BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Police and public works crews on Tuesday cleared a notorious homeless camp that has been operating in Bellingham for about 15 years.
It was home to hundreds of unhoused people, and they treated it as such, moving in couches, mattresses, even artwork. Now, all of that is headed to the landfill.
"There are real, tangible community safety concerns there," said Bellingham Mayor Kim Lund, who spearheaded the sweep with mounting reports of overdoses, rapes and murders.
Neighbors at the nearby Tullwood Apartments have been complaining for years.
"There's gunfire all the time. All the time," tenant Shelli Tench told KING 5 last October. "It's a daily misery."
Tuesday's action was peaceful. Over the past few weeks outreach workers have been offering services and shelter. There are empty beds at the city's new Lighthouse Mission, but it doesn't look like many have taken up the offer.
"They're more wanting to have autonomy and unfortunately quite often addiction is in the mix," said Hans Erchinger-Davis, the mission's president and CEO. "We don't allow people to use here, so most likely they'll move on to the next spot."
The full clean-up of the 20-acre site is expected to cost around $5 million. The city has already taken the property owner, who lives in Taiwan, to court to put a lien on her property and make her reimburse taxpayers.
"They purchased the property 4 years ago and have had the opportunity to understand the potential risk and liability they were stepping into when they acquired the parcel," said Mayor Lund.
Meantime, decontamination crews worked the campground prior to steel fencing being put up to keep people from returning. This, as advocates for those living in camps held out hope the sweeps will make a difference.
"I believe if people have a level of enforcement and accountability, or if people have to keep moving, eventually folks get tired of it and then they do come access services like our," said Erchinger-Davis.
There is another large, troublesome camp at the intersection of Northwest Avenue and Bakerview Road that has caught the attention of the city.
Lund said her office is working with multiple landowners there to coordinate efforts for the removal of the camp.