Mayor Harrell proposes $38M for city cleanup, homeless camp removal in Seattle

Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell wants to spend more money next year to clean up the city and manage, or remove, tent encampments.

Harrell's plan is part of his 2023-24 budget proposal, which is under review by the City Council. The mayor proposes to spend $38 million on litter removal, cleanup initiatives, and what he calls encampment resolution and RV remediation. That refers to directing people who are unhoused away from tent encampments and into city services when they're available.

That work falls under the city's new Unified Care Team. The budget proposal calls for 150% increase in staff who will work with "stakeholders, services providers, the (Regional Housing Authority) and unhoused residents to facilitate connections to community resources and city services," according to the Mayor's Office.

Thousands of people live unhoused in Seattle.

“As long as people live in parks and on sidewalks and sleep in tents and on benches, we refuse to be complacent,” Mayor Harrell said in a statement. “Our administration’s immediate priority has been to stand up a better system and act with urgency and compassion to address the impacts of homelessness – helping people off the streets and into shelter while we also work to make sidewalks, parks, and open spaces accessible to all. My proposed budget reflects our plan to draw from lessons learned, build on this early work, and develop a more swift, effective, and sustainable City response.”

Harrell's proposal has the support of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, Friends of Little Saigon, and the local YWCA.

The Seattle City Council will determine if this funding, and other elements of the mayor's budget proposal, move forward.