FAQs

The City follows the law, and just as laws prohibit activity such as camping on public land, there are also laws that clearly outline the process for removing individuals trying to do so. The courts have made it very clear that the city can’t just “kick” people out, and we follow the process of repeated notification and offering assistance as outlined by law.

All city officials have a duty to uphold the law. Laws are put in place to keep one person’s individual choices from negatively impacting others. The state of living without a permanent home, or being “homeless,” is not illegal and may not impact others, but choosing to set up encampments on public land is illegal and does impact others. Problems with such encampments include the loss of use of that public space by others, leading to the issue of a gift of public funds to one individual. Another challenge is the environmental damage and basic life-safety hazards we’ve witnessed from common practices like leaving open latrines and discarded syringes next to rivers and waterways.  

Often, it’s not the lack of shelter that’s the issue, but the lack of individuals wanting to accept that shelter. When we offered shelter to 12 individuals, two took our offer. While the reasons for individuals not wanting to accept shelter or other assistance varies the point is that all the reasons put the choice out of the City’s control. Again, a great resource to connect individuals to shelters is the Pierce County Overnight Shelters webpage that shows availability for any given day at each shelter: https://www.pchomeless.org/Facilities/Shelters. This is operated by the Tacoma Pierce County Coalition to End Homelessness.

We don’t really have a choice. This issue directly impacts our work on so many levels, whether we want it to or not. Our Police are being asked to address this at the front lines, our Parks and Public Works staff must routinely clean up human waste, drug paraphernalia, and refuse left behind, and our Legal and Administrative staff face large scale decisions on how best to handle this sensitive issue. Besides, in addition to transportation, the City Council’s other three priorities for staff are to protect natural resources, long-range financial stability to provide a balance of city services, and to enhance community character. This one issue affects all three. 

We’re going to be clearer with you and our elected officials about what this issue costs Sumner in City staff time and funding. In the past, staff simply responded as part of their daily routine. Why change? Because the issue is growing. While you can’t put a price on serving others, our resources are public resources, which means you need to know the impact so that we can collectively make informed decisions to determine the best path ahead.

We appreciate your compassion and your generosity. Please focus your support through established programs like the Sumner Community Food Bank, Exodus Housing, Emmanuel Food Pantry, St. Francis House, and others. See Links provided on this page to connect to these groups and explore your options. They will be able to maximize resources to serve more people effectively. When you just bring blankets or food to encampments, they most likely join a growing pile of garbage—even the food—that our Public Works staff will have to clean out and dispose of properly.

Let’s split out different issues that tend to get lumped together. Someone battling mental illness or addiction can act erratically in ways that are frightening. It’s true that addictions and mental illness often lead to crime, which means you may have valid concerns about your safety. But, it’s also true that such issues know no economic boundaries and may be experienced by people who are quite well off financially as well as people who are homeless.   

In short, please call Police based on a person’s actions more than based on appearance. Call 911 whenever you see anyone acting erratically or suspect someone is in danger to others or themselves. You don’t have to know for sure; that’s why we say no call is too small. The person who worries you could be someone walking down the street, hanging out in a park, or your neighbor and friend. However, please do not call 911 only to report on someone’s personal appearance, whether that’s “dirty,” “homeless,” “teenager” or any other adjective. A dispatcher will ask for a physical description of individual(s) about whom you’re calling so that an officer can locate them quickly, but please don’t confuse that practice with a physical description being the sole purpose for your call or wanting police response.

It has been part of Sumner through our entire history. Although we often celebrate our “small town charm,” Sumner is not a theme park or a resort community. Many choose to live and work in Sumner because it is also a real community, which means we handle real issues.

The reality is that we are not a rural community. We are and will continue to be part of the larger Seattle/Tacoma metropolitan area and have to accept handling the more urban issues that go along with that. This community continues to tackle issues such as natural disasters, racism, war, addiction, violence and more. We believe that frank, open conversations across our community and progressive partnerships for solutions are more a part of Sumner’s DNA than simply keeping up appearances.

Many choices regarding issues such as drug possession and locations of emergency encampments are being made at the County, State and Federal levels. You will be most effective if you contact your representatives in the level of government making the decision. For example, if the State is considering a new bill, contact Sumner's State legislators in the 31st District. While the City routinely communicates with our representatives in other levels of government, it's most effective when they hear directly from you. 

In general, the concerning trend at the State level is the constant removal of control from the city level of government. For us, it isn't just about loss of control: more concerning is the loss of access and engagement for our entire community. If this continues, you will need to address your concerns, more and more, to Olympia and only be able to tackle issues on a state-wide level, making no distinction between what works best in Seattle and what works best in Sumner.