Between 2009 and 2010, the number of people living in cars, trucks and trailers increased in Seattle from 513 to 590, according to the One Night Count. At the same time, some car dwellers in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood say, police have stepped up parking enforcement, in some cases towing a vehicle without the required 72-hour notice.
That, say Barb Balden and James Vlos, two people who've been living in their vehicles for some time now, makes it all the more urgent that churches answer a renewed call from the Ballard Homes for All Coalition to provide safe parking in church lots.
The idea is simple: Congregations can provide a parking spot or two for car campers to use, along with a bathroom and electricity. It's a low-cost way to help the homeless that's worked in Eugene, Ore., and Santa Barbara, Calif., but, in the two years since the effort started in Seattle, it's had a hard time getting off the ground.
Last year, St. Luke's Episcopal Church agreed to a three-month trial, providing a spot for Real Change vendor Isaac Chapiro to park his trailer. The trial period was extended, but, after Chapiro's time was up and he had to move on, the city had his truck and trailer towed. Since then, he's been living on the streets.
The coalition is now restarting its efforts with $10,000 in state funding secured by Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson (D-Seattle) in the last legislative session. At a meeting on June 3, coalition members said the money could be used in a variety of ways, from supporting church recruitment efforts to paying for portable toilets at a given site. Congregations can do as little as provide a parking spot or create entire hygiene or support programs for their car campers, said Jean Darsie, a coalition organizer.
Whatever they do, it's their right to do it, said Sally Kinney, a member of the Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness. Federal law already prohibited government interference in church affairs without a compelling reason, she said. But this year, in the wake of Washington cities dragging congregations into court and passing laws restricting tent cities, Kinney said, the legislature wrote similar protections into state law by passing a bill introduced by Rep. Brendan Williams (D-Olympia).
"This is one of the things that congregations can do without having a shelter, without having a lot of money to invest in housing programs, without having hardly anything except a place to put two cars," Kinney said. "I would hope that congregations will look at this as something they can do without having to put a lot of financial or personal resources in, and know they have the support of the federal government and the state government to do this."
The Ballard Homes for All Coalition plans its next meeting on June 17, 7-8:30 p.m., at Crown Hill United Methodist Church, 8500 14th Ave. N.W., Seattle.