Two years ago the Greater Mount Baker Baptist Church invited the Nickelsville tent city to camp on their vacant lot behind their church which, is next to a vacant house that they choose to not rent out.

Our once typical neighborhood is now on the radar screen of criminals and prostitutes, who gather in groups and loiter for hours, intimidating the families who live in the area. The neighborhood now has to watch the criminals stand in front of the church’s vacant house selling drugs and sex.

The criminals use the property that the vacant house is on to have sex and sell drugs, yet the church has refused to put a renter in this perfectly rentable house. By putting a renter in the house, the criminals would not have the ability to hang out, in and around, the dark vacant house with anonymity.

In my opinion, the church invited the problem for the neighborhood and, are now neglecting to follow through with simple solutions, such as putting up exterior lights and renting the house.

The church is aware of the situation, since neighbors on the street have called them to complain about the problem, but for some reason, they don’t care enough to just put some exterior lights on their vacant house and rent it out.

What do we have to do, picket the church, to get them to do something?