Is homelessness a persistent drawback that merely can’t be solved in an prosperous metropolis like Seattle the place family incomes, in addition to housing costs, rank among the many prime three amongst American cities?
Contemplate some latest numbers:
• In April, the King County Regional Homelessness Authority very quietly introduced that 16,868 of us are homeless within the county, a 26% enhance from 2023.
• Reports of unauthorized homeless encampments to the city’s Find It, Fix It app have rocketed from 27,711 throughout an eight month interval in 2023 to 50,270 throughout an identical interval this 12 months.
• Mayor Bruce Harrell has tripled the variety of encampment removals, scattering individuals dwelling exterior to extra places (which can assist account for the spike within the variety of experiences).
• In keeping with a snapshot rely in 2024, there have been 4,300 individuals dwelling exterior in Seattle and Vashon Island.
• When supplied shelter, a mere 11% of encampment dwellers have been recorded as accepting the provide.
• Since 2021, the variety of shelter areas funded by town has elevated by simply 13 models, from 2,837 to 2,850.
• A tough whole of all the cash at present being spent yearly on homelessness applications by native, state and federal authorities is available in at $2 billion, or round $120,000 for every unhoused particular person.
If homelessness continues to get worse in King County, one is inclined to ask an apparent query: What are all these billions of tax {dollars} shopping for us? Actually not a decision to the disaster. As a Seattle resident with no explicit experience aside from pointing my finger at issues, I definitely wouldn’t have a solution for find out how to repair this, however, apparently, neither do the politicians and housing bureaucrats who’re paid to search out options to this intractable predicament.
See extra of David Horsey’s cartoons at: st.news/davidhorsey
View different syndicated cartoonists at: st.news/cartoons
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