Council People and Sturdy Structures.
Beatrice
Dear friends, allies and supporters:
Greetings from the men, women and children of Nickelsville.
First and foremost, we would like to thank our friends who showed up on the Fourth of July and built a complete small, simple, sturdy sleeping structure in a day. It was wonderful to work alongside our supporters and enjoy a deep feeling of camaraderie.
Outside volunteers not only worker, but brought coffee, a meal and all the materials for the structure! This help came from many different places, including the leadership and communities of Elisabeth Gregory House, Operation Nightwatch, and Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness.
We took many pictures and videos of the event which you can view on our Facebook group “Nickelsville”; please join for regular updates if you have not yet done so.
This past Friday 7/1/11 we met in conjunction with our friends from SHARE/WHEEL’s Tent City 3 with Councilman Nick Licata and his legislative aide Lisa Herbold to discuss a proposed Encampment Ordinance for Seattle. (The week before we had a good meeting with Seattle Deputy Mayor Darryl Smith.) This proposal has potential, but will need to be reviewed to ensure that it does not limit potential hosts to religious institutions, or place a number cap on how many can reside in a camp.
On Tuesday 7/5/11 we once again joined forces with our friends from SHARE/WHEEL’s two Tent Cities and spoke in front of the City Council about changes to Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan (that deals mostly with land use.) We asked that Councilman Licata’s amendment – that would allow encampments in industrial areas when the site has no other present use – be approved so that Nickelsville could remain at its current permanent site.
Being officially recognized is of upmost importance to us. It would help us with access to city utilities (such as water, sewage and electricity) that at present we must survive without. Also, at this time local law enforcement agencies will not help us unless a crime has been committed on the property.
We urge our friends to contact the City Council members on the Committee on the Built Environment and ask them to support amendment number 6. They are:
Sally J. Clark, Chair sally...@seattle.gov
Tim Burgess, Vice Chair tim.b...@seattle.gov
Sally Bagshaw, member sally....@seattle.gov
Tom Rasmussen, alternate tom.ra...@seattle.gov
Last but not least, we are honored to be hosting tomorrow’s “Housing, Human Services, Health and Culture Committee” at Nickelsville!!! Council Members Licata, Clark, Rasmussen and Council President Conlin will be coming to our home for this very special meeting. It will start at 2:30pm and be broadcasted on the Seattle Channel. We hope that you will watch it, either on channel 21 or on the internet at http://www.seattlechannel.org/
Once again, thank you for your ongoing support and friendship.
