The U. S. government estimates that on any given night there are over 500,000 people living on the American streets, 25 percent of them children. The NLCHP has identified over 100 tent cities in 41 cities across the country, 2008-2013, but only about a dozen of them are legal encampments.
People that Reuters interviewed living in sanctioned camps spoke of a more stable, safer and goal-oriented life than living on the streets or in a traditional shelter. Andrew Heben, who wrote “Tent City Urbanism,” said chasing homeless people off the street will just make them move to another part of the streets. “Not letting people legally exist costs more than giving people places to stay,” said Heben.
The residents of Seattle’s Tent City work unpaid cleaning the premises, help with security, attend weekly meetings, avoid drugs, violence and alcohol, and live without heat.
Unauthorized encampments in Boise, Washington, D. C., and Honolulu were cleared by police this year. As MHProNews reported Sept 18, 2015, Honolulu is building a 16-20 modular homeless community made of old shipping containers.
Portland and Eugene, Oregon, Olympia, Washington and Clearwater, Florida all have allowed tent camps for the homeless. As MHProNews posted May 28, 2015, in Eugene, Opportunity Village is made of 30 transitional homes, each 60 square feet, for the chronically homeless. Seattle has three tent cities after 66 homeless people died on the streets. The homeless population in King County has risen 21 percent since 2014. ##
(Photo credit: reuters/Shannon Stapleton–Jammie Nichols and Shane Savage in front of their encampment in Seattle)
