by Jack Mayne Some Burien parks may become too dangerous for kids to use, the City Council was told Monday night. At the same meeting (Aug. 3), the Council talked a long while but finally appropriated $55,000 in additional money to assist the city’s homeless population Drugs endangering kids Resident Chris Hemp told the Council about an “incident” last week at Dottie Harper Park with his daughter, who attends Camp CRAZ Youth Summer Day Camp Program classes. “Apparently a counselor deemed a group of people doing drugs in the park (on July 31) too dangerous a situation to walk the kids past so they took an alternate route back to the community center with these kids,” Hemp told the Council. “This path was inappropriate for the younger kids and my daughter fell and hurt her leg rather badly. The camp never called us to pick her up, nor did they report the incident to the police.” He said he then sat down with a recreation manager and counselor and was told their “daily procedure was to count the homeless in the park. If there is more than 10, they don’t bring the kids into the park,” adding there is apparently a consideration for “not letting the kids use the park at all.” ‘Unacceptable!’ “This is the park where we just invested money to spruce it up, new playground equipment – everything there is new. I am here to inform the Council what is happening in our city parks and our city camps. “This is unacceptable, it concerns me as a parent, as a taxpayer – it makes me irate,” Hemp told the Council. “We need to clean up these parks and make them safe for our kids. Unacceptable!” Patty Jensen showed photos of “syringes, a homemade bong, a bottle of Hennessey which sells for about $70 retail, a backpack, lots and lots of glass beer bottles, cans and a Bible, a Bible that was thrown away …” She said she would send pictures she took to the Council members. “We don’t have enough cops for all of the crime and all of the stuff that goes on in Burien,” Jensen said. “It is going to be up to the community, the people who live in the city to put together a proposal for more dollars – we’re going to be taxed, I don’t care, I’ll pay it, whatever it is, there is going to be a need for more money for more law enforcement.” Charles Schaefer said the drug deals and broken bottles are rife in the park. “What’s the point of having a nice new play structure if people don’t want to take their kids there to play on so if we need more cops, let’s pay for more cops.” Money for homeless The problem that ended with no decision after a lengthy dispute July 20 with members calling points of order and general disharmony returned Monday night. It was the potential of allocating the additional $55,000 for 2015 to address homelessness. During comment period, Darla Green, a local business owner and candidate for the Council in the November election, said the money should be saved for next year, and should not be “used in a knee-jerk reaction to the recent bad publicity over the crisis Burien is experiencing” concerning homelessness. Councilmember Bob Edgar said he had a problem with gift cards, which several have said can be sold or used to buy alcohol or tobacco products, and the city manager said that could be pursued if the Council wanted to restrict the cards so they could not be used for those products. Councilmember Nancy Tosta repeated her unhappiness at not knowing more about the homelessness problems before allocating money. “We need to better understand the population we are trying to serve and what their needs are because I want to see outcomes and be able to measure results,” she said. Tosta wanted the city to consider hiring a fulltime person to do that but was told by City Manager Kamuron Gurol that it would cost in the range of $100,000 a year for a fulltime city staffer. Gurol said there are discussions about area-wide people to specialize on the various issues of homelessness. He recommended a $2,000 a year, for three years, commitment for a housing specialist working for all south county communities. The Council approved $2,000 for that for the first year, leaving the remainder up for discussion next year. Concerns about gift cards Burien resident Peggy Maze Johnson told the Council she “brings a little bit of unique experience to this” as the first Executive Director of Neighbors in Need, the first system of food banks in the Country in 1970. “I have a problem with money being given out, gift cards, because food stamps are sold all the time on the black market,” she said. “I believe people need to have help, I am not one of those people who are screaming and yelling about homeless people in Burien. “I would take a very close look at this budget. I would sit down and talk with people that have been doing it … I would not err on the side of caution and I would not make any decision based on this budget. I think it would be a major, major mistake.” After that, Edgar moved that the supplemental amount be spent with a prohibition against any gift cards being used for tobacco or alcohol. Tosta again said she wanted to spend more time looking at understanding the problem, not do a study, but “I am proposing that someone whose job it is think truly on how we address the concern that has become the major problem in our community.” She said she didn’t like the “small expenditures with little rationality.” Robison said the money is intended to do something “right now. It is not perfect but it is better than nothing at all.” The Council voted 4 to 1 to approve the use of the money, with Tosta voting no. New procedures The Council also considered and then unanimously approved a city staff proposal to “add more structure” for items on its regular business agenda for Council action. “It is intended to retain the ability for each Councilmember to get questions answered, to be easier for the presiding officer to implement, and to ensure a fair and thorough Council process that leads to an informed decision,” the staff proposal said. Part of the new process would be to get Councilmembers to submit questions to the staff in advance and for the Mayor to “recognize Councilmembers by moving down the dais one-by-one for both Q&A and for decision-making.” The new procedure includes adding estimates of time allowed for each item and that all motions should be written to prevent inadvertent changes during discussions. The approval was approved 5 to 0 as Councilmembers Lauren Berkowitz and Steve Armstrong were absent. City land sold The Council approved a sales agreement to sell 12 and 1/2 acres of property on South 146th Street in the North East Redevelopment Area, to Latitude Development, an Auburn owned developer of “institutional grade projects throughout the Puget Sound.” The sales price is $4.85 million for the two properties that had been purchased individually for “just over $3.050 million,” said Economic Development Manager Dan Trimble. The plot includes what was once Sunny Terrace Elementary School property and an adjoining four acres. Latitude Development is proposing a medium sized industrial building to be used as cold storage and food processing, Trimble said, “a little more workforce intensive that a warehouse.”]]>

