Story by Tracy Record
Photos by Torin Record-Sand
for West Seattle Blog
After months of taking photos from outside the gate, we got our first close-up look this afternoon at the state-owned West Seattle site (7200 2nd SW) being transformed into Glassyard Commons, with 72 RV parking spaces and 20 tiny houses. Each of those metal stakes, site operator LIHI explained, marks the utility connections for an RV.
We were there for the ceremonial groundbreaking – a month and a half after work started at the site – organized by LIHI, whose executive director Sharon Lee led off a half-hour speaking program.
We recorded it all on video:
We broke the news of the RV/tiny-house plan for this site in January, after discovering documents in city files, but it had been eyed as a potential sanctioned-encampment site for years. LIHI has a $3.3 million/year contract to build and operate Glassyard Commons, leasing the land from the Washington State Department of Transportation after legislation was passed enabling state land to be used for “community benefit,” Lee said, adding they hope to lease the site “for many years to come.” The goal, she said, is to get RVs off the street, not just as a place to park, but to get the occupants into permanent housing, and to destroy the RVs – so the ones that come in won’t be going out.
Who will be coming in? Lee reiterated that priority will be given to District 1 (West Seattle, South Park, part of south downtown) RV residents. Jen Manlief (above), who manages the Vehicle Outreach Program, said it won’t be an “easy yes” for RV residents, but they have been working with some potential future Glassyard Commons occupants for months, and the selling points include mental-health services and other assistance in getting back on their feet. We asked how early they would be signing people up to move in, and she said that they would probably have a list about a month in advance of what’s now an anticipated “mid-November” opening, according to LIHI. (Minimum age will be 18.)
Mayor Katie Wilson wasn’t there, but Human Services Department director Tanya Kim spokr, saying the city will be funding more new shelters – two tiny-house villages, a “master-leased” building, and two shelter “expansions” (locations were not mentioned). Kim described those as “more opportunities for people to say ‘yes’ to.”
Bob Kettle was the only City Councilmember at the event; he explained that this aligns with his role as Public Safety Committee chair, and also that he had direct district experience with Salmon Bay Village, the RV lot that LIHI operated relatively briefly (closed because its owner decided to repurpose the site for pickleball). He said that during its time in operation, he noticed fewer RVs on nearby streets, and said the ones he did see were in better condition.
Rev. Erica Williams, representing the site’s “faith sponsor” New Hope Missionary Baptist Church, declared projects like this to be part of the “liberation and well-being of all people.”
And LIHI’s Marta Kidane offered gratitude to the people of West Seattle and South Park, and also invited community members to sign up for the Glassyard Commons Community Advisory Committee, which will meet monthly online to discuss updates and concerns. (LIHI-operated West Seattle tiny-house site Camp Second Chance also has one that has plenty of room for more participation too. Contact marta.kidane@lihi.org if you’re interested.
Then, after the speeches, the photo op:
And the work continued, with promises of another gathering at the site when it opens in mid-November.
