Dunn wants King County to come up with a plan to clear homeless encampments

King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn wants the county to come up with a plan to clear homeless encampments. He's targeting an encampment along the Green River for the first job.

He says that King County currently does not clear such encampments in unincorporated areas, and doesn't have any procedures in place to do so.

That's why he's introducing legislation that he says would create an interagency task force to handle that work.

Dunn says he hopes the encampment along the Green River between Auburn and Kent can be used as a pilot project for the proposed plan. He's targeting it because he says it's the largest in the region, and has been active for years. He says neighbors have complained about the camp for three years.

“The conditions we are seeing at the Green River encampment are deplorable and inhumane — littered with human feces, infested with pests, and filled with stolen goods,” Dunn said. “This is no way for anyone to live, and certainly not fair to the surrounding community that deserves a neighborhood that is safe and clean. To make progress, we must start setting boundaries on what is acceptable, address the root causes of homelessness head on and get folks into shelters and into treatment. This legislation gives us the opportunity to learn the best way to do that.”

The proposal comes amid Dunn's run for Congress. He is challenging incumbent Democrat Kim Schrier for Washington's 8th Congressional District seat. Dunn is the most high-profile Republican attempting to take the district back from Democrats after it flipped.

Dunn has therefore made headlines on recent hot topics, such as high gas prices or abortion.