Senior Reporter Jack Mayne passed away in December, 2021. In his honor we have created the Jack Mayne Journalism Scholarship.

59 replies on “Parks could become too dangerous for kids; homeless funds approved”

  1. “Tosta wanted the city to consider hiring a fulltime person to do that but was told by Gurol that it would cost in the range of $100,000 a year for a fulltime city staffer.”
    $100,000 for a full time city staffer? Is that a joke?

    1. I would assume the $100k includes the costs of benefits as well not just base pay. At least, you’d hope.

  2. I took my daughter to Dottie Harper park twice since it’s been redone, and will not go back. The first time there was a bunch of guys sitting on a bench drinks, and multiple obvious drug deals occurring in the area by the southern fence. The second visit there was a young homeless chick trying to fight another guy on the edge of the playground yelling f bomb after f bomb, just what I want my 3 year old to hear. As we were walking back to the car through the woods, a bunch of guys were sitting on the bench smoking something that wasn’t cigarettes or weed. I’m not sure if it was crack or meth, but needless to say we won’t be back.

    1. Don’t give up just yet! Burien PD is well aware and new shifts have increased PD in peak hours (began July 1) Dottie Harper is a wonderful park and deserves our attention. They only way to “take it back” is to use it.

      1. No thank you. I’ll let others wage that battle. It’s not worth the safety of my daughter to fight for that park. I’ll just take my daughter somewhere safe instead.

      2. We need a few drive by shootings like happened last year on 152 nd and 5th Place Sw and this invasion of scum will get solutioned, it will happen, it is just a matter of time. The scum in Dottie Harper know no police will bother them…it’s 1/2 block from the the mirage we call our local police station. Remember we have a police force of three that patrol 132 miles of streets in Burien…reshuffling hours has gotten us nothing…they are outmanned to begin with…Parents STAY out of Dottie Harper Drug den along with Drug Dens at City Hall/Library and the God awful transit center shooting/knifing pit! Protect our children! The City Council does photo ops. The lady from Three Tree Point complaint about people going on “their” beach got more attention then our kids avoiding drinking drugging vagrant youth in Dottie Harper Park…Burien priorities are set!

        1. Not sure where you got your facts, but you’re way off on the square miles in Burien covered by law enforcement, however you are correct the City Manager did approach the lady who commented from 3 tree point during the meeting after her comment. I would like to point out that I know quite a few of the Police Officers from BPD and they care about ALL of Burien not jus 3 tree point…
          Population: 48,072
          Business licenses: 1,681
          Total housing units: 19,400
          Land area: 10.1 square miles
          Incorporated: February 28, 1993

          1. I said nothing about square miles, I have no idea what the square miles are for Burien. The police have stated “they have responsibility to patrol 131 miles of streets in Burien”. You can contact them to get a better more accurate number. The police chief also approached the lady from Three Tree Point complaining about her “private” beach. Wonder if he approached the man whose child was injured trying to avoid the Drugged vagrant youth who take over Dottie Harper. Who cares about “private beaches” when our children are endangered by this out of control vagrant youth behavior? Thanks for your comment. This is our Village and we are all in this together.

