Homeowners in the Highland Park neighborhood of Seattle, Washington are furious after a large homeless encampment installed a blow-up swimming pool and engaged in open drug use.
"All of this is ludicrous," Herb Egge, a man who lives in a senior apartment across from the encampment said. "These people come in and totally trash the place. Someone told me they hooked up a hose and filled a swimming pool with it."
Footage obtained by KOMO News shows one woman sitting on a couch next to the large inflatable pool and smoking what appears to be fentanyl.
Neighbors suggested the new pool is just another insult to residents who have voiced concerns about the encampment for months.
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Seniors who live in the apartment complex with Egge said they are regularly startled by gunfire erupting from the encampment. Others admitted they keep their curtains drawn closed because they fear a stray bullet may enter their homes.
"When I hear the shooting, I stay down and away from the windows. There are times I've had to get on the floor in the middle of the night. It's not safe," Cheryl Galyeam told KOMO News.
"I never dreamed I would have to worry about things like this when I was 72, but times have changed. As elderly people, especially, we should not have to worry about our possessions or our lives," Egge chimed in.
He also revealed that since the encampment began, his car has been broken into several times. On one occasion, someone had drilled a hole into his gas tank.
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In the spring, the encampment only included a handful of RVs. Now, that number has grown to at least 15 vehicles.
In May, just days after residents of Arrowhead Gardens apartments first spoke with the news about their safety concerns, a man was killed in the encampment. Police at the time said the body had obvious signs of trauma and was being investigated as a homicide. Those who lived near the encampment said they were not "surprised" by the news but rather angry.
Diane Radischat, an Arrowhead Gardens resident, hoped the incident would lead the city to make changes.
"We thought, 'Oh wow, there's been a homicide there. They are going to give us some attention now.' They didn't. We want the solutions, and we know what the problems are. When you've had the same problem repeatedly in different locations, you know what needs to be done," she said.
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On Wednesday, Radischat received a letter from the Seattle Mayor's Office, the Washington State Department of Transportation and the King County Regional Homeless Authority that promised a plan was being coordinated to deal with the situation.
"We recognize that this has been a long and often frustrating process for residents at Arrowhead Gardens, and we are pleased that we are moving closer to a site resolution. The Unified Care Team is also discussing with WSDOT possible short-term activation strategies following site resolution to help prevent repopulation," the letter said in part.
Last month, the Seattle City Council failed to pass legislation that would have allowed the City Attorney's Office to prosecute public drug use cases as a misdemeanor. The bill died in a 5-4 vote.
Seattle's government offices and officials did not return a request for comment.
