- I became a homeless June of 2017
on December 1st of 2016
I came home from school and I found my mom's body.
She had been there for about 12 hours and like, I couldn't
I couldn't even sleep in my own bedroom after that day.
Like for the last remainder, me being there
I had to sleep on the couch.
Cause I had, I couldn't walk down
past my mom's bedroom doorway to get to my room every night.
Like it was.
It was fucked
And then,
um...
and so it was,
narrowed down to moving
up to my dad's like, yeah, I love my dad by all means.
And he's always been a great dad for me
but he's still learning.
And we were just bumping heads
in areas that I just couldn't handle at the moment.
And so with my search for self-reliance and responsibility
and such that I've always kind of wanted to like, well
I'm just independence in general.
I moved out on my own
and I've been out here since then trying to figure it all
out and trying to find stability.
I know the river
it may not be the best place to find stability at
but you work with what you got I guess.
And that was where my situation has led me at the moment.
So who knows?
- [Man] ...teach us your will...
- [Man] We always desire to have a
relationship with you, lord
we just ask that you make our path straight.
So that may be possible
bless the hands that prepared this meal Lord.
We ask that you would always comfort us and guide us.
Always, always love us never forget.
- Got ruined got wet out here that bummed us out
this paper doesn't burn very good though.
- Its because it got wet.
- I know it's still.
I need some plastic.
- I actually thought about hopping a train out of here.
- Huh?
Well, we've got a dog now so we won't
but we thought about it out hopping out of here
Cause we want to do that as a bucket list.
Ride a freight train cross states
- [Rick] What's your youngest
- 19.
No, no. -and you're 30?
He's 17.
Yeah. He's 17.
Richard just turned 19.
- [Rick] I'm a Richard
Yeah, my first husband's name was Richard.
So was my second.
They both beat me
- [Rick] I shouldn't have said that.
- Well, I shot my first husband.
- [Rick] wait, what?
- Oh, I shot him with a 12 gauge he's cheating on me.
And he used to beat me all the time.
Hardcore. I mean, hold me up by my throat against the wall
and just in my stomach and.
-[distant] shut the fuck up
Oh no, no, he did not die.
I shot him in the shoulder with a 12 gauge.
He ran, we had a dog that had our puppies had puppies
and they were just little guys, you know.
They're just so cute.
You know?
And he turned around and ran them over.
Ran a couple of them over, well, he ended
up picking one up and he threw it at me
and he hit me in my leg and that just, yeah, I pick him one
up and it was just, it was still making noise
it was really sad.
it was real sad.
- Is there a lot
of people down here who have mental health problems
Um.
everyone I've talked to or seen
- What kind of mental health problems
- They just seem like, I don't know.
I don't know if they've done too much dope or
or they really let things get to them.
living homeless, you know
not having the life that they dreamed of.
- So if, if I'm strung out on a 50 cent Jones
and I come up from the river
and I can't spell my name or read or communicate
with people in a civil way, how, how do I get help?
- That's difficult.
- A lot of times you don't.
- I think there's always been an emergency
with homeless people in our town
but because of current politics
people are just now kind of like opening their eyes
and realizing we've been here
since 46 doing the same thing that we're doing every day
you know, and our numbers haven't gone down.
They haven't, you know, it, it it's.
So, no, I think it's, it's always, always been here
but just people are now kind of waking
up to it and, and realizing it.
But I was one of those dumb kids that expected
the world at right out of high school, you know
and I'm the middle of six kids.
You start drinking and you start, you know
partying and just make some stupid
stupid mistakes and you hurt people.
And then, you know, then I got a little bit in trouble
with the law and I was like, all right, here we go.
Here's my life.
Here's what we're going to do.
And so I came here and I just, I finally, I just shut
up and I just watched, I watched people, you know
the people that were here and these people
all they want to do with their lives was help people.
That's it, that's all they wanted.
And I was like, that floored me.
I was like, you, I, I could do that.
You know?
And I, and I, I enjoy it.
- I always bounce them
to make sure it gets the bugs off.
Or at least some of the bugs
I'm not normally really scared of bugs
but like earwigs and fucking that one kind of
that one kind of spider they have around here
are creepy as fuck.
I draw mostly I can do other things too.
Like I can paint and such too, I can write, I like to sing
but probably not right now because my voice is up.
Plus I get stage fright.
So, but if I don't feel
like anyone's paying attention to me, that I'm good.
But um-
But I mostly draw and I don't really like using pencils.
I usually use pen or marker
because it helps me when I'm anxious, which I
I kind of shut down into myself kind of a little bit
and get kind of quiet and draw whenever I'm
whenever it's getting a little bit worse and stuff.
It helps me a lot with that
because it's something else to focus on for a minute.
But like sometimes if I don't have anything else
I'll just draw on myself like
on the arms and stuff or on my pants or whatever, I'll draw.
If I'm allowed to I'll draw on people's walls and shit too.
But that's only if they say it's okay
Um...
Just
just on whatever I can.
If, if I have the means to do so.
like, if I have a pen or marker or something
I'll find something to draw on
Yea like, the lifestyle I came from
I lived up on the Hill
got my backyard in the city with a hot tub on my deck.
And I went to a Christian private school with a uniform.
Like I went from there to a small break period to this.
Fucking bottom.
So...
- Its not much but this is my home.
- It's more than what I got right now.
I mean, I'm couch surfing in a tree house right now.
- Like if it wasn't for the homie, like I said
I got a couple of homies that are still like, you know
like riding with me and shit.
Like he was the one that got me all this.
Like he got me this tent, like you said, you know, you came
you came from like a good fucking family.
Like you had it all.
Like, you know, like it was the same for me, you know?
Like my mom's like, she
she got locked up because she fucking, she was hustling.
You know, she, she, she was big fucking time.
So she got caught up.
She fucking doing five years in prison and you know
like we had, we had it all, you know, me and my brothers
and like, you know, like even after she got locked up
like I was doing pretty good for a couple of years
and all like I was hustling and I was making good money.
Like I was helping my brother and you know
like whatever I wanted, I could buy, you know, like
and like, I came from all that, to fucking, to this shit.
