Seattle, WA
Rantz: Drug-fueled Seattle homeless encampment to be cleared
A large, festering Seattle homeless encampment bordering the Seattle Center and Seattle Opera will finally face a sweep this week. But the homeless addicts living there explain they haven’t been offered meaningful assistance by the city.
Tents have lined Mercer Street at Warren Avenue for at least three months. Now, it houses at least 17 men and women, mostly drug addicts who use fentanyl. They say they have asked for help, with a handful actually willing to accept it.
But Andrea Suarez, the executive director of private homeless outreach group We Heart Seattle, tells the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH she spoke with everyone living at the crowded homeless encampment. They say they’re not being given the help they need.
“So, we understand that REACH has been out here or the Unified Care Team (UCT), to a degree. But the feedback we’re getting is that nobody has been offering anybody actual pathways out, like detox,” Suarez exclusively told the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “We have several people willing to hop in our car, go to (detox facilities). We are in contact with people’s families. their children, their grandparents.”
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When will the Seattle homeless encampment finally get cleared?
A spokesperson for UCT confirmed to the Jason Rantz Show the encampment will be removed this week, but did not provide a specific day, as is their policy.
“Outreach providers are actively engaging at the site to connect individuals to shelter and service resources, and all individuals residing onsite on the day removal notice is posted will receive an offer for alternative shelter,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “In the lead-up to site resolution, UCT has been providing trash mitigation multiple times per week and addressing accessibility concerns such as obstructed sidewalks and building entrances, in addition to removing public health and safety hazards like propane tanks. A full cleaning of this site will be completed on the day of removal and UCT will closely monitor the area in an effort to prevent repopulation.”
The encampment is littered with purple trash bags provided by the city of Seattle as part of its outreach efforts. The Purple Bag program, championed by Socialist Seattle City Council member and anti-sweep activist Tammy Morales, has primarily failed, says Suarez. The bags are merely left by tents for the homeless to fill with trash and drop off for pickup. But they don’t get used and become more garbage needing to be picked up.
Meanwhile, anti-sweep activist groups offer their “help” by dropping off plants for the homeless to care for. The plants end up dying and becoming trash to fill the purple bags with.
Private Seattle homeless outreach group We Heart Seattle asked to help
Some small business owners impacted by the encampment complain about the trash and human waste at the homeless encampment. When it rains, gas, oil, feces and urine runoff hits their property.
Suarez says the homeless men and women at the Mercer encampment have not been offered any real housing or detox options. It’s why a local business group contacted We Heart Seattle for help. Anecdotally, they’re more effective in connecting the homeless with resources.
“And we were contacted, because we believe and they believe, (the homeless will) just be moved around the the corner. Looks like we’re just herding people around the block. They know it, the city knows it, because not everybody is willing to accept some form of housing or treatment, and why a different approach of outreach is critical,” Suarez said. “We should have 100 people right now on the block, providing kind of like a family friend, life coach, advocate-sponsored type of one-on-one advocacy for each of these 17 people here and walk them out of this mess. It’s a very intensive outreach model, daily boots on the ground and daily hyperlocal outreach every day all day long to help these folks. And we’re not seeing it.”
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Getting Seattle homeless to treatment
This is where Suarez and her volunteers fill the gaps, providing the intensive outreach the city won’t or can’t do.
For example, We Heart Seattle connected with a homeless man named Theo. Suarez was able to track down Theo’s grandparents, who agreed to pay for a three-month detox program called Battlefield Addiction.
“It’s $5,000 a month. But that’s part of what we use our donations for,” Suarez explained. “And also we engage with family to help pay for it, as well. This is not a model of outreach that is adopted by our taxpayer dollars. And we’re trying to get that switched.”
Not everyone is willing to accept services, a consequence of “harm reduction” and “housing first” models where city staff or city-supported non-profits offer few consequences to