The Jungle, officially the East Duwamish Greenbelt, is a greenbelt on the western slope of Beacon Hill in Seattle that is known for its homeless encampments and crime. The Jungle consists of more than underneath and along an elevated section of Interstate 5 between South Dearborn Street and Lucile Street. An assessment counted 201 tents and estimated more than 400 homeless people lived in the encampment prior to a shooting on January 26, 2016 that increased scrutiny in the area.
Location and ecology
The Jungle is situated on the steep western slope of Beacon Hill near the south-end of Downtown Seattle. Being bound by Interstate 5 to the west and Interstate 90 to the north, the land is primarily managed by the city and state departments of transportation. The thin tract of land is about and extends south to the Georgetown neighborhood. The wooded area can be entered through Rizal Park, highway maintenance roads, or residential areas on Beacon Hill. Thick blackberry brambles and vines grow among maple and other trees in the urban forest. Various rodents—including rats—and numerous species of birds are common.
Population
Firsthand reports in 2016 described distinct areas within the encampment. The portions under the freeway were referred to as "The Caves" and were within easy walking distance to a nearby methadone clinic. Alcoholism was more prevalent in the southern stretch while certain residents remained more isolated in the brush to the east. A survey conducted by the city of Seattle and the United Gospel Mission later in the year determined that a total of 111 people remained in The Jungle after multiple attempts to close the encampment. Approximately 80 percent are male and 20 percent are female. 45 percent of residents were white, 45 percent were black, and 10 percent were another race. During large-scale sweep in January of 2020, 30 residents and 75 tents and other makeshift structures were counted.
History
people may have used the area as early as the 1930s. It gained notoriety in the 1990s when the city began razing the encampments. In 1994, about 50 campsites yielded 120 tons of trash. Periodic bulldozing in the 1990s by the city or state department of transportation led to complaints of the city providing little to no warning before enacting cleanups. Seattle's organized tent cities for the homeless are offshoots of illegal communities that formed after squatters were forcibly removed from The Jungle. Along with numerous and ongoing low profile deaths and murders, the bodies of three women murdered by a serial killer were found in the area between September 1997 and February 1998. Other deaths have included transients being struck by vehicles while attempting to cross the nearby freeways and even a homeless man was sleeping in a blackberry thicket being mowed by workers. The Jungle increasingly became a haven for criminals in the 2000s. Criminal activity has included assaults, rapes, prostitution, and murders. Residences in the Beacon Hill neighborhood complained of been burglarized by those staying in The Jungle. Gang members basing drug trade in the woods also became a concern. In the early 2000s, a gravel road was built for emergency services while brush was cleared for greater visibility. An extension of the Mountain to Sound bike corridor through the Jungle opened in the fall of 2011 in an attempt to revitalize the area. The trail features a paved path, lighting, and fences. The city attempted to clear the encampment twice a year during the mayoral term of Greg Nickels, but such sweeps were less frequent during Michael McGinn's term even though homelessness became more prevalent throughout the city. From 2011 to 2016, the area was the site of at least 750 incidents responded to by the Seattle Fire Department, of which 500 times were emergency medical situations. By 2016, The Jungle was considered by many as unsafe at any hour, though others argued the dangers was exaggerated by both officials and the media. Weapons, used drug paraphernalia, potentially stolen goods, and human feces were, and continue to be, seen often during the city and state sweeps. In April 2015, police arrested 20 suspects during a series of raids, including Son Van Tran, who Federal prosecutors described as a "boss" in the area's drug market. On January 26, 2016, two people were killed and three were injured during a shooting at the Jungle encampment. The shooting led to calls from Mayor Murray and other local officials to close the encampment per state trespassing laws, though homeless advocates said the city should stop closing unauthorized encampments until it has an alternative location or shelter for campers. In February, 2016, the Washington State Legislature proposed $1 million to install a, razor wire and barbed-wire fence to encircle the area. On May 17, 2016, the city of Seattle and the Washington State Department of Transportation announced plans to permanently clear out The Jungle, with the estimated 300 remaining people living there to be resettled by the Union Gospel Mission. WSDOT will also clear debris from the freeway's underside and improve road access, while the city will clear the hill above the site, at a total cost of $1 million. A newer encampment formed under the Interstate 5 and Interstate 90 interchange to the northwest of the Jungle, dubbed "The New Jungle" or "The Triangle" by local media. While sweeps continued, ongoing reports of gunfire and drug abuse triggered a larger police intervention in January 2020. Authorities made seven arrests and identified a large tent in the middle of the encampment where crack, meth, and heroin were sold.