You know what I mean?
Even now, you know, like, I'm just trying to
keep like the level head, you know, like
just like the, like, like just right now, like I was
I was chilling with the homie, you know, and like, you know and fucking
and, you know, and he has to go to work and shit and.
And like, just like the thought, like, you know
when I know like, am I have to come back here
and just like the thought of coming back here, like
it's like this deep depression, like, it just hits me.
I mean like such fuck, like, look
look where the fuck I'm at.
People say they feel lonely, but like
they don't really like, get, like, they don't
know what the fuck lonely is until, you know what I mean?
Like all my family is gone.
Like, like most of my brothers, like I had to send
out like to Mexico and like, fucking, you know
like my mom's just locked up.
Like I ain't got no real family left out here.
And yeah, like, you know
that being lonely is like, it it's a
it's a fucked up feeling,
especially like out here, you know.
- Back in the day me and Kurt used to come under here
and this was all sticker bushes
this was the only way under here.
But in here we used to go up t- chr- eh-
Chris was up there, king of the hill, and we have come through here
we come down here and we'd smoke weed,
and worship Satan and uh-
drink piss beer - you didn't worship no Satan.
Yea, we called it c-
Kurt called it drinking piss beer and worshipping Satan.
One night we robbed an old
[inaudible]
Dad's liqour cabinet had gin.
And we went to kurt, me and kurt-
Took it to Kurt's house and mixed it with kool-aid
and we got hammered
[heavy metal music]
- Including previously unheard recordings.
That's how I knew I was getting paid because I was working
at Tacoma and it was like, '03 or '04.
And they said, Oh, they're coming out with a box set.
And the commercial, I was working graveyard
at a lamination mill at the Port of Tacoma.
And I'm like, listen to this commercial and
and previously never heard uh
show or uh recordings of their first
or show ever in Raymond Washington.
And I went, Whoa, I said that's me.
That's me.
And I went and I got really excited.
- [Rick] You know anybody down at the river.
- Yeah. I know everybody's down there.
Give the city should go in and just put some outhouses
out and let the people live there.
You know, that are going, like you said, in, in wham
pull the bandaid off and bring in the troops
or whatever national guard going there, move them
screw them out.
Boom. That's all you got
you go into the sticks, your Batons
I can't do it right March.
And mow em you get them all out.
What are you going to do?
Don't just, don't play with them.
This is only going to give you another 30 days.
Fair.
Its like let them stay.
Let them stay and let people come in to help them.
But you know, that's my in, in my fantasy world thats what...
- They're gonna basically get the bulldozers out
and just bulldoze everything that they can
just smash it all down to the ground like they did.
But as far as I've heard that what they did last time
I heard the rumor, they were going to sweep it.
And I also heard that couple people that have been down here
for a good three, four years
that they do it every fucking year.
Once a year, they come down
and they try to like clean house.
But right now there is an ongoing court case.
And there's a few people down here that are representing
said case.
They actually show up to court
and they plead their cases.
outside the court house.
We'll get there kinda early
Parking is... uh.
It's a shitty situation.
We have parking lots on either side of the court
one is like cash only one is cash or a visa.
And I don't know
if our card is a visa
- Yes its visa.
[indistinct]
- Some of them are like quarters right?
- Yeah you can use cash or visa card.
- Levi Hunt 4th ward I'm a survivor of addiction.
I lived here my entire life.
I've lived on that river for many, many years
out of the 14 people sitting up here right now
in your nice dress clothes, paying your taxes.
Like we should, you guys are
a wake up away, or step out that door away
from losing everything you have
Maybe due to a fire,
maybe due to um
your boss doesn't like what you do.
So you're fired now what?
I buried 36 people, 38 people, since 2016
not of them are from active addiction.
A lot of it's from mental health issues as well.
We need to come together
and figure it out as adults, instead of fucking
Sorry.
Instead of uh, uh.
pushing people around
bullying them
because they're less than
Misty.
It's Levi.
Are you coming with us?
Sarah wants to know if you were coming.
Okay. Yeah.
Its all right.
- I see you'll be back down.
- This is, this is a lawsuit for you guys.
- Yep. For coming on a little road trip to Tacoma.
- We have to go right now.
You need a cigarette.
Can I have a cigarette?
- I'm gonna go through a metal detector here
but you got valid ID.
You are welcome to join us.
We'll probably be lunch.
Okay.
- Yeah. Sarah is going to be up there.
April's going to be up there.
- We'll all be up there.
- A few people from down here will be up there.
Probably free lunch...
Oh, there is free lunch.
Where's mugs.
- [Cameraman] He got it.
He got accepted by CAP to get his own place.
- Oh, good.
Okay. Good.
Oh, fuck yea.
- You want to come along or you want to stay here.
Okay. And we'll keep you updated
and let you know how it goes.
Yeah for sure do that.
- To stall them from sweeping the camp
until they get serious
about offering folks somewhere else to go.
So Reverend Sarah is going to be there, April,
Obai is going to be there
but we will happily give folks there a ride and back.
If anybody wants to come on a little road trip to Tacoma.
- I'm down.
- You down?
Awesome. All right.
You can come with us.
Anyone else?
- When?
- Right now?
Oh. I can't.
Yeah, no, I can't.
We have to- damnit.
I wish it was like a little later tomorrow.
- I would but my car's been breaking into every time I leave.
- That's a priority.
All right.
We will report back and let everybody know how it goes.
- [Adalley] There's a lot of bullshit
and drama that goes down on there.
And a lot of stupid unnecessary crap.
But honestly, we're all kind of like one big
like extremely dysfunctional family.
I mean, some of us don't like each other
but when it really comes down to it
if we really need something, we will help each other.
Even if we screw each other over right the next day.
It's kind of screwed up and kind of confusing
but it's just the way it is down there.
Like we screw each other over, but we got each other's backs
at the same time
saying that
we're all just messy
like drug addict, bums, who just live down there
because we want to, or whatever, and just trash the place.
That's kind of the big perception that a lot
of the towns people have, especially the people up on Belair
up on the Hill and the nice neighborhood and stuff.
