Thursday, October 29, 2026
Timing is everything, especially when it comes to finding housing for homeless individuals living in "The Jungle."
Since 2021, the City of Olympia has closed 14 encampments, and The Jungle is the last large encampment to be addressed.
City officials conducted a by-name listing in May, and contacted approximately 290 individuals in order to begin the process of providing them housing.
Individuals who have moved to The Jungle since the end of May cannot be added to the list. However, city outreach staff continues to connect new arrivals with Thurston’s County’s Coordinated Entry System.
Either way, finding housing for these individuals will take time.
“We’re trying to be realistic about what we can accomplish because there simply isn’t enough shelter and housing available across the region,” said Olympia Director of Strategic Communications C. Brandon Chapman.
Specific to The Jungle, he added that “as housing becomes available and people move out, we’ll close the site section by section. Each closed area will be cleaned up and secured.”
So what do some of the individuals living in The Jungle think of the city’s plan? To find out, The JOLT recently spent three hours walking through the site and talking to a dozen individuals.
Seven provided their names, while the remainder of the people declined to do so. It should be noted that there appears to be a sense of permanence about the site, as there are more wooden structures, fencing and signage suggesting private property than in previous coverage of homeless encampment by The JOLT.
When asked about the city’s plans, one young male answered by saying, “Get the f... away from me.” But the majority, however, expressed varying degrees of skepticism.
“There’s always red tape; always some excuse as to why something can’t be done,” said James as he stood inside a tarp enclosure. “They need to listen to hear us; don’t listen to just respond.”
Phillip, on the other hand, voiced stronger doubts. He said that he and his partner had lived in the Percival Creek encampment for five years before it was closed.
“When it was closed, there was nowhere for us to go, so we came here to The Jungle,” he said, “and I’m not certain that moving us is going to be soon.”
This sentiment was voiced by an unidentified woman who after hearing about the plan simply said, “It sounds like it might work, but I’m not betting on it.”
Neither is Natalia.
“I don’t know what to think,” she began as she stood inside her dwelling. “The system does not work; it holds you back. I would rather struggle on my own than trust the system — it keeps us homeless.”
As the city moves forward with its plans to close the encampment, another of its objectives is to keep the public informed.
“We’ll be straightforward about how long that (the closure) takes and keep the community updated as the work moves forward,” Chapman said. “It will take time.”
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Snevets
Tax the rich to house the homeless.
Friday, October 9 Report this
Positivity
Snevets (and others who consistently and repeatedly comment like you do here):
What research have you done on the issues and what solutions have YOU developed from your research?
What strategies and specific actions do you suggest and in what timeline?
What funding sources do you suggest?
What proposals have you made to the Olympia City Council and other agencies working this problem?
What specific kinds of outreach and support activities have you undertaken to help resolve this crisis?
What activities do you plan to take to help prevent future homelessness?
Friday, October 9 Report this
staynavytom
City found $17million for a park. Why not spend that in the Jungle and turn it into a campground for the homeless.
Friday, October 9 Report this
TheVirtualOne
Positivity - Would love to hear your answers to the questions you asked.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
JW
Enough with the enabling fire hose of taxpayer money. Mass sweep the Jungle in a day and trespass everyone. Those with warrants get arrested. Those that refuse to leave get arrested. Many get funneled into forced rehab. Then bring in the heavy equipment and haul it all to the dump. Defund the NGOs that perpetuate the problem.
Or, continue to feel super good about yourself for "loving people where they're at" while the firebombing, assaults, homicides, beatings, thefts, rapes, and trafficking continue unabated.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
BillSpencer
Thank you for reporting on this important topic. The people living in the jungle are our neighbors and deserve housing. I think we need a widescale, federal program in this country to build millions of units of social housing to address the scarcity caused by zoning and Nimbyism. The Feds and the state dropped the ball and now an underfunded Olympia is left to pick up the pieces.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
JW
Continue to ignore the local issues staring you straight in the face that you could influence and beat the Trump drum endlessly about things you have zero control over.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
TheGreatAnon
JW. And where those displaced people go? Jails? Prison? Did you know they don't crawl off & and die? Do you understand incarcerating poor people is so much more than housing them? As a home owner who pays property tax you are demanding I pay for your irrational hate.
