Solve the Ensign Road problem. Olympia says move it to Lacey

The City of Olympia will soon be solving its RV and camper van problem on Ensign Road.  They’re moving the vehicles and the problem to Lacey.

That’s right.  The City of Olympia is currently preparing a site at the corner of Martin Way and Carpenter Road to place as many as 20 RV’s and camper vans that currently are causing problems near St. Peter Hospital.

The City of Lacey has just been notified that Olympia, with support from Thurston County, is going to move their problem to Lacey.

Lacey Councilmember Lenny Greenstein is angry that the City of Lacey wasn’t included in the discussion or in the decision making process.   “Lacey is a member of the housing coalition and we agreed to work on the homeless problem together.  We were never consulted just told that Olympia and the county were going to do it.”

Complicating the problem, the land is under Thurston County’s jurisdiction and actually owned by the City of Olympia.  It is the site of the old Olympia Police firing range.

“There hasn’t been any public process or any opportunity for the adjacent property owners to have any say about the project,” Greenstein said.  “There are several businesses around the site which will be impacted significantly by this action.”

Greenstein said that conversation with the Thurston County Sheriff’s office leads him to believe that the City of Lacey will be the primary policing agent for the property.  “The sheriff’s office said they don’t have the officers to serve that property,” he said.

No time frame has been announced for the move, but Olympia is currently grading and getting the property ready to accept vehicles.  Estimate for the number of vehicles which will be housed at the Carpenter Road site is 15-20.