They forget that the view from the bridge
isn't the only perspective that there is of the, of my home.
And they forget that.
Not everyone's the same.
- [Levi] I love you.
- [Aaron] Everybody who showed up wearing a collar.
If you could, maybe if you want to, when we go in
seat yourself near the front, so that you're nice
and visible, just so that, so that you're seen.
It's important, I think, for the court to understand
that this is a moral issue, as much as it's a legal issue
this is about what's right and wrong.
What we're at court for today, if you didn't get the message
from the Bishop or anywhere else is we have
requested a temporary restraining order
against the city of Aberdeen, essentially to stall them
from sweeping the largest encampment in the County.
There's about a hundred people living there right now
to stall them
until there's an alternative place for people to go.
Currently, there is not, not even kind of.
The mayor has said that people are welcome to sleep
in the sidewalks and public right away
but there's several ordinances in town, criminalizing
homeless people from doing just that.
So that's not even an option.
I'm going to start with a quick reading.
Why doesn't God set a time
for judging a day of justice, for those who serve him
people move property lines to get more land.
They steal sheep and put them in their own flocks.
They take donkeys that belong to orphans
and keep a widow's ox till she pays her debts.
They prevent the poor from getting their rights
and force the needy to run and hide.
At night they sleep with nothing to cover them
nothing to keep them from the cold they're drenched
by the rain that falls on the mountains.
And they huddled beside the rocks for shelter.
Holy one of many names.
We know that you're always closest to those.
Who have no shelter over their heads, but heaven.
So we're asking for your protection over our plaintiffs.
We're asking for your protection
over the people living in this encampment.
We ask that you shield and defend them in the name
of the one who creates redeems and sustains us all.
Amen.
- And they said, well, why listen to them?
They would say that, you know
because they're there, they're just addicts.
They're just liars.
They're thieves, you know?
And this one sided deal.
Yeah, it is a lot of that down here.
But then again, this is a, it's a whole other world
across the other side from the tracks for the most part.
- Especially honored to acknowledge
our former mayor, Steven Bucksbaum
in the back of the room.
Thank you for joining us Steven.
One thing I can say after having been mayor
for three years is I respect you even more each year
as it goes by.
And that you set a lot
of the things in motion that are now coming to fruition.
That's one thing that mayors
you inherit the previous administration.
And so you can't take all the credit
for all the good things that happened
because a lot of it was set in place before you and
so how many of you have had a chance to see that KOMO show?
I don't want to call it like a documentary.
I don't want to give it that much credibility
but it's called Seattle is Dying.
You know?
So it, it really struck a chord
with a lot of people in this community who feel
that they haven't had their concerns addressed.
And it also, I believe
painted a very bleak picture
and a wide, broad brush of a problem.
That's way more complex than what they presented.
But what we're going to talk
about today is the complexity of the homeless.
There's no one pathway into homelessness
and there's no one pathway out of it.
So what I'm really proud to go around in our community
and elsewhere is tell the story of what Olympia is doing.
So how many of you have attended a city council meeting
on a Tuesday night
and given your three minutes of public comment?
Wow, that's great.
That's great.
But what you're going to get today
for those of you that haven't been downtown
on a Tuesday night is you're going to get more
than three minutes and you're going to get to be sitting
around a table with people
that you may not have ever met before.
And that's what this is about
is to share our experiences and learn together.
- So, you know, a year ago when I would walk this route
every doorway would have, you know
between one and four people, five people in it.
- Wow. On fifth.
- Yeah. And on fourth.
- Wow.
- And on Washington and Capitol and Franklin
- How were you able to stop that from happening?
I don't see anybody out here
no security guards or anything.
How do you literally move people
from a street once they're used to hanging out there?
- So it started with, you know, some businesses were okay.
With it, some businesses weren't okay with it.
Some businesses would be okay with it as long
as people were up and at it by, you know, a reasonable time
in the morning so that they could get their business open.
Sometimes in the beginning, people would go
out from the city and we'd have hot coffee
and we would offer them, Hey, here's a cup of coffee.
Here is a gift card for McDonald's to get a sandwich.
Good morning.
Riley is that you, how are you doing?
Yeah. Time to kind of get up and get the day going.
It is uh...
about eight 30.
Can you do that for me?
Okay. I'll come back and check in a little bit.
Okay. All right.
Thank you.
I was just being out here every morning
letting people know
- [Rick] Doing what you just did.
- [Amy] Yep, exactly.
And telling them, this is where you can go.
This is, you know
this business is not okay with you being in their alcove
but here's a spot where you can be.
- What kid of repercussions did you get other
than just, you know, people come and physically moving them.
Others can take them to jail for sleeping there.
And getting a ticket doesn't do anything.
- Nope.
- What's the real leverage you have
if it's not the law.
- It's the relationship.
So the site that we're going to eventually go to
is the city sanctioned mitigation side is what we refer
to it as.
- [Cheryl] ...I think it might be in one of the packets
It's a lot of information right there.
It helps to explain what we are doing.
So this is a great graphic to explain what
an unmanaged site looks like the before and after pictures.
And then the mitigation site,
here's a site that obviously wasn't completely full
at that time.
But you can see where we were able to take one
one of our downtown parking lots
move people off temporarily come in re-stripe it.
Move in the tents.
- [Rick] It seems challenging
for some folks to understand why there's even a need
for a mitigation site.
One of the Olympia city planners asked us before we left
would you prefer these individuals?
Some of which are strung out on drugs
have extensive criminal backgrounds
or mental health disorders, and some
of which truly are in need and interested in help.
Do you want them on your streets?
Do you want them near your schools in your parks
in front of your businesses downtown?
My number one takeaway from Olympia is the amount
of highly qualified and extremely passionate people
who were troubleshooting this problem every day.
The problem is judgment
- And not realizing that we're all one of same, you know?
And that's the whole problem.
If there's a lady on the city
council said it perfectly
if you change the way you see things
the things you see will change
its like the haves and the have-nots.
And they see this distance
which creates a conflict and a battle
never going to be ended
wars and conflicts
until I see you as me.
