Proposed Site for Tiny Home Village in Burien Neighborhood Faces Opposition, Frustration Over City Efforts

by Lauryn Bray

Members of a Burien neighborhood expressed concerns, apprehensions, and frustration Sunday, Nov. 5, over the proposed siting of a tiny home village (THV) for homeless residents on a vacant lot next to the Boulevard Park Library.

About 40 residents of Burien's Boulevard Park neighborhood gathered at the Burien Library for a town hall meeting to discuss the possible construction of a THV in the vacant lot adjacent to the Boulevard Park Library.

The meeting lasted about 50 minutes and addressed several concerns from community members, including the library's close proximity to a liquor store; the lack of a grocery store and social services in the area; and the site being located just 900 feet below the nearby airport's flight path.

"We live under the flight path. Most of us have lower income than the people who live by the water. I feel a lot of us are Brown and Black. I feel like people just want to brush it under the rug [to maintain a] pretty downtown. [They want] to put them where other people can't see them," said one concerned community member.

The decision to place a THV in Boulevard Park came after a homeless encampment was expelled from the downtown Burien Library parking lot due to safety concerns from nearby residents and staff members.

Now, the City of Burien has until Nov. 27 to find a "suitable" location for a THV, or risk losing King County's offer of $1 million and 35 Pallet shelters.

Sunday's meeting was moderated by Krystal Marx, who used to live in Boulevard Park until the home she was staying in was sold. Though she is running in the Nov. 7 election for a Burien City Council seat, Marx made it clear that she does not represent Burien City Council. As of Nov. 9, Marx was trailing Alex Andrade, 42% to 58%, in the Burien City Council Position 6 race.

Most community members who spoke at the meeting expressed apprehension about the presence of a THV in Boulevard Park, suggesting that it may do more harm than good not only for the wider community but also for the people who would be living there.

"My concern is that we don't have resources there," said one community member."There is no grocery store. We're a food desert. There is no transportation. The 132 and the 128 (bus lines) go by like once an hour, and that's it. So if we put people there, how are they going to get to the services they need? Or people come to them? People don't even know what Boulevard Park is."

The Boulevard Park Library, a liquor store, and a laundromat are all in very close proximity to the planned site. There is also a Mexican restaurant called Authenticity Mexican Food, and in the nearby plaza, Pho Teriyaki Wok, a teriyaki restaurant. In that same plaza are a Dollar Tree, the Flight Path bar and grill, and another Mexican restaurant called La Rielera. Across the street is a corner store.

Another concern for a few community members is the site's location under the flight path.

"I looked at where the suggested location would be and what the altitude elevations of the planes are, and it's just 900 feet above this location," one person commented.

"I imagine that these tiny homes are not going to have proper ventilation or anything, and my concern is that it potentially opens up another lawsuit," said another resident. "This is a community that has nothing to lose, and a class action lawsuit is not hard to start."

In addition to the Boulevard Park community members who showed up to voice their concerns regarding the upcoming project, Burien City Councilmember Sarah Moore (who also lives in Boulevard Park) was in attendance, as well as Councilmember Stephanie Mora and Burien city manager Adolfo Bailon.

Bailon, who said he was "mostly here to listen," explained that once a location is selected, the funding is placed under the control of the Regional Homelessness Authority.

"Once a location is selected, this becomes a Regional Homelessness Authority project — there is no City money unless there is not enough," explained Bailon. "If $1 million is not enough to cover the project, then additional money would need to come from someone."

Many were curious about possible other locations for several reasons. One being that since the lot is privately owned, the City of Burien would have to pay rent to lease the land on top of covering the costs to actually develop the THV. If the THV was built on land that the City already owned, the money saved could be put toward other things, like expanding the quality of life for the village's residents.

"The City does not own that property, the City would be leasing that property, so it would come out of the pockets of you [taxpayers]," explained Vicky Hartley, one of the town hall meeting's organizers.

Another popular concern for residents regarding the Boulevard Park location is the liquor store next door to the library, which could possibly enable folks who are struggling with substance abuse issues.

"Unfortunately substance abuse runs rampant through the community and we need to address that as well," said one community member. "We need to physically take care of it at that spot with some sort of health care."

Several people expressed interest in discussing other options for the THV location.

"I'm interested in what are some of the other locations for siting because everybody needs a place to live," said one more community member. "Human beings exist and they need toilets — they need access to water — so I'm really interested in what the other alternatives are."

Bailon was reluctant to discuss alternative locations, and Marx urged attendees to focus on what amenities they feel are necessary for the success of a THV in Boulevard Park.

Everyone seemed to find equal ground on the fact that $1 million is not enough for a project like this. Almost all attendees suggested the provision of additional services like sanitation, workforce education, access to medical resources, drug testing, or security would be necessary for a THV project to work in Boulevard Park.

"There needs to be mandatory drug testing in order to be eligible to go into that community, period. There needs to be requirements that you have to be looking for work, requirements that if they're mentally ill they have to be taking their medication, and there needs to be armed guards," said another community member as the room erupted with applause.

Following the meeting, Hartley urged community members to expect the City of Burien to go through with the project.

"When the city manager said that we should be concentrating on our 'concessions,' I believe that is a clue [that] the City [is] going to blast forward with a tiny home village on the vacant lot next to the Boulevard Park Library," said Hartley.

Hartley also mentioned in her email that Bailon received the offer on Oct. 27 and responded that very day, linking an article from PubliCola that contains screenshots of the correspondence.

Hartley says the Mayor's Office and the Office of the City Manager waited until the last minute to try to sort out the location of the THV despite knowing the offer had a 30-day deadline and there would be just two council meetings within that period to discuss.

"Council has been struggling to come up with a solution for nearly EIGHT MONTHS and these two left ONE MEETING to figure it out," read Hartley's email. "I'm furious and you should be too."

Following the meeting, the bus stop across from the Boulevard Park Library was vandalized. In black Sharpie, a warning reads, "FENT JUNKIES GO AWAY — IF I CATCH YOU IT'S A BASEBALL BAT 1ST THEN YOU'RE IN TROUBLE!!!"

Meanwhile, the Burien Outdoor Solidarity Project (BOSP) is holding a "gathering in the dark and cold in solidarity with our unsheltered neighbors who are targeted by the cruel, futile, and ignorant actions of the City of Burien."

The group, made up of Burien and King County residents, will meet at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 11, at Town Square Park in Burien to call for the repeal of the City's Ordinance 818, legislation that would make camping on public property a misdemeanor.

"Everyone who is outraged by this law is welcome and encouraged to come and show support, whether for a short visit or to stay all night," their press release said. "The high cost of housing affects everyone. We are all in this together. Let's stop the cruelty and start working on solutions for all of us. A better world is possible."

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