In Our View: No on Shelter in Hazel Dell

A kind of thinking-out-loud proposal from the Vancouver City Council to create a homeless shelter in Hazel Dell should go no further than the thinking stage.

To be sure, the homeless crisis throughout the area is a serious one. Vancouver voters acknowledged as much in November, when they approved a property-tax levy to raise money for preserving existing housing and providing rental assistance. The affordable housing measure passed with 58 percent of the vote and is expected to raise about $6 million annually for seven years.

Because of the depth of the issue and the public’s willingness to deal with it, there should be no shortage of efforts from the city council. So it is understandable that councilors have floated the idea of purchasing a wedding venue north of the city and converting it into a permanent shelter offering temporary housing for the homeless. The Vancouver Housing Authority estimates the facility could be purchased for about $1 million, with renovations costing about $1.8 million and annual operating expenses running about $800,000. Estimates are that a 60-bed shelter could serve more than 500 people in need during the course of the year.

That being said, the proposal should be quickly dismissed. Among its major problems is the fact that Hazel Dell is an unincorporated area. Using the city-approved housing levy on a facility outside the city would immediately create legal questions about the appropriate use of the money. As councilor Jack Burkman said, “This is the first spending of the funds, and it’s a dramatic change from what we told (the voters).” And as mayor Tim Leavitt said: “We’re fortunate the voters approved the affordable housing fund. But if we’re changing our tune about what we want to do with this, it could present come challenges.”

It also could present some challenges for county residents. In essence, Vancouver officials would be saying that land and construction costs in the city are prohibitive, so they are going to deliver their homeless problem into the laps of county residents without giving those residents a say in the matter.

In that regard, the proposal highlights an ongoing problem. While city officials have been active in addressing homelessness, the county council has been slow to recognize the issue. As the largest city in the county, Vancouver inherently has been the center of the local homeless population. But that does not absolve county officials from providing assistance and a thoughtful approach to dealing with the issue.

The problem extends countywide and will require some synergy among all local governments rather than expecting Vancouver alone to address it. The Hazel Dell area has a noticeable homeless population, and hoping that those people relocate to downtown Vancouver does not qualify as a solution. In the past, the county council has taken an “if we don’t see them, they don’t exist” strategy by voting to outlaw panhandling on sidewalks; we trust that the new county council will adopt a more effective approach.

Meanwhile, the Vancouver City Council is right to consider all possible options. As voters within the city have indicated, leaving people with no alternatives other than camping in fields or living in their cars is not a compassionate, considerate solution. But the idea of a city-created homeless shelter in Hazel Dell is not a realistic one, either.