She sees me as her, you know, and then we'll come together.
When the love is there, then everything will be fixed
- [Rick] When the love is there.
- That's what it is.
That's what's needed is a lack of love.
And it's a lack of forgiveness.
And that's a, it's
like the rich people are judging the homeless people
the dirty drug addicts
the homeless people are judging the rich people
You know? They're hoity toity
the idea that you're not like me, and I'm not like you
that's it that simple to literally be like
You can get it that raw.
this is my sister.
You're my brother it doesn't matter who you are
I've never met you before...
- So being as Mayor Larson is out. I will
So the only thing I have to say is yesterday evening
or yesterday day council member Rowe and I
both attended the Tacoma federal hearing.
So I'm going to have some clarification when we get
to the actual meeting on that one.
But it was an interesting process to go to federal court.
That's for sure.
- It was back and forth
between our attorney and the city attorney
but the judge and the city attorney were kind
of making the argument that folks down at the river
they just want to stay there.
They don't want to go anywhere else.
And our attorney was like, where else will they go?
Like, do you have like, Nope, there's nowhere else.
The city has identified nowhere else
for people to be the judge gave a lot of, it seemed
like a lot of openings to the city attorney to just name a
an alternative site, any alternative site, any park.
And they wouldn't.
So then the judge got mad and it was like,
Um...
and it was like,
What'd he say?
He said, you need to get an oar, and put it
in the water and start working on this thing.
He got very kind of like grumpy grandpa about it,
- the 3rd reading is
an adoption of bill number 1905
prohibiting public access
to river street properties for life safety
public safety and public welfare reasons I moved to.
Pass the 3rd reading.
- 2nd
- Its been moved and 2nded that we adopt the third reading
is there any discussion?
- I would like to make an amendment to the 3rd reading
Uh, amendment would
Take the bill 1905
through the third reading
and amend only as to the affected day.
Is not sooner than June 5th, 2019
That would be the first Monday
after the stay on the TRO
he did grant the restraining order
or the injunction as written, but he said, I'm putting a
stay a 30 day, stay on this eviction.
And within that time
the city has to find a place for people.
You need to talk to each other?
So um, uh...
So the ball's on the city's court
at this point in terms of identifying a place.
So that's what I heard.
No, for the sake of discussion, please bear with me
because I am more in favor of an option where
we postpone the third reading, but direct staff to prepare
to identify an alternative location for our consideration
and
- you have that right to make that amendment.
- And that's what I, I'm not familiar enough.
Robert's rules
of order to know how to get that considered.
- So I'm going to take it as your word
and the amendment you'd like to bring forward is
that we, u table this
and then direct staff-
-Not table, postpone the 3rd reading.
postponed the 3rd reading until when?
- Until June 12th.
- So you'd like to post on the third reading
to the June 12 council meeting
and direct staff to come up with an alternative location.
Would anyone like to 2nd that amendment.
- Sure I will.
It's been moved and seconded all in favor.
- Aye.
- All opposed
- Nay
- That amendment is failed.
- What else did other people hear?
- Well? Yeah.
And he said he wanted them to negotiate.
The, the two sides needed to negotiate something
because he didn't want to see us back
for the actual litigation that we filed.
He wants something resolved out of court rather
than in court,
- Back to the original amended ordinance
Is there any discussion on that original amendment?
All right, so it's good.
- Could you restate the amendment.
- So the, the amendment was to
change the effective date
to June 10, 2019
in respect of the
which is the Monday
after the stay of the temporary restraining order.
All right.
So this is a roll call vote
roll call as amended Alstrom is absent Andrews.
- Yes.
- James Cook.
- Yes.
- Jeff Cook is absent Gordon is absent.
Maki is absent.
Prieto
- Yes.
- Rodgers.
- Yes.
- Rowe.
- Yes.
- Schave
- Yes.
- Shaw.
- Yes.
- Shortt.
- Yes.
- Madam Mayor Pro Tem
that it has passed unanimously eight to zero.
- All right.
- DSHS statistics for December of 2017, was
that there were a thousand people homeless in Aberdeen.
So about five, roughly 500 people unsheltered
and 500 people couch surfing.
And that number is constantly revolving
and changing all of the time.
But that's a lot of people in a town of 16,000.
Um...
That's a lot people to be unhoused.
unhoused or very unstabley housed
and not a lot of places for them to go.
- I'm James. I live in Aberdeen, B street.
I don't know what ward that is
I just want to say, man, one
of the things that upsets me the most
about our mayor or any of you is when you go to that river
you want to just say these people, these river people
that's the city of Aberdeen.
That's your people.
That's ward, whatever you want on here.
That's Aberdeen.
We just need to sit down and discuss some stuff.
I don't care to go to court for anybody.
I don't like dressing up, like I'm going
to a funeral all the time, but it feels that way.
Every time I walk in those doors with you all.
I just want
I've seen dreams and visions for this town.
We should be living in skyscrapers by now.
We're still trying to figure
out crap out on the ground that's sad.
That's pathetic.
-[Rev Sarah] I mean, in the end, I think the conversation is.
I mean the two things that I keep in mind is number one
like
people are people.
Whether they're homeless
or drug addicted or any of that, people are people
and they deserve dignity and they deserve respect.
And they deserve to be treated as people, no
matter who they are and no matter what they're dealing with.
And if we started the conversation there
we would have a lot more productive conversations.
But if we start the conversation
with this idea that there are respectable people
and trash people and trash people don't deserve anything.
And we really would rather that they weren't
they were either out of town or not alive.
Because literally people have come to city council meetings
and said that they just wish everyone would die.
So, I mean
it's really hard to have a conversation when
we don't accept the basic dignity of every person.
- You know, we just have differences of opinion.
We know nothing about each other at this point.
There's, there's gotta be some way that each
and every one of us has an ideal end goal here.
Nobody wants those people to live like that.
At the river, nobody hates anybody
nobody wishes that they would all just like, Oh, go away.
I didn't put them there.
I don't want to leave them there because it's a danger.