      3. Increased police presence also means LESS POLICE for the rest of Burien…Total BULL SHRIMP in my opinion. More home break-ins just to protact 1 park ….REALLY…

      1. Jimmy, I didn’t see any smoking ‘device’, whether it was a pipe or a vape pen. However, the juice for Vape pens is either odorless, or a fruity/desirable flavor. This was like burning chemicals, and the guys on the bench near the little performance area stopped what they were doing, and got silent long enough for me to walk by. It was obvious whatever they were up to was not on the up and up.

        1. OK just checking there was someone in front of big 5 the other day using a vape pen and someone else thought it was a some type of crack pipe or something. I laugh and explained that no that is a vape pen .

          1. It’s a great question though! Some of the e-cigs, and vape devices are odd looking. Although I did hear recently that you can use them for some drugs too, I suspect the type of person you see in a park doing drugs isn’t necessarily able to buy a $50 -$100 device in addition to their daily habit.

  3. In regards to my statement, as written above, I said in addition that “we need to access the needs of the people (who would be the recipients) as well as the needs of Burien as a whole.” before we throw money here and there. For example, we are adding an additional 10K to the dental van visits. (from once a month to 2x a month….).
    My experience with this population (as a volunteer with Youth Care and First Choice School) is that the additional 55K is simply not enough money to address an overwhelming problem. If Seattle can’t fix it with 34 million (last years budget) as well as a 10 year comprehensive plan to end homelessness (Seattle is on year 10 now BTW) why is Burien throwing our tax dollars at a problem 55K won’t fix? If we as a city saved this money (earning interest) and combine it with next years additional 55K combined with our current funding, we might just have the time and money to work out a plan that is both advantageous to Burien and people in need.
    Respectfully,
    Darla

  4. We could buy them bus passes to Ballard? jk. It’s a very stuff situation with no solution in site. My wife and I live close to one of them those parks and it’s bad.

  5. The Seattle City council wanted to get rid of the homeless and their ghetto , so,they sent them north and south. I say send them back to Seattle. They have more money to deal with the probkem? They didn’t want to spend their money on their homeless.
    Our children and grandchildren have rights to run safely in a park. They cannot run with needles and mentally ill people who might harm them. If our city council doesn’t care about
    Our children’s safety they should be removed from offi
    ce. Our children and neighborhoods must be kept safe, we have wonderful police, they have enough work on their hands , I suggest. The Burien Mayor city council puts its children first. And stop trying to make Burien a ghetto.
    Seattle City Council wants Burien to absorb the coats. Just send them back to mayor Murray in Seattle.

  6. You will not accept my comment because I ask that the city keep our children safe. Parks are not made for the mentally ill and homeless to live in , again I say keep,our children safe.
    Our City Council and Mayor might not care, but homeowners and children do care.

  7. Why doesn’t our city care about our children’s lives?
    Have the City Council,explain why a child’s should be put in danger by making the kids play around a new home for homeless in their play space.

  8. How many of those reporting problems in this blog reported them to the police? I suspect none.

    1. you can suspect none but ive done it dozens of times. Now i dont bother.
      Most of the time the 911 operater says “BOORIEN?” Am I pronouncing that right?”
      Thats just the way it rolls when you sub out your police force. Most Burien PD dont even live in Burien.

      1. Whether we contract with the county or not, we would still use the regional 911 system and the same operators would be answering the call. Few officers in any jurisdiction live in the region they serve. Having our own police force would change neither of these points. The subcontracting system with the county is a very good deal. Even if the report of suspicious activity in a park does not compete well with higher priority calls at the time, it still gets recorded and ultimately shows a need.

