SEATTLE — On the eve of the MLB All-Star Week, some SODO business owners near the ballpark are getting what they asked the city for – an RV encampment cleared.
The city says the cleanup was not just because of the game, but instead part of ongoing work in the neighborhood. According to the city, there has been a consistent focus on SODO over the last year and a half due to a high concentration of RVs and tents.
“We have not changed our process or approach in the lead-up to the All-Star Game,” said spokesperson Lori Baxter.
A notice went up about the scheduled cleanup at the encampment located near 3rd Avenue and Holgate.
"There were RVs, and they were using our parking lot as their front door,” said Marc McCann, owner of Butler Parking Corporation.
McCann calls the cleanup in Seattle's Sodo neighborhood a welcome sight.
"It was an absolute mess,” said McCann. "They all moved in at 1:30 in the morning about a month ago."
Back in June, Mike Coombs, the co-owner of Outdoor Emporium said, “They've got to help with the broken-down motorhomes in the area and something needs to happen there."
After the cleanup today, he said, “I am feeling good that the city is doing what they said they would do. I just want to make sure this is not just for the All-Star game. This needs to be an ongoing effort 365 days a year, every month.”
According to the city, in the SODO neighborhood, there were 15 encampment resolutions last year, and five in the first quarter of this year. In 2022, there were 83 shelter referrals, and in the first three months of this year, there were 82.
On the site of today’s cleanup, one person was wearing a message that said "Stop the war on homeless people -- housing and services, not sweeps."
"I don't agree that there is a war on the homeless,” McCann said, adding that it is about public safety. "These vehicles, they parked here for weeks."
“When there is drug use going on and other things that are illegal, it is not good for the community,” said Coombs.
In SODO, the street was transformed in a short amount of time, and McCann says he wants it to last.
"It looks nice, and I hope it stays this way, but I am not holding my breath,” he said.
The city says there was outreach done with 24 people leading up to today’s cleanup, and seven of them accepted shelter referrals.