Not only to them at this point, it's
it's inhumane to leave them living like that. - It's a danger to our city.
You can't provide port-a-potties
and accept that that's sanitary.
But when we can't even have an interaction
- When these people are calling us out of Facebook live.
- Yeah it gets to be a little petty.
I've never had a conversation with Ms Obai
in real life we've
and I don't even think we've had banter
on Facebook because I've connected with Shelby.
She lumps me in with this.
I hate everybody group
and she doesn't know how I feel we've
never had a conversation.
And that's my thing too, is that some people come out here
and like, Oh, I feel so bad for them.
We can't kick them out of the river
but it's not because they care.
They don't want them in their neighborhoods.
That's the bottom line.
There's Oh, there's a whole handful
of people that are doing this whole like, Oh
the poor homeless people at the river.
They don't give a shit.
You know?
And I don't know what the end result goals is.
There's gotta be a way to work together instead
of constantly battling on Facebook for Christ sake
and a mayor that doesn't even show up.
- [Rick] On the count of three. One, two, three, freeze.
- So plum street village is our first effort
in a tiny home approach to
the elements of this crisis.
It's a high level of management
which you'll see when we got there that hand
up to the community that holds community
with our street outreach
try to get them into a managed site.
And then once they stabilize in the managed site and show
that they can be successful with that level of oversight
then they can interview to go into the plum street village.
And that's one more level of case management.
- So right now we have 29 houses after this.
We're also going through a tour.
We're looking at housing anywhere between 40
and 45 residents here, we currently have one meal a day.
That's provided from union gospel mission
around five and five 30.
And then also we have a local food bank that drops
off donations here.
And then residents can come here
and bring food as they, like.
We also have a resource center here.
Full bathrooms, three of them.
Washer and dryer on the backside smoking area.
Of course, cigarettes only because there's no drugs
and alcohol.
-[Jovita] and whatever barrier they come in here with.
- We do our best to try to make sure we
can overcome that barrier.
So when we looked for them for permanent supportive housing
they can sustain that housing.
Cause it's a different thing.
We can always find housing
but can they sustain that housing is the biggest thing.
And we don't want them to fall back into the cycle.
And so this is what the village is here for this is that
pit stop for us to get them physically, mentally
financially stable, to go back
and be productive citizens in whatever County they live in.
So this is the purpose of the village.
- We had a local hotel actually bring blankets here
that they weren't using anymore.
I mean, we've had mothers come here
drop off food, Tide pods.
And you know
we've actually had the St Michael's people that go
to their faith organizations come and drop off things.
They actually built one of the houses here
the blue house they actually built one of the houses here.
-[Jovita] The person who lives there they always want to meet
every time I've heard, Oh can I meet the person in 19?
Cause that's our house.
- [John] Very true
and it really took the community of Lacey
in Olympia coming together and really making this happen.
And it's been great.
- We've been as an agency protecting citizens
on riverfront for decades.
And you know, I think sometimes we lose sight of that.
I think the citizens may lose sight
of that because of course what comes
to the forefront is the criminal element.
Not everybody on the riverfront are criminals.
Not everybody on the river, front property are addicted
to drugs or have mental health issues are, are alcoholics.
Obviously there are those who have a combination
of perhaps all three.
I think there's a lot
of positive interaction that is not really spoke of.
I think you're going to get an opportunity when
you speak with some
of the officers that do frequent the riverfront property
and you'll hear that same information
- Like this sleeping bag right here, you know
like this thing saved my fucking life.
I remember the first night I was out here
like the very first night I had this tent and like
I didn't even have a blanket.
You know what I mean?
And it was cold.
It was like cold and windy.
And like, it was my first time setting up a tent.
So like my dumb ass didn't even put on like the tarp on.
Right. You know what I mean?
And like
Fucking... so like
it was a little bit exposed to wind coming in
and I was in here like fucking freezing
until like about two in the morning.
And then fucking...
I ended up having to, I was like, dude, I can't do this.
I ended up having to, fuck I was like, dude, I can't do this.
I got the, I seen this cop drive by
and I got the idea, you know, like, you know
as much as I fucking hate cops, you know, as much
as they ruined my life, you know, like, like I was
I was in a tight spot, you know what I mean?
And I fucking looked up the police department
non emergency number and I, I told them my situation
and you know, they fucking hooked me
up with this fucking blanket right here.
They gave me
like a little fucking care package and shit.
And I was like, you know
like I was like, you know, like, thank you guys.
You know?
Like I was appreciating like, you know, I don't
I usually don't like cops, you know?
But like
they fucking they saved my life that night
- What's going on, man?
How are you?
- I can't find my brother.
- Your brother?
-Chubby
-Chubbzzz
Isn't he over on Wishkah?
- Yeah.
I want to check on him though.
- All right. Cool. I'll go check on him too in a little bit.
- Yea thats all I want to do.
- Cool.
I'll go check on him too in a little bit.
- Yea let me know.
- All right.
take care.
- [Rick] What's wrong with Chubbzzz?
- I know he, he's probably sitting
down to throwing back, but.
- [Rick] And that was his
that was
- his way of saying
- I'm not doing nothing.
- I'm just trying to check on Chubbzzz
here's chubbzzz right here.
I'm looking for Ken Pinkernell.
Has anyone seen, we're also looking for David gangle.
If anyone had seen,
how are you doing Ken?
- I just gotta check on these people.
- That's a good thing.
Hey, Ken, take care of Homer.
All right.
- [Ken] Awe, cmon. I can't take care of both!
- I think Dave, I think Dave needs the most help though.
- I love you, brother
Take care.
He's always pretty cool.
Always, always laughing, joking.
- Harbor Two Seven Six
-[Radio] Two Seven Six, go ahead.
- I'll be down at the river camps
checking on things
- [Radio] 276, 15 50
as this situation is getting worse
and you realize, well, you know, work in these people go.
They there isn't somewhere they can go.
And there's no single answer.
Everyone has a different story to tell.
It's not like you can just say
this is the way we're going to fix it.
And so I'm just trying to do as much
as I can to show them it's better for everybody.
