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A ballot initiative that would ask Spokane voters to change the anti-camping rules around the city has been blocked from the November ballot while the Washington State Court of Appeals decides whether it is legal or not.
Editor's Note: Shortly after this story published, another decision was issued that put the initiative back on the ballot. The story has been updated to reflect that.
A state appeals court commissioner ordered Spokane County not to include an anti-camping initiative on the November general election ballot.
However, just hours later, that injunction was overruled by appeals court Judge George Fearing, who also ruled that the appeal will be expedited, with arguments happening in October.
So, the initiative should be printed on the ballots when they're sent tomorrow, unless some other extraordinary court action takes place between now and then.
The Washington State Court of Appeals, Division III, still needs to make a final decision on the merits of an appeal that was filed to block the measure. (The earlier ruling today was made by Commissioner Hailey Landrus.)
The appeal was filed by homeless service provider Jewels Helping Hands and Ben Stuckart, executive director of the Spokane Low Income Housing Consortium and a former Spokane City Council president. The two had already tried to block the measure from the ballot in Spokane County Superior Court, arguing it was not legal because it deals with administrative changes in Spokane, as opposed to legislative changes.
The appeal was filed by homeless service provider Jewels Helping Hands and Ben Stuckart, executive director of the Spokane Low Income Housing Consortium and a former Spokane City Council president. The two had already tried to block the measure from the ballot in Spokane County Superior Court, arguing it was not legal because it deals with administrative changes in Spokane, as opposed to legislative changes.
However, Spokane Superior Court Judge Tony Hazel ruled two weeks ago that nothing in state law would prevent the initiative from going before voters.
The initiative was brought forward by attorney Brian Hansen and would ban camping within 1,000 feet of public or private schools, public parks, or licensed child care facilities.
Currently, Spokane bans camping within 50 feet of or underneath the railroad viaducts downtown, and within three blocks of a congregate shelter.
Stuckart said that the injunction was a step in the right direction.
"I really think this deserves to be ruled on in appeal," Stuckart said. "It really strips a city of our size of the ability to make policy decisions."
He's concerned the anti-camping initiative is both unconstitutional and isn't being portrayed honestly. The backers say it's to protect children, but Stuckart said he thinks it's really designed to kick people out of public spaces.
"This will result in chaos," Stuckart said, noting that a Spokane Community Against Racism (SCAR) analysis found it would ban camping in about 40 percent of the city. "The places you can camp are our neighborhoods. You'll have them scattered all over. We know you need to reach people to get them services to help them heal and get them housing."
Julie Garcia, executive director of Jewels Helping Hands, said she also doesn't want to see people living by parks or schools. But if you don't want them to be there, you have to tell them where they can go, she said.
"You have to come up with a place for them to exist," Garcia said. "We already have laws about where the homeless can and can’t be. But if we continue to push them into small pockets of our city, we’re just creating more Camp Hopes."
Stuckart also said it doesn't seem pro-police or pro-public safety to ask officers to enforce such a measure, or make it easy for those who are homeless to know where they can sleep.
"I don't know how that's even manageable," Stuckart said. "If I'm dying on the streets and I need to sleep, am I measuring 1,000 feet from a park or a school? I'm trying to survive."
Mark Lamb, the Seattle attorney representing Hansen and the initiative backers, said today's later ruling, which enabled the initiative to stay on the ballot, is good for Spokane voters.
"We're pleased with the decision," Lamb said. "We're confident that the Court of Appeals will uphold the right of the citizens of Spokane to be heard on this issue." ♦