Jesus had a lot to say about how we should treat our poor. You should check that out. Might make you a better person.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
JW
These are not just "poor people". You are willfully ignorant.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
chrispc2u
Stop coddling professional bums who heard on the hobo trail that Olympia is a free ride. Covid has been DONE for years now are there are no more excuses to sit on every street corner and stare blankly into people’s windshields causing an unsafe traffic distraction when you could be out pounding the pavement for a JOB like the rest of us.
Saturday, October 10 Report this
CobraCommander
chrispc2u - can't you just ignore people in need? It's what Jesus would have done, yeah?
Sunday, October 11 Report this
11B4ever
JW is 100% correct.
Sunday, October 11 Report this
CobraCommander
11B's are not known for their intelligence
Monday, October 12 Report this
Mugwump
What would have been useful and seems to be absent from this particular article is a list of the roadblocks to moving people from the Jungle into housing. Not just "money". Not just "tax the rich". I'd really love to see an actionable list of things that need to be done. That's always the problem with tough issues like this; no one ever wants to do the hard work to make it real. My primary concern for the residents is to make sure that every one is assessed for addiction and untreated mental illness. I would hope a primary concern for everyone is to make sure that each and every resident of the Jungle is assessed and receives the treatment they need to make sure they don't end up back on the street again. Otherwise we're just moving the deck chairs around on the Titanic.
Monday, October 12 Report this
CobraCommander
If you believe in jailing homeless people, you already believe homeless people should have housing and food paid for by the public. You've just decided that the housing provided should be super expensive, should suck, and their lives should be miserable while they receive that housing and food.
This says a lot less about homeless people than it does about the assholes who want people to suffer.
Monday, October 12 Report this
LindaD
Let the jungle exist. It's the bottom of the housing. Let's be honest with ourselves. It's never going to close. Let local people create more low end housing, such as converting a garage into a rental and building granny flats by reducing the regulatory barriers. Then cost burdened workers will have places to live.
That will leave the truly impossible to house population, deeply mentally unstable, people with criminal records, or other substantial burdens. If we had enough housing for everyone else, it would be much easier to work finding housing alternatives for the remaining population.
Monday, October 12 Report this
Positivity
TheVirtualOne - You commented "Would love to hear your answers to the questions you asked." Here are my answers:
(Snevets (and others who consistently and repeatedly comment like you do here):)
What research have you done on the issues and what solutions have YOU developed from your research?
TONS - for years, decades actually, in multiple communities and in multiple states, including here
What strategies and specific actions do you suggest and in what timeline?
Already included in multiple adopted city Comprehensive Plans as community policies and strategies as well as community budgets
What funding sources do you suggest?
Ditto
What proposals have you made to the Olympia City Council and other agencies working this problem?
Many -- no longer remember the total number
What specific kinds of outreach and support activities have you undertaken to help resolve this crisis?
Participated in multiple community outreach public meetings
Before becoming ill, I used to cook at a local soup kitchen as a volunteer
What activities do you plan to take to help prevent future homelessness?
I've already done my bit regarding large efforts - illness prevents further community participation public events
I'll still provide input to the Olympia City Council via email and via the City's Issue surveys on this and other issues
I donate to the local food bank - both food and money, the local Salvation Army which runs a shelter, and donate to local homelessness organizations
Will these do? Would you like to take a turn answering these questions, too? I'll check back in a few days to see your answers.
Thursday, October 15 Report this
Slugcultrise138
Oh, snap! Positivity just broke you down, son!
In my opinion, being a formerly homeless addict with mental health issues who lived in the jungle for awhile back in 2019-these people aren't trying to better their situation. They refuse to follow the rules for any other programs and only care about their drug of choice and making sure they have it at all times, regardless of who it affects. They're all going to be placed in housing programs next door to people who really don't know what its like to live next door to a bunch of currently using addicts who won't think twice about harming them or their loved ones in any way to get "well" and I, for one, do not welcome a single person from any encampment anywhere to live near me. Ive been forced to live next door to multiple addicts for the last several years and its awful. I literally want to end my own and several other people's lives daily. I don't get to sleep. I have no peace. I think about burning this building to the ground at least twice a day.
Thursday, October 15 Report this
TheVirtualOne
Kudos to you Positivity! I try to do everything I can, which includes many of the things you mentioned, and more.
Yesterday at 12:39 PM Report this
TheVirtualOne
Substance abuse is a huge issue with many of the homeless. We have to stop providing free housing and other giveaways without some preconditions they go through treatment to become more self-sufficient. Without that, it just enables them to continue their journey deeper into drug addiction.
Yesterday at 12:44 PM Report this