And it's certainly better for us in our careers.
If they can fix their issues, they have and...
become uh...uh... happier
with their life and, and be in a better
situation
to where they want to get up in the morning.
And they have goals like,
hi, what's up
out for a little jog
- going down to get some food
- getting some food, huh?
- Oh, it's down at the gate now.
right.
Oh its down at the gate now.
You better get it before everyone else does.
Yeah. All right.
Good, good.
You I'm glad you're looking good and everything.
So, all right.
You keeping them all in line down here.
Oh, you bet. Trying.
All right.
We'll go grab some of that food.
All right.
Have a good day.
And we just need to do the best we can to help them.
They're the ones that decide.
If they're going to make those decisions to get back
on their feet, you can't arrest the problem.
You know, you got to try to get them to take control
of their life and try to get out of it.
Someone ever help you carry that stuff.
- Once somebody did last week.
- Oh
- Dude, he is very, very, very capable.
That man is one of the strongest men.
I know.
- I know he is.
I know he is.
- If you were to ask 30 years ago
when I started in this profession and mission statements
really weren't a thing.
If you were doing choir, I would say, well
it's the serve and protect, serve and protect.
I think the protect thing is pretty
evident that that's what we should be doing.
I think the serve thing in some
with some agencies has gotten
a bit skewed
as to what that translates into.
- What's like the ugly part
of relating to folks down here?
- Ugly...part?
- Some would say, they're like in the gutter
they don't care about it.
They don't care about what, what they look like.
And we're looking like this is a sad thing
and they don't want to change.
And you're, they're, trying to like speak some sense into them.
And it's
it's hard to see that know they're hurting their life
and they, they just don't really care about that.
- [Cameraman] What do you tell-
- Two PaulThirteen, go ahead.
- [Cameraman] What do you tell Rick Walters when he falls off
and you find them down there at the river
- What do I tell Rick?
- Yeah.
- I'll go grab him
and put him in my uh
Chevy express van.
And then I'll duct tape him to my tree at home.
I'll tell him, honestly,
I'll just be there for him.
He's my friend.
And I would probably go down
and visit him and just talk hope into his life, you know
because
I shouldn't give up on him.
That's, that's what it is.
You know,
I probably want to like punch him a few times but,
you better not fall off.
But if he does, I'll be there for him.
I mean,
that's what family
that's what brothers do
stick together.
- [Rick] I got to admit there was some people I was
uncomfortable talking to.
I met this cat named Samuel
and he scared the shit out of me.
When I first saw him,
I wasn't able to record what he said
but I figured I'd tell you anyway
because he's pretty much me.
I've been on the streets and a lot
of different States since I graduated high school.
What else there is to say, but being with my friends
being outside in nature, I get cabin fever sometimes.
And I just want to travel.
You got to take care
of things and all that bull crap in life.
I understand that.
I don't even know what to say right now, man.
I rather live in a tent in the forest
and sleep around the birds and the bees than a
than a house full of problems.
I love the road.
I love the river.
I love hopping the trains
the streets and all the different places
I've been over the years and years.
Right now I feel like
I'm stagnant having to,
Having to...
I don't know, flip the page
or turn the chapter on life.
- Sometimes
almost all the time.
I wish I could find like one
solid girl around my age
and just
travel all over the country with her or something.
See this beautiful world.
But,
that has yet to really happen.
I don't know how much more I want to say other than that
I don't know...
I guess thank you for letting me speak.
Put a smile on my face.
Just...
Just stopping and talking to me
for a minute.
You know the difference
between a right hug and a left hug?
When you hug someone this way your hearts beat apart.
When you hug someone this way they beat together.
- [Rick] Not everybody wants to be part of the system.
Not everybody wants help
but everybody's definitely somebody.
- [Woman] I've known [indistinct] since we were little kids.
He wasn't always like this.
- [Rick] what was he like before?
- [Woman] He was a normal bright young man very athletic
- [Rick] And what happened?
- [Woman] He got a hot dose.
- [Woman] He got, a-
Somebody shot him up with a hot dose
- [Rick] Hot dose what do you mean?
- [Woman] Its drug induced schizophrenia.
- Yeah. And I remember I was a teenager when
the timber industry crashed
and I remember loggers going door
to door and I remember people becoming homeless
and I remember all of that happening.
And I remember people turning to drugs as an alternative
not just as a coping skill
but also as an alternative economy.
-Right.
Right. It's an, it's a way to make money, you know?
And you know, that's part of the problem.
There's not a lot of ways to make money here.
And when you're 18, 19 and end up on the street.
- Yeah. People like pissing and shit into fucking
to bottles just to fucking cook with
so like like fucking piss into a bottle
and like pour under the fucking spoon just to cook with
with like dude really you're gonna fucking put that in you.
I'm like, man.
That's why I only smoke like,
I don't fuck with any- like
I don't fucking slam nothing, like...
I'll smoke it all.
Fucking
put it on a foil, put it in the fucking glass pipe.
Like I'm down with black.
I'm down with white.
Fucking
I'll do anything
on the fucking face of the earth.
I'll take tabs.
I'll fucking, I'll do ecstasy.
I'll fucking I'll shoot pills fucking all day.
-[Rick] Do you have your lighter?
Yes I do.
- Yeah. fucking heroin made me into the person that allowed
my boyfriend at the time
and a friend of his basically robbed my mom's house.
Let them into my mom's house
let them take whatever they wanted just
so I can get my next fucking
get well.
-[Rick] Fuck...
And realizing that and realizing the person I really am.
And that wasn't it.
Gave me the...the...
confidence to
fucking kick it.
And I kicked the cold Turkey smoking chronic weed
for two weeks.
- If I get beat up
on throw me in that fucking fire.
just make sure my mom gets my body
don't just pit me in garbage can.
I don't like that.
I died three times in Seattle.
- [Rick] That's how you communicate.
- Heroine and cocaine, shit.
I've had a problem since I was 11
- I don't even have anything against needles.
Like I'm just like as sketchy, like dude fucking...