      2. I feel the same way and gave up reporting these type of things. Our police head one way out of Boorian (Burien) and that is north to Washington State Crime Capital…WHITE CENTER! Then head south back to Boorian, drive by Dottie Harper Park and fill out their
        White Center Crime report…who needs another report to do regarding illegal activity in Dottie Harper…is our system broken? As is stated none of the police live in Boorian, they live in the safest place in the world…Maple Valley! Let’s send these gang banger, thugs there! Get out of Boorian!

      3. I’m raising the BS flag on what you’re saying. There’s NO WAY that the local 911 operator (located in Renton) would not know where Burien is or how to say the name. Further, it would seem unusual that should you make a mobile phone call, and it was routed to the Washington State Patrol, that they wouldn’t know either.
        One thing I do know, is that if you use VOIP (voice over IP) aka “Internet phone” service, your 911 call may or MAY NOT route to the correct local 911 center (called a PSAP-Public Safety Answering Point).
        Further, the reciprocation of officers across beat boundaries (in/out of Burien or Whitle Center) works both ways. This includes ALL of the SW areas of King County (including Seatac). Unless you have evidence to support the claim that Burien units are constantly in WC, your claims don’t hold water.

        1. Precinct 4 (BURIEN) is responsible for law enforcement in the unincorporated areas of: West Hill (Skyway), North Highline (White Center & Boulevard Park), Vashon Island and Kent/Federal Way. The West Precinct also includes the contract cities of Burien and SeaTac. The northern boundary is the City of Seattle, while Normandy Park, Des Moines and Federal Way form the southwestern boundary. Renton, Tukwila, Kent and Auburn make up the southeastern boundary. The southern boundary extends to the Pierce County line.
          Precinct 4 has two main offices located in the contract cities of Burien and SeaTac. The West Precinct Commander, SeaTac Police Department and staff are located at SeaTac City Hall. The Burien Police Department, King County Sheriff’s Office commissioned personnel and staff are located at the Burien Station.
          Precinct 4 provides services at four community storefronts: Vashon, West Hill (Skyway), White Center and Greenbridge (formerly Park Lake Homes). The Greenbridge storefront is staffed by a King County Sheriff’s Office deputy under contract with the King County Housing Authority. The storefronts do not maintain regular business hours and are not always staffed.
          Chris, I personally know 2 Burien officers Who bust their butts going back and forth between WC, Boulevard Park and Skyway in yes BURIEN police vehicles. And I can guarantee you that 80% of the patrol/call times are in White Center and Skyway. Also Sea-Tac rarely Ventures into our jurisdiction due to the wide area they have to cover as well. Which includes Renton, Tukwila, Kent and Auburn make up the southeastern boundary. The southern boundary extends to the Pierce County line.
          However I do have a hard time believing that the 911 operators have a hard time saying BURIEN.

  9. For once in a very long time a council meeting happened without the grandstanding of L.B. which is a welcome change. Maybe she should take the rest of her term off so they can get more done. Also, junkies in our parks and around Burien have increased at such a rate that I hold L.B. personally responsible for being the pied piper of them and also the kid bike riding, backpack wearing, nighttime roaming scumbag junkie club. Much like the one who rode by my yard at midnight on Sunday scoping out my neighbors work van. He had a kids size baseball bat in his backpack reachable over his head, I guess he must be playing in a night league against the window team. I’ll drop him in my yard, and mark it with that bat.

    1. Q A
      In your tiresome hate filled vendetta you hold L B responsible for all things bad, whether she was involved or not, so what is new?

      1. Tell me Lee, since you are such a fan of L.B. and with your constant support and defense of her actions, please share with all of us what you feel she has positively contributed to the welfare and betterment of Burien while serving on the Council. Please be specific, we all would love to hear it.

        1. You could make the same argument about Lucy until she became mayor and had a majority behind her.

        2. I doubt that you can find anywhere that I supported any of her actions because my comments have been about your offensive personal attacks rather than policy. However, since you ask, I appreciate that she got the “unnecessarily offensive body odor” clause removed from the trespassing ordinance. That phrase made Burien look pretty silly. I believe she also did not rubber stamp the down zone of the Lake Burien neighborhood, which was a successful ploy for some council members to enhance their property values.
          Anyone who stands up to the dominate Lake Burien Cartel and represents the rest of us has my vote.

