The Clark County council on Wednesday held off on sending a letter to Vancouver City Council expressing concerns over a proposal to build a homeless shelter in the Hazel Dell area, but conversations on the idea will continue.
Earlier this month, the Vancouver City Council considered using some money generated from Proposition 1, a property tax passed by voters in November that’s primarily intended to preserve and create affordable housing, to purchase the Hostess House, a full-service wedding chapel located in Hazel Dell, and converting it into a 60-bed homeless shelter.
Raising eyebrows
The idea has already drawn blowback, with some city council members and the public arguing that the proposal deviates too far from the goals that had been approved by voters. It also raised eyebrows among residents of Hazel Dell, which is unincorporated and under the jurisdiction of the county. In response, the county council began drafting a letter objecting to the idea.
“The county is keenly aware of the increase in homelessness in our community, and we understand the need for more services, especially emergency shelter beds,” reads a draft of the one-page letter considered by the county council. “However, the county council cannot support the city placing a homeless shelter in the unincorporated area.”
Although county councilors all had objections to the idea of putting a homeless shelter in Hazel Dell, they couldn’t agree on just what the letter should state. The letter mentioned how the county spends nearly $4.5 million annually on housing programs, and how it would make more sense to put a shelter in Vancouver given the city’s concentration of homeless people. It also referenced the document-recording fees, a charge assessed on real estate transactions, that fund homelessness programs and are slated to sunset by 2019 unless legislators take action.
After a discussion, Councilor John Blom agreed to draft a “nice,” shorter letter registering the county’s concerns with the city of Vancouver. Council Chair Marc Boldt jokingly suggested drawing hearts on the letter.
Blom said that Vancouver City Councilor Bart Hansen reached out to him about holding a joint session between the two councils. Boldt said that the councils would get together to discuss “different related topics.”
Vancouver hearing set
Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt told The Columbian that on March 2 the city council will hear a presentation from city staff on a possible revision of Prop. 1’s financing plan and will hold a hearing on the topic March 6. Leavitt said he wasn’t surprised that the county would react to the proposal. As for having a joint meeting between the councils, Leavitt seemed skeptical.
“You always enter into some risk when opening up a public forum between elected bodies that may have different perspectives on important issues facing our communities,” he said.