- [Rick] I died a couple times. Its bad
- [Woman] He can be within, you know
a normal state of mind when he is sober
but it takes a long time months, you know, when
they get back and they still it's never the same, but yeah
he's lucky to be alive.
- [Rick] What is, where is he?
- Not sure.
His mother, family, everything.
Everybody has tried, but I don't
I don't really know if it can be completely rectified.
He lost a lot.
When he went, he lost our brother
Daniel and him were very best friends
and he died right down there is his Memorial.
And they both had the same thing.
Drug induced schizophrenia.
They were very close.
And since then
he's never really never really tried as hard.
You know, he lost a lot when Daniel passed away.
-[Off Camera] He lost is best friend.
- Yea.
-[Councilwoman] Thats why I asked twice
-You got bad hearing.
- Hi, my name is Tom Davis, I live in Aberdeen.
Third ward.
I'd like to share with you, what I consider maybe
what sometimes people call it the wrong perception
and a little reading here.
Bear with me, please.
A man once had to leave home for a long time.
Before he left home, his wife got pregnant
but he didn't know it.
When he returned, his wife had given birth to a child.
He suspected that little boy was not his and believed
that he was the son of the neighbor that he used to come
and work for the family, the little boy with suspicion.
He looked at the little boy with suspicion.
He hated him.
He saw the neighbor's face in the little boy's face.
And one day.
The Man's brother came to visit
for the first time when he saw the little boy he said
to the father, he looks just like you.
He's your exact duplicate.
The brothers visit
was a happy event
because it helped the father get rid
Get rid of his wrong perception.
But the wrong perception had controlled the man's life
for 12 years.
It made the fathers suffer deeply.
It made his wife suffer deeply.
And of course the little boys suffered from
that kind of hatred.
We act on the basis of wrong perceptions all the time.
We should not be sure of any perception we have.
When you look at the beautiful sunset, you may be quite sure
that you're seeing the sun as it is in that moment.
but a scientist will tell you that that image
of the sun that you see is an image
of the sun from eight minutes ago
sunlight takes eight minutes to reach the earth
from such a long distance.
Also,
when you see a star, you think that the star is there
but that star may have disappeared already.
One, two or 10,000 years before
we have to be very careful
with our perceptions.
Otherwise we will suffer.
It is very helpful to write on a piece of paper.
Are you sure
and hang it up in your room
and medical clinics, hospitals, they're beginning to hang
up these kinds of signs, even if you are sure.
Check again.
It is a caution that if disease is not detected early
it can be very difficult to heal.
Medical doctors are not thinking
in terms of mental formations.
They are thinking in terms of a hidden disease
but
we can also make use of this slogan.
Even if you are sure, check again
we have made ourselves suffer.
We made a hell for ourselves.
And our beloved ones because of our perceptions.
Are you sure of your perception?
There are people who suffer
from wrong perceptions for 10, 20 years.
They are sure
as the other person has betrayed them or hates them.
And even though the other person
has portrayed only good intentions
a person who is the victim or wrong perception
makes himself
and the people around him suffered a lot.
When you're angry
and you're suffering, please go back and inspect
very deeply, the content and the nature of your perception.
If you're capable
of rebuilding the wrong perception,
peace
happiness
will be restored you
and you will be able to, uh...
love the other person again.
Thank you, Madam Mayor.
- [Mayer Larson] In Aberdeen, we're kinda in a unique postion, similar to Olympia.
- There's kind of the elephant in the room.
The fact that the city is currently being in a lawsuit
and a lot of that has stemmed from, I think, a disconnect
between some of the people who were looking to advocate
for homeless individuals in our community
and the realities of what, what is attainable
and also understanding that, you know, ultimately
we're government agencies, we, we represent all people.
We have to be thoughtful
about how we're using the public's money
- how we manage public spaces for everybody's right.
- And so it's a very challenging thing
because sometimes everybody has different expectations
about what the city should do.
And as far as they're concerned
their expectation is the one that everybody supports.
And you always find yourself
in the situation of trying to find that common
middle ground that you know is going to be sustainable.
- And then you make everybody mad.
I think that's the biggest
challenge is that homelessness is a continuum.
You know, every program has a discreet population that it
that it deals with and you're always going to have gaps.
And I think, I think even when you talk
about temporary housing, you know, it's really temporary
for the individual and not temporary
for the community in the sense that it's, it's
it's always going to be a need the word temporary
applies to the person that you're helping, not
not the housing
And it's, it's a very difficult thing.
Cause people think, Oh, well, we'll do this.
And then we'll, we'll get all of these people housed
and then there'll be no more homelessness in the city.
Good luck with that.
The value of the home in general is so depreciated
by the need for flood insurance
that yes the banks won't lend
- in many of those homes reviewed do over 50% improvements.
You're going to have to raise it
up up five base flood elevation.
- Which more than doubles the cost of any of the models.
It's a very delicate situation.
We're working on addressing that.
We've got a major levy project that's that's
in the works that we've gotten significant state funding
from working on the federal component to it.
And that should take about 3,300 properties
out of the flood plan.
And it represents about half
of the city's real estate.
When we build this levy and we
and we have all of this growth
and we've got to manage all of this.
We aren't going to see any increases in funding to do that.
So that's, that's the other challenge.
So it's, it's, it's, it's always complicated, isn't it?
- Yes. And like I said, we're all in this together.
Really.
- [Phone Speaker] Hello?
- Hey, what's what's going on, Barb.
Hi. How are you doing
-[Barb] Who is this?
- Dean
- [Barb] oh
its that long lost idiot son.
- [Barb] How are you doing.
- Oh, I'm doing all right.
I'm down on the river.
How are you guys doing?
- [Barb] Do you still have you apartment there in Aberdeen.
- Oh, no, no, no, I don't got that either
but I am going to treatment there within two weeks.
- [Barb] You're going to treatment.
- Yeah, I got a bed date.
I haven't told anybody.
You're the first one, so, yeah.
- [Barb] So you're camping out too.
Hey, I love camping.
I should've did this a long time ago.
Who needs a truck and shit
When I can just live down at the river.
What's father doing.
- [Barb] sitting at the table he can't hear on this phone.