  10. Just wondering whether we all are assuming the people are actually homeless. Maybe drug abuser/criminal would be more accurate.

    1. Soon to be homeless, if that’s your lifestyle choice. Or more appropriately deserving of “three hot’s and a cot” for a long time to reflect upon one’s deeds.

  11. i cant count the number of times ive called the cops about seeing stuff go on in this park, and they’re usually too busy to come.
    Now that the new starbucks is open,they’re even ‘busier’
    Lets get some normandy park, highly motivated cops to come show the Burien PD what proactive law enforcement is like.

    1. When you know after you arrest someone they will just walk why waste your time and our money. They need to give addicts the 3 strikes and your out treatment but there is no money to be made on that. They are return customers that keep the all mighty judges employed along with their weasel lawyers.

  12. Just to clarify, what I said was drug NEEDLES and broken bottles. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if there are drug deals going on in the park, but my concern is the children that use that play structure getting poked or cut by some trash left there by people who are too drunk or high to be considerate of the fact that there are kids around.

  13. Ok I came up with idea. The city should in act a law that allows anyone over the age 70 to moon the homeless. Then maybe if the homeless see a few wrinkly behinds they will get off theirs and leave the area.

  14. Wow, this is a very interesting thread.
    Even the thieves know how fast it takes to response to an incident.
    An Eagle Landing Visitor gets her cell phone stolen:
    I live next to Eagle Landing Park. My yard is just 45-feet from the stairs. We hear visitors day and night, some enjoying the walk but others are breaking into the cars at the parking lot and doing drugs in the Park. Some are sleeping in the park.
    We heard a scream from a woman from the top of the stairs. We ran over to see her crying and complaining that someone had taken her cell phone. We quickly drove to the top of our driveway, which is also the entrance to Eagle Landing Park. We confronted the thieves. We called the police and we demanded everyone to wait until the police arrive to settle the dispute. The thieves said “It will take the police 20 minutes to get here and we cannot wait that long”. Wow I said to myself, even the thieves know how long it takes to get to a crime scene…..and are just as impatient.
    When we called the Burien Police the person on the phone answered as Burien Police but did not know where Eagle Landing Park was. We reported the crime and the woman waited with us until the police arrived, almost exactly 20 minutes after the call.
    I use to live in Normandy Park and I can tell you that if we had made the same phone call we would have had a yard full of police in about 30 seconds. In fact, if our dog got lost the Normandy Park Police would bring her home.
    I am not sure our City Contract with the police is as tight as it can be. However, when the police arrive they are super nice and do a great job. Perhaps the contract can include a clause where some of the officers are actually from Burien. Perhaps we need our own police department like Normandy Park. Is it not true that sizable funds are helping due to homeland security? Those funds are not trickling down to Burien’s issues as well as they seem to be in Normandy Park.
    What is The City of Burien paying to out source our police department? What ever savings we are getting does not seem to be worth it if our kids cannot even go to a well-known popular park. I would rather get taxed more and have our own police force, especially if they qualify for federal funds due to homeland security issues.
    I support our Burien police department. They need all the help they can get. I am not sure why Burien suddenly has all these homeless people but everyone can see it. What changed? I do not remember it being this bad before. I am just asking, not trying to get jumped on here……I honestly do not know the clear reason this is happening….. just would like a better informed person to explain why all this mess is upon us in straight forward words with no personnel attacks.
    John

    1. J.W. We ended up as the new homeless destination because of the activists and like minded associates who were summoned to support a specific Councilmembers personal agenda and political cause. They collectively put the word out to insure that cause was noticed, and the end effect has been the recent constant influx of those you speak about. Burien was portrayed and labeled as prime pickings and the new Wild West, and with that I will add that no names or feeling should be hurt by what I have written.

