HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/05/2016 13 Other Business - Distributed at the Meeting - Homeless EmergencyAN ORDINANCE
Distributed at the
Meeting .1 54
ORDINANCE NO 2016 -
relating to land use and zoning, declaring an emergency with
regards to the homeless encampment on East Chestnut Avenue
and temporarily lifting zoning restrictions that prohibit campgrounds
in the R-2 zoning district for the parcel commonly known as 101
South 6th Street.
WHEREAS, homelessness continues to be an issue in Yakima County, with the 2016 Point
in Time survey indicating that approximately 600 people are homeless on any given night; and
WHEREAS, although this is a decrease of about 16% from 2015, the number of chronically
homeless has not significantly dropped, and
WHEREAS, more than 80% of the homeless population is concentrated in the City of Yakima
and approximately 90% of the homeless surveyed indicated that the last place they had
permanent housing was Yakima County; and
WHEREAS, barriers to housing exist including the extremely low vacancy rate in Yakima
County of approximately 2% since 2012, and
WHEREAS, winter warming shelters were available from mid-November through mid-March
to address health and safety issues arising from the cold weather in Yakima during the winter
months, and
WHEREAS, since the winter warming shelters closed in March there has been an increase
in the number of visible and chronically homeless individuals in the City of Yakima, despite the
drop in overall homelessness over the last ten years, and
WHEREAS, shortly after the winter warming shelters closed, an impromptu and unauthorized
encampment was established on a public right-of-way, adjacent to East Chestnut Avenue on the
corner of East Chestnut Avenue and South 6th Street in Yakima, housing those who are
considered chronically homeless, the number of which has not declined at the same rate as other
homeless populations in Yakima County; and
WHEREAS, the encampment has grown in size to encompass the entire right-of-way planting
strip area between the alley and the corner, with little open space, and
WHEREAS, due to escalating public health concerns, the City accepted a loan from the
Yakima Health District in June to provide funding to place health and sanitation facilities near the
encampment; and
WHEREAS, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services (YNHS) owns as private property the
adjacent property at 101 South 6th Street and allowed the City to place the health and sanitation
facilities on the property adjacent to the encampment; and
WHEREAS, since the sanitation facilities were placed, Yakima Valley Conference of
Governments (YVCOG) approved funding for a voucher program to place many of the chronically
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August 15, 2016 The City will also provide fencing along the alley and neighboring properties
which will be placed as to not limit service providers from servicing the health and sanitation
facilities The City Manager is hereby authorized to implement and administer the functions
authorized herein and to perform and administer such other services deemed necessary and
appropriate to implement the functions authorized herein
Section 5. The property remains in the full and complete control of YNHS, its owner, and
the City has no responsibility for the activities upon the property during the time period that a
campground is permitted under this ordinance
Section 6. Severability. If any section, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance
should be held to be unconstitutional, unlawful or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such
invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of any other section,
sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance
Section 7 Effective Date. The City Council hereby finds and declares that an
emergency exists which necessitates that this ordinance become effective immediately in order
to preserve the public health, safety and welfare This ordinance shall become effective
immediately upon passage The City Clerk is directed to publish a summary thereof, including
the title, at the earliest possible publication date
PASSED UNANIMOUSLY BY THE CITY COUNCIL signed and approved this 5th
day of July, 2016
Avina Gutierrez, Mayor
ATTEST
Sonya Clear Tee, City Clerk
Publication Date July 8, 2016
Effective Date July 5, 2016
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