- Well, just tell him to say hi to me anyway.
Just say, Hey.
Oh, Hey, you dumb son.
Anything.
I met him right here for my first time.
-[Father] Hello?
Hey, what are you doing.
- [Father] I can't hear
Hey, what are you doing Pops. anyway.
Anyway.
It's all right.
I want to hear his voice.
- [Rick] There you go.
Can you say anything you want brother.
You know, my brother and my friends.
- [Rick] What keeps you happy?
- What keeps me happy?
I mean, fucking...
society, I guess, fuck.
Knowing that there's a fucking possibility
of going back.
I mean, like this isn't forever, I guess.
Like, I don't want to do this.
The rest of my life.
It's a fucking stepping stone.
- [Rick] What, what keeps you happy?
- I don't know.
My son has been teaching me.
I don't know the Bible, but even kind of working, you know
teaching me the word about God and everything.
It keeps my hopes up
- The Lord is my shepherd.
I shall not want and makes him lay down in green pastures.
He leadeth me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his namesake though, I walked
Though I walk through the Valley of shadow and death
I shall fear no evil.
For his rod, his staff
they shall comfort me.
He prepares a table before me.
He annoys my head with oil.
My cup runs way over.
I don't want anymore.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow the rest
of my days in life.
And I shall dwell in the house forever in Jesus' Holy name.
Amen. And that's Psalm 23.
I learned that in jail.
and it seems to work sometimes and keep a positive attitude.
- [Rick] How do you stay happy?
-Um...
- I just go on with my day, do what I, whatever I gotta do.
Get my things taken care of that daily
like water and getting fed and everything and
make sure that dried clean clothes and stuff.
It just became a habit, something normal.
- You know, and you can't help everybody, you know
but I can make sure everybody's got coffee.
Everybody's got food in their bellies.
You know, there's, you know, there's some people
that are just so far gone that
You really...
you try to just make sure that that they're safe
at night and that they I've got some, you know
they go home or go outside with food in their bellies
but that's about all you can do for them.
And it it's sad and it's depressing, but you know
but, you know
we're here every day trying to just make sure
that everybody's at least taking care
of a little bit and there's no easy or neat solution to it.
There's a lot of different cities that are doing a lot
of different things, but really, I mean, it's
it's not going to be not gonna be easy to fix the homeless problem
if you could even fix it.
So.
But, you know, everybody's got to eat.
- And there was also
what always happens when there's lack is there's always
there's always the temptation to fight each other.
- Do you have any, is it like contested
like your relationship with the city
or the police department?
Or are you guys working together?
- Well, it's always contested particularly, you know
now we're in the middle of I'm, I'm in the middle
of litigation with the city, so it's contested
- but is there anyone that you, I mean
do you guys talk sensibly, like when you have phone calls
or like in other situations, like,
- I mean I've had many one-on-one conversations
and also group conversations with
both the mayor and city officials on numerous occasions.
And I'm always open to continuing that.
Um...
What I would like to see is those conversations move toward
you know, actual solutions.
- You know, I I'm cognizant of the fact
that right now there's a large number of people homeless
in this area that are trying to find a place to go.
And no matter where they go, they, they
there there's somebody that doesn't want them there.
I get that.
And that's something that we're struggling
with and we're trying to find solutions.
I very much appreciate what people come together and say
I understand, I understand both sides of this issue.
How do we go from the divisiveness that we're at now
and find to find a solution that that might not
be everything everybody was looking for
but it's better than what we have today.
And, you know, that's something that I still
am hopeful we'll be able to get to.
But a lot of the comments there tonight were not
comments that were coming
from a place of trying to reach that point.
And so, you know, it's something that is frustrating for me
but you know, we're
we're just going to keep moving forward.
on trying to address this issue, like many other areas
in this state and this country are trying to do.
- I think we have the opportunity as a community.
We, we either can choose healing.
We can choose to invest in solutions
or we can self-destruct
um...
and tear each other apart.
um...
And I hope we choose healing.
I hope we choose solutions.
- [Adalley] I'm gonna say right now, you don't know me and shit.
and I'm...
I don't know, probably sound weird.
I don't know, fuck.
but um...
I'm in a similar situation, I guess, but
-Right.
-But, um...
if you ever need anything and you see me around or anything
like holler at me,
- I do appreciate that.
You too.
Like, I mean, even somebody to talk to you, you know?
And just like I tell people, you know
I don't got much, but like, you know
like I know how I know what it is, like how it's like
when you like feeling like, you know, like, like you wanna
you just want to give up, you know?
And like, you got nobody to talk to you.
You know what I mean?
-Yea.
I'm going to come up.
You know what I mean?
I still got faith.
- [Adalley] Good don't let go of that.
- But you know exactly like, cause if you don't have that
then what the fuck do we have?
-Exactly.
Every day-
- No matter how hard and fucking fucked up it is
at least you have something to learn from it.
The only way you can really look
at things and keep moving forward.
[ background music playing]
-Uh, what's your name, sir?
-Uh, David.
-David, okay David.
Do you have anyone we can contact for you, David?
Get some assistance to help you get moved?
Because we have some tent sites set up by city hall...
[inaubible]
[background music fading]
- Long as I'm warm
middle of the night till I wake up.
Ill sleep nice and warm.
and that's all I need.
The rest...
It's love.
I'm surrounded by love.
Heya, Heya, Heya,
That's sort of my old sayings.
Actually its a- Actually its a song.
Heya, Heya, Heya,
can I sing it?
- [Rick] Yeah.
- All right.
This is how the, Heya, Heya, Heya, song goes.
♪ Heya heya he heya heya heya heya ♪
♪ Heya heya
♪ indistinct
♪ river comes to the ocean ♪
♪ at home heya heya
♪ Taholah Washington
♪ Heya Heya
♪ oh the big family, go on the river bed ♪
♪ gonna say hi to grandma and hows everybody else ♪
♪ Heya Heya
♪ All the way to Taholah ♪
♪ Heya Heya Heya
♪ Everybody okay?
Heya Heya.
Like that one?
That's the one I wrote.