Interbay homeless encampment is contaminated, neighbors say

Jacob Nierenberg

Jacob Nierenberg Jun 20, 2025

Jan 12, 2018

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                <h1>Interbay homeless encampment is contaminated, neighbors say</h1>
                <h2><p>Ballard’s proposed homeless encampment has proven to be quite controversial, and it doesn’t appear that it will be alone in this respect. Earlier today, the Interbay Neighborhood Association (INA) sent a letter to Mayor Ed Murray regarding what they claim to be contamination at the site where the</p></h2>
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               <p>By <a href="/author/jacob-nierenberg-crosscut-com/">Jacob Nierenberg</a></p> 
              <p><time datetime="2025-02-04T05:00:00-08:00">Jan 12, 2018</time></p>
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            <p>Ballard’s proposed homeless encampment has proven to be <a href="http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Community-faults-city-leaders-on-proposed-homeless-camp-in-Ballard-320572482.html?ref=avalancheghost.one">quite controversial</a>, and it doesn’t appear that it will be alone in this respect. Earlier today, the Interbay Neighborhood Association (INA) sent a letter to Mayor Ed Murray regarding what they claim to be contamination at the site where the Interbay homeless encampment is supposed to be. In the letter, the INA cited City Light officials as having said that the site tested positive for trichloroethylene—a carcinogen—10 years ago, and wonders if “this potential contamination presents a significant health threat to the very residents [the] encampment intends to serve,” as well as to local residents and businesses. The letter requests that the city delay the encampment until an independent agency tests the area, or face legal challenge from the INA. Read the whole letter <a href="https://avalancheghost.one/sites/default/files/images/article/gallery/INA_-NSIA_Mayor_150826.pdf">here</a>.</p>
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Ballard’s proposed homeless encampment has proven to be quite controversial, and it doesn’t appear that it will be alone in this respect. Earlier today, the Interbay Neighborhood Association (INA) sent a letter to Mayor Ed Murray regarding what they claim to be contamination at the site where the Interbay homeless encampment is supposed to be. In the letter, the INA cited City Light officials as having said that the site tested positive for trichloroethylene—a carcinogen—10 years ago, and wonders if “this potential contamination presents a significant health threat to the very residents [the] encampment intends to serve,” as well as to local residents and businesses. The letter requests that the city delay the encampment until an independent agency tests the area, or face legal challenge from the INA. Read the whole letter here.

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By Jacob Nierenberg

Jacob Nierenberg is an editorial intern at Crosscut. He has lived in Washington for nearly all of his life, and still proudly identifies with the Pacific Northwest despite his relocation to Stanford U