Homeless Encampment In Seattle Installs Blow-Up Swimming Pool

Residents of the Highland Park neighborhood of Seattle are fed up with a large homeless encampment that continues to grow outside their doorsteps.

The encampment started during the spring when a few RVs parked on the street. Now, more than 15 RVs are clogging up the neighborhood.

For months locals have been complaining about violent crime and public drug use by the homeless people in the camp. Residents are concerned for their safety following several shootings and hoped the shootings would force local officials to clean up the encampment.

"We thought, 'Oh wow, there's been a homicide there. They are going to give us some attention now.' They didn't," Diane Radischat, who lives across the street at Arrowhead Gardens, told KOMO. "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."

Despite the violence, local officials have done little to help.

Now, residents are demanding action after people at the homeless encampment set up a large, inflatable swimming pool. Video footage obtained by the news station shows a woman sitting on a couch near the pool, smoking what appears to be fentanyl.

"All of this is ludicrous," Herb Egge, who also lives at Arrowhead Gardens, 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."

In a letter to Radischat, the Seattle Mayor's Office said that several agencies are working together on a plan to deal with the encampment.

"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 mayor's letter states.