Lacey says no outdoor tent city

By Christian Hill | The Olympian • Published April 25, 2008

A divided City Council approved an ordinance Thursday requiring faith-based groups that want to shelter the homeless to do so in their churches, and not outside in tents.

The vote was 4-3. Deputy Mayor John Darby and council members Ann Burgman, Jason Hearn and Tom Nelson voted yes. Mayor Graeme Sackrison and council members Virgil Clarkson and Mary Dean voted no.

The ordinance has drawn criticism from advocates of the homeless and church representatives who say the requirement is unworkable because churches don't have enough room to serve as both religious centers and homeless shelters.

Proponents on the council said safety was their top consideration in supporting the ordinance.

Darby said the intent of the ordinance is not to turn away the homeless from Lacey, and he was saddened to think about forcing people to sleep in a tent when they could sleep indoors.

"I can't in good conscience say, 'Bring your tent to Lacey,' " Darby said.

Councilman Tom Nelson said he supported the ordinance because it promotes safety for homeless people and residents.

Under the ordinance, people interested in staying at the shelter must present identification to the church or agree to be fingerprinted.

The Lacey Police Department will use the identification to check whether the resident has any outstanding warrants or is a registered sex offender. If so, the resident will be arrested or expelled from the shelter.

Councilwoman Ann Burgman said nothing in the ordinance prevents churches from sheltering the homeless. Although churches might have insufficient room for 40 homeless people — the maximum allowed under the ordinance — they could house three or four, she said.

Councilwoman Mary Dean voiced concerns about the ripple effect of the ordinance as Olympia and Tumwater have approved ordinances that allow a tent city such as Camp Quixote, and Lacey could be seen as leaving the responsibility with them.

Olympia Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Kingsbury, who serves with Dean on the Thurston County HOME Consortium, said before the meeting that he failed to understand the basis for the requirement in the ordinance. The consortium is made up of representatives of the county and its communities.

He said Camp Quixote has demonstrated success in providing short-term transitional housing. Banning it or another tent city doesn't help the consortium move forward in its goal of getting people off the street, he said.

"No other transitional-housing program in this community has worked this well," he said of Camp Quixote, adding, "It's just not practical to suggest a church is going to house the people inside their building."

The pastor for a Lacey church interested in hosting Camp Quixote has said it can't do that with the ordinance in place because it doesn't have enough room to both shelter the homeless and house ongoing church activities.

Before the vote, Sackrison said all of the public testimony and correspondence support allowing a tent city, as do comments from homeless people, their advocates and church leaders.

The mayor said he supports most of the ordinance but couldn't approve it with the contentious requirement in plac.

The council action could leave the city open to a legal challenge under the grounds that the ordinance violates a federal law that bars land-use regulations that impose a "substantial burden" on the religious exercise of a church.