City of Olympia looks to purchase Jungle encampment property for $3 million
The Olympia City Council unanimously approved the extension of an agreement to potentially purchase the property currently housing the Jungle encampment between Martin Way and Pacific Avenue. However, it’s still unclear what the city has planned for the property.
Assistant City Manager Stacey Ray said during the June 2 City Council meeting that the real estate agreement is to help continue to address the Jungle encampment.
Ray told The Olympian on June 1 that the city originally signed an Option to Purchase agreement in 2024 for 16 of the 20 or so total acres that are privately owned. According to previous reporting from The Olympian, the owners are a business called JJP Group LLC, which also owns the Chevron station near the encampment on the Pacific Avenue side.
According to Thurston County Assessor’s Office information, there are six parcels owned by JJP Group that total 16.40 acres. Olympia already owns two parcels that total 6.75 acres.
According to previous reporting from The Olympian, the 6.75 acres were purchased by the city in 2021 for $237,000 with the long-term goal of extending Ensign Road to create a north-south connection between Martin Way and Pacific Avenue.
According to the original Option to Purchase agreement, the terms included the city paying JJP Group $80,000 in 2024 and again in 2025 for the option to purchase the property.
Ray told The Olympian that if the city moves forward with the purchase, possible uses for the property could include affordable housing, roadway access, wetlands protection or open space. However, she said there are no plans right now for a discussion about the future use of the property.
She said the agreement also gives the city the authority to access the site to work with the people currently living there.
The amendment the City Council approved on Tuesday extends the option to purchase with an ability to renew it annually for up to three years, until 2029.
“An amendment allows the city to continue our regional work to reduce the size of the encampment with a goal to safely and compassionately close it,” Ray said. “Extending the option gives our Regional Encampment Planning Team time to develop a transition plan, and allows outreach workers to access the site.”
According to the June 2 City Council staff report, the current purchase price for the property is $3 million, subject to appraisal.
Extending the Option to Purchase agreement will cost the city $80,000 per year for three years, according to the staff report. It will be paid for with Economic Development Reserve Funds. According to the staff report, payments from 2026 to 2028 will apply to the purchase price if the city moves forward with that plan. Payments made in 2024 and 2025 would not go toward the purchase price.
If the city chooses not to purchase the property, the payments are nonrefundable, according to the extension agreement.
“Our priority currently is maintaining access to the site to support the jungle encampment, including working to clean up garbage and connect individuals to housing,” Ray said.
Ray said the presence of garbage and burning of trash on the site has caused air quality issues for the people living and working adjacent to the property. She said having an agreement in place for the potential purchase of the property leaves all options on the table for its future use.
The Olympian previously reported that city staff and a contracted construction company cleaned the encampment of trash in a matter of weeks when the Option to Purchase agreement was first signed in 2024.
At the time, Homeless Response Coordinator Kim Kondrat said the city had applied for a grant that would allow it to purchase the private property for future development. The plan at the time was to create a manufactured home community with a road running through the Jungle. Ray could not be immediately reached for comment regarding the status of the grant or the effort to identify a funding source for the purchase of the property.
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