  15. Let’s define what is lawful and what is not acceptable. Put signs up at the entrances of the parks of what is not allowed. When people break the laws there should be consequences. I feel in addition to fines and/or jail time, violators should have their pictures run here and in the local papers for a certain period of time. This is done in other counties in the state.
    With the homeless. I feel Nancy Tosta is right in wanting to know more about just who our homeless are, and how many people are we talking about. How in the world are you going to know what any program might cost, if you don’t have this basic data?
    We need to state what will not be tolerated by the homeless. For instance, no over-night sleeping in the parks or in vehicles on the street. No pan handling in designated areas. At the same time, we could offer a place were the homeless can ‘sign-in’, as people who are homeless but not unlawful. This would give a person who is just ‘down on his luckt’ a chance to distinguish themselves from the unlawful. Perhaps certain agencies could provide them with basic necessities and information about what assistance is available to them. The homeless who are intent on breaking the law need to be put on notice that their picture will be posted with a statement of their crime and that they will no longer be welcome here. They too, could be asked to sign-in regularly until they move out of the area. If we do not set-up any consequences, they will have no reason to change their behavior.

    1. Yea, maybe we could tattoo them with numbers or make them wear pink…I heard this worked in Germany! Round EM up! Studies of homelessness have been going on since the 70’s you can Google the data..don’t re-invent the wheel. I know information is slow getting to the Seattle area but come on…study homelessness…come on. You need to get out more often!

      1. Outrage, do you know how many homeless people are in Burien this week? Do you know how many are caring for children? Do you know how many are Veterans? Or, if they are recently on the streets or chronically homeless? If we knew whether we were talking about 50 people or 150 people, wouldn’t that make a difference in the funding necessary to deal with both the lawful and the unlawful? If they are breaking the laws shouldn’t there be consequences? If they are law abiding shouldn’t we help them where we can?
        This is not said against homeless people. I know one can become homeless in the most unexpected ways. If I were suddenly homeless, and without family or friends, I would have no idea of who or what was available to help me. I get that it is a very big scary hole that one has to climb out of, pretty much on ones own. I think laws are there to protect the public, including those homeless who are law abiding. By establishing a way to distinguish who is simply down on their luck and who is out to cause mayhem, we could do the law abiding homeless and ourselves a service, much needed.
        As someone who has had a home vandalized, I have some pretty good reasons for believing there are people who just don’t care about others. How do you think such people should be dealt with?

  16. Anytime you can CALL THE POLICE…..The more the better idea as to what is really happening……make sure and say they are packing…..and drinking in public…

  17. Stop with the gift cards and don’t spent the $50,000 on the problem. The less you give these freeloaders the more they will hang around. Burien got hit hard with additional homeless when Sea Tac closed down the jungle camp in North Sea Tac park. They just moved over to B-Town and the city council seems to be clueless on what to do.

  18. Here is some information I found on priority of crime and the response times
    Now these numbers are from 2012
    http://burienwa.gov/DocumentCenter/View/4715
    here is some more information from king county
    http://your.kingcounty.gov/aimshigh/2009/search2.asp?LSLaEnAvgRespTime
    Iam pretty sure when some people call the police they expect them to drop everything and head to the location of the crime. But not every crime is a drop everything and send the swat team in. Type of situation a homeless person in a park during or not during park hours can make a big difference to. The homeless people have just as much of right to be in the park as any one else. Now if there breaking the law (drugs or non violent crimes,camping ) then yes call the police but call the non nonemergency number 206-296-3311. Now if there breaking into a car or house or committing a violent crime then call 911 Make sure to give them good clear information do not make things up as a previous post has suggested.
    p.s. My previous post (elderly people mooning the homeless)was meant as a joke cheer up people! only 2 people got it

    1. We’ve been told by the police department to call 911 no matter what we are reporting and let the dispatchers decide what priority it is. The only exception I’ve heard to this was the reporting of fireworks violations last 4th of July.

      1. That can depend on how busy of night it is like on a friday or saturday . When more people likely to out and about. Call the non-emergency number over calling 911 and tying up the lines.

    2. “p.s. My previous post (elderly people mooning the homeless)was meant as a joke cheer up people! only 2 people got it”
      Everyone got it. I think everyone was telling you not to quit your day job. I still say that you, Joey and Lee should do Comedy Night At the Tin Room. Bet it would be SRO!

  19. Clearcut the malnourished, neglected trees in that park, and use them to build a stockade. Problem : Solved

  20. Well looking at crimesreports.com and suprise suprise there nothing reported in the park no tresspassing nothing there is a coulple of thiefs a block or so away from the park. I mean I remember back in the late 90’s to early 2000’s when this park use to be a hang out spot for the teenagers that like to hang out at the park and ride. I also remember nights of waiting for the bus after getting off of work and seeing what the police had to do to stop people in the park they had to surround the park with 4 or 5 police cars some up on the sidewalks. Just to clear the park out it’s a very dark place at night do to all the tree’s also make a great hiding spots for low level crime (drug use,homeless people in the park after hours). These issues have been going on for years it has nothing to really do with one person on the city council so people like QofA That like to blame one person for just about anything in burien now of days is just being a old fart that wants to wave his cane around yelling get off lawn. Also has anyone ever try to talk to these so called homeless people or has anyone gotten a accurate report of how many homeless people there actually are in burien. How many of these homeless people actually have criminal records. How many people on this blog are overreacting to a simple situation.

  21. On other news from this meeting, could we get some more details on what went into the decision to sell 12 and 1/2 acres of property on South 146th Street in the North East Redevelopment Area (read that flight path) to Latitude Development for $4.85 million.
    Is Latitude just going to build something so they can claim a loss when the property is deemed unusable by the port, like the other builders who did this as the airport runways expanded? Was the site made available to other buyers? Is any attempt going to be made to save what is left of the creek and wetlands? Is this why certain members of the council ‘behaved’ at this meeting, so they could slide this decision past the public eye?

    2. Sandy, go to http://www.burienwa.gov type NERA (Acronym for North East Redevelopment Area) in the search box, several days worth of reading material. First thing that comes up is an award submittal regarding the new stormwater facilities and watershed preservation – enhancement that went in. There’s a really nice trail and public facility alongside the creek. The trail head public parking area is off Des Moines Way just North of the 757 Mart if you want to check it out. The area is outside of the 3rd runway safety zone so the commercial development that goes in stays. The area East of 8th Ave and South of 136th is zoned commercial. The homes that were there were bought up because they were in the 3rd runway noise impact area.

      1. Jack, thank you for the link and info. I appreciate it. Would you know where I would find a map of the piece of property that was sold?
        I grew up in that area and remember when the land behind where Sunny Terrace was built, was a huge pasture land with hundreds of daffodil and berry plants and plum trees that had gone wild. There were springs and that filled a small wetland with cattails, quail, many hawks and other birds rarely seen in our area, now. We raised horses and sometimes rented part of the land for summer pasture. The teachers at Sunny Terrace sometimes took classes on afternoon walks to investigate the creek and ever changing sights. Sad to see how much of it has been paved for the airport parking facility. It would have made a wonderful extension of the trail and haven for birds.

  22. The city council need to pass city ordinance’s making Burien “Unfriendly” for homeless people. Burien is much to small of a city to handle that broad of a problem. Certain assistance programs for people who are Burien residences might make sense but spending money on people who gravitate to the city because of it’s “Hands off” approach to the problem is only going to make the problem worse. As mentioned earlier, the Burien police department could learn a few things from the Normandy Park cops. I have lived in this area for over 25 years and it is sad to see it deteriorating. Since most of the “Downtown” problems are all within a pretty small area I believe the city needs one or two police officers on bicycles. They can get to all of the areas mentioned very quickly and when they are not responding to a call(s) they can ride from troubled area to troubled area and “Talk” with the citizens. Unless this city makes a decision to get tougher on the homeless / crime problem, it will only get worse.

  23. Dotty Harper Park has had a problem with broken glass, beer bottles, and people “hanging out” since my daughter was a toddler and she is 27. Burien use to have a couple of bicycle officers, but when I saw one of them later he said that the budget was cut and they were no longer funded.
    Homeless people are not all drug users or dealers and not all drug users/dealers are homeless. Do we know for sure who is hanging out at our parks and town square?
    Are they teens who are bored and have nothing to do. We no longer have inexpensive places for young adults and teens to go to for entertainment. I have heard my parents talk about the places they would go and dance. We went to the skating rinks, bowling alleys, drive in movies and drive up restaurants. Where do our kids to go now?

  24. I was driving by the DH Park one morning last week and saw a tent pitched there. Is that a qualified camping space now?

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