PORT TOWNSEND — The Affordable Housing Action Group is attempting to raise funds to support a homeless community at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds and negotiate an agreement that is favorable to all parties.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the group had raised $615 toward a $4,200 goal. The goal would be enough to subsidize fees until the end of June, organizers said.
Ten people are living in 11 tents in five designated camping sites now.
“It’s going pretty good,” said Bob Bates, one of the camp hosts.
“We have this little square area and are pushing to stay here for three months, which depends on us keeping the place up, not being obnoxious and using general common sense.”
According to a statement on a GoFundMe site, the housing groups says it has negotiated an agreement with the Jefferson County Fair Board and management, although Julia Cochrane, who represents Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on the housing organization’s board, said some details are still being worked out.
“The group won’t have to move every 10 days this year, and will get a chance to coalesce and support each other,” it reads.
“A cooperative group of campers supported in part by the Affordable Housing Action Group and other local agencies will create a structured community on designated campsites.”
Fair co-manager Sue McIntire and housing committee chair Frank Hoffman declined to comment about the situation Tuesday.
According to the post, each resident has completed an agreement for living in a cooperative tent village with a small group of other people, which includes sharing meal preparation, cleanup, food and chores.
“Homeless people get a bad rap,” Bates said.
“We are not bad people, and none of us want to be here.”
Bates, 38, last worked as a landscaper and is willing to take any job now, he said.
Seeking a job can be difficult without an address or a phone, Bates said. He said residents of the tent village can use a camp phone and employers might react positively if applicants are straightforward about their situation.
During a one-month trial period, which began April 1, a liaison from the group and from the campground were working to resolve problems, the GoFundMe site says.
The plan will be evaluated within the month, the site says.
Last year, a group of homeless people shuttled between the fairgrounds and Fort Worden State Park, respecting the 10-day limit at each location.
Cochrane said the group is attempting to avoid the “tent city” designation it carried last year.
“People are getting along really well, although there are some things we still need to negotiate,” she said.
Cochrane said negotiating points include no children, no parking on the grass and other behavioral and sanitary restrictions.
There is a meeting between the committee and the fair board scheduled for the near future during which she expects the concerns will be addressed.
McIntire and Hoffman would not confirm the details of the meeting.
In addition to monetary contributions, the group is seeking a screen tent and a six-person supply tent to use for the campsites, according to the website.
For more information or to contribute, go to http://tinyurl.com/PDN-camp.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
