Letters to the editor for June 7

Commissioner Gary Edwards makes alarming statements

Thurston County Commissioner Gary Edwards does not merit re-election. Statements made during commission meetings this year and last are unknowledgable and are absent inclusive empathy for all county citizens.

He suggested that hydroxychloroquine and UV rays will combat the COVID-19 virus. He proposed that all homeless people be put in jail. He stated the multitudinous supporters of preserving Rocky Prairie were “like a lynch mob.”

Arguing against rumble strips (which promote road safety), he said they are being developed “by city dwellers that want to place aggravation amongst rural America because they don’t want rural America to even exist” and that they are “trying to force the population to live in the urban core.”

He is the designated county representative to the Thurston Climate Mitigation Plan, crucial to addressing the growing threat of climate change effects here, but never attends. His message to the steering committee during the last meeting was “the whole process should be stopped because no one knows how their budget will be after COVID-19 is over.” The members’ response was that the planning process does not commit them to spending money and that they preferred not “to stick our heads in the sand about what is coming.”

Commissioner Edwards seems to stick his head in the sand about many issues. Come November, I’m voting for Michael Steadman.

Lisa Ceazan, Olympia

What is Olympia going to do with the homeless?

What is the city of Olympia going to do with the homeless population? During the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become increasingly clear how bad the homeless population is.

When I started working downtown a year ago, Capitol Lake was a serene beautiful place to walk, run and take you kids. Now it is scattered with trailers, cars and a huge visible homeless camp.

Near Fourth Avenue I have a parking pass that I have paid for annually, but refuse to park there due to fear. In this particular lot, I have seen people with severe mental illness, people smoking crack and shooting up, and drugs being sold out of a cars with children in the back. It is uncomfortable to see this, and to be hounded for money and food as you walk down the street to your car.

Being downtown at least five days a week at varying hours of the day, I have noticed there is little to no police presence where the homeless like to congregate. What kind of impression are we making on people who are not familiar with our area, trying to experience our wonderful downtown eateries and quaint shops? Our downtown is borderline slums.

This needs to be addressed and not just swept under the rug. Is this what the city wants people to see when they visit us?

Crystal Kennedy, Tenino