Homeless Shelter Proposes Move to 13th & Spring: Meeting Wednesday

By Bill
(0 votes) (report abuse)

Catholic Community Services has invited SHARE to move its emergency homeless shelter to a building at the southeast corner of 13th Avenue and E. Spring Street.  The building had been a long-term site of a day care center operated by Catholic Community Services.  The children's day care center moved earlier this year.

The proposed SHARE shelter would have a capacity of twenty men and would operate nightly, seven days a week.  Since leaving the Community of Christ Church in West Seattle in June, the shelter has been in at least three locations, including the St. James Catherdral, Seattle Prep, and, now, Goodwill Industries on Dearborn Street.

In September Catholic Community Serivces met with the First Hill Improvement Association to inform that group that it intended to establish a permanent housing facility for homeless Veterans at the 13th and Spring location.  However, the developer has not lined up funding for the permanent housing project.  Catholic Community Services does not know when funding for the permanent housing project will be secured.

SHARE and Catholic Community Services will hold a meeting to provide an opportunity to learn more about the temporary emergency shelter.  The meeting will be at the proposed shelter site, 1307 E. Spring Street, at 7:30, Wednesday, November 18. 

tags: homeless shelter, SHARE, Catholic Community Services + add tags
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location: 12th AveSeattle, Washington
posted on Tue, Nov 17, 2009 01:21 PM
last updated on Tue, Nov 17, 2009 01:22 PM
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what about the safety of Seattle U students bycynic2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
Where will these homeless men go during the day? To Seattle University? I think there has to be some place that would work better, without endangering the student community.
RE: what about the safety of Seattle U students byAndrew Taylor2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse)
Tent City (also run by Share) has been at St. Joe's on 19th in Capitol Hill a couple of time.

Concern-wise it was a total non-event. No issues. Nada. Zilch.

Andrew
Shelter stayers leave the neighborhood during the day byFlo Beaumon2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
SHARE shelter rules for this shelter state:
"Prohibited behaviors and/or activities include but are not limited to:
Littering, Panhandling or Loitering in or around the Neighborhood (10 block radius)."

This and other shelter rules and policies will be presented at Wednesday's meeting.
probably good to go to the info session... byeyes open2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
...and get some 1st hand details about the proposal. Will there be background checks? What safety protocols are put into place? What rules are in place for the residents and will SHARE staff actually enforce them, or will they sweep issues under the rug? Do the staff and students at Seattle Academy know, and do they have any safety concerns for their students and staff? Have the SPD been notified that this may occur and do the Community Police Team know? Has any outreach been done to the rest of the community other than hosting an info meeting?

As far as the safety of the Seattle U students, let's look at this realistically: SU is just north of the DESC program "The Evans House", which houses many mentally ill, destitute, and criminally violent residents. The 500 block of Broadway, directly to the west, is a crack cocaine haven in and outside of the Yasuko Apartments, and further south of Seattle U in the 100 block of 12 Av is the St. Francis drop in center. Southeast of Seattle U is the Youth Service Center, where our criminally-oriented juveniles go to court and probation meetings..and soem go for target practice. Let's not forget Waid's, and the Ethiopian/Eritrean crack and narcotics activity that occurs in front of the Blue Nile at 12 Ave & E Remington Court.

All of this, and Seattle U hasn't fallen into the ground, nor has blood started to run in the streets.

I am critical of SHARE, their purported intentions, and I doubt their altruism. I do think, that before casting judgement, it would benefit those of us that live/work in the area to go to the meeting and see what it's all about.

Thanks CDN for keeping us in the loop, without this blog, I'd never have known that a meeting was scheduled.
First Hill Improvement Assoc??? bykt2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
What does First Hill have to do with it? Glad they are having the meeting now. I'd think they would talk to Squire Park, Seattle U and the 12th Ave. Stewardship. Sheesh.
SHARE makes the grade byLawJ2 months ago (1 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
Share has been hosted at the Catholic Community Services Center, next to me. many times. In my 14 years at 24th & Yesler, SHARE guys have stayed maybe 4, or 8 times. Sorry to say, I'm not really sure how many times they have been across the street. I have been the SHARE introduction meeting a few times. I forget how long they stay for; it's only a few weeks I think.

At the C.C. building, I understand the guys arrive late in the evening, and sleep on the floor of the cafe room for a few hours. In the morning they store the bedding stuff and supplies in an outdoor shed, they do a few chores, then leave the area. I get a chance to ride the bus with some of these men. It is early in the morning and these guys seem to eager to get moving like everyone else. My conversations with them are primarily about; working in the trades (like me), finding work, or getting around by bus.

My surrounding area gets a flyer/notice when ever SHARE are to come stay again. I suggest folks go to the meeting on Spring Street to voice support. I've been to three meetings at 23rd & Yesler myself. I went to one meeting where only two neighbors bothered to come and say... anything. SHARE provides you an opportunity to not only speak, but a chance to listen to their mission as well. If they were coming back across the street here, I would go say hello and Welcome.

The experience I have with these men is that they very much care about taking care of their little space as well as the host building. I appreciate their efforts at maintaining the perimeter of the building they stay in. When SHARE is visiting, the building grounds are picked up and trash free like rarely found otherwise. I'd welcome them back to this street anytime.

Today at the Community Center, I see white paint marks around the perimeter grass. This may be the beginning of Catholic Community Center's new project. Permanent housing and apartments are due to go up in what is now the parking lot here.

I'm grateful there are efforts out there to take care of people, and house people, even for one night. I hope to find my own task in larger community support someday.
What they will do during the day... byHeath Hunnicutt2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
Among other things, the hand-out from SHARE tells us that they will "patrol" our neighborhood.

No, there will be no background checks. I've already called the contact number on their little hand-out. The people who live in this facility are asked to "self identify" (make up a name) and fill out a form which states they are not a felon or sex offender.

My only objection to this SHARE plan is their resistance to identifying their wards and performing criminal record/sex offender checks. Of course, by deliberately not doing so, SHARE is accepting an incredible liability for themselves. Sadly, that will only matter after someone or something comes to harm due to SHARE's deliberate efforts to harbor people who don't want to give their name.
Share byTim2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
I dont really care how nice the homeless are or how well they take care of the shelter area. This will be directly across the streat for me and I want nothing to do with it. A previous poster indicated the volume of services already in the area.Perhaps and area which has little or no shelters in its domain whould volenteer to pick up the slack. There are already a number of homless who sleep around the 12th ave area I have no desire to have any more. Seattle Academy just spent several weeks moving the drug dealers out of 13th ave, lets not bring any further problems in.
When i was asked about the project six months ago I was told the building would be used as a day center for rehabilatation of VA patients. I had no issues with this use. A shelter is not wanted and I will fight it all the way through.
Tim
Share byEllen2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
I do not understand why CCC held a meeting with the First Hill Association on this issue and met with neither Squire Park Community Council or the 12th Avenue Stewardship committee. The rumor was this was going to be a day center for VA patients. Which is it? How will it be managed and monitored? How does Seattle Academy feel about this and their young students?
Failure to share bycynic2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
they left out the relevant parties so they could sneak this shelter in. The idea of housing 20 homeless one block from Seattle U and Seattle Academy is ludicrous. But as long as they technically hold a meeting, they can shut down later complaints, even though they engineer the meeting to ensure nonattendance of the relative parties. There's gotta be a better spot. Maybe SoDo?
wed meeting byTim2 months ago (0 votes) (report abuse) (reply)
Very disapointing to say the least. A panel of Share shelter men fielding softball questions from people who were in favor of the shelter. The difficult questions were dismissed by saying "we have never had a problem before".
In the organizers minds it was a done deal and everyone should be happy they are moving in.
Additional information about the VA proposed use was as follows.
Whould be a mental health shelther for vets suffing from post tramatic stess disorder recieving help at the VA hospital. The initial porposal to the VA was turned down and the poeple responsible are going to have to resubmit.
When i was approached about the VA use for the building I was told it would be a day use area for vets needing physiothreapy. A much easier sell.
There is no time frame for the shelter departure despite what is indicated on the flyer and the organizers declined to indicate if would be staying even longed if the building did not have another use.
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