KENT, Wash. — Kent City Council discussed a potential camping ban on public property on Tuesday.
This comes after one of the largest encampments in unincorporated King County was removed a few months ago, just outside of Kent city limits.
Kent City Council is still in the planning phase but it’s considering an ordinance that would ban camping outside of designated camping areas to keep people from sleeping near businesses and along the Green River.
The city received complaints from business owners in town and heard environmental concerns as some of the recent places that homeless encampments have formed are along the Green River.
In July, King County cleared out 52,000 pounds of trash from a site where about 100 people were camping near the river.
At Tuesday's meeting, Kent officials promised that the changes to unlawful camping laws will be made out of compassion.
The proposed revisions to the law will ensure that people forced to leave their camps will be given shelter. The ban would also apply to specific locations, such as designated public parks and trails, city-owned places where staff go to work and environmentally sensitive areas.
Kent human services will monitor shelter availability and law enforcement will provide treatment options. According to officials, filing any charges for unlawful camping will be a last resort.
Tacoma is also considering a camping ban that would prohibit camping and storing personal belongings on public property within 10 blocks of temporary shelters in the city.
In May, the city of Edmonds passed an ordinance creating penalties if there is evidence that someone intends to occupy city property, at least overnight illegally, and refuses shelter.
Like Edmonds, Kent is looking into potential shelter options where people could go and any possible penalty or fines if they do not move from an area where camping would be banned.
Kent has a camping ban ordinance in place but it has not been updated in years.
The council discussed the camping ban at Tuesday’s Operations and Public Safety Committee meeting at 4 p.m. The official vote is expected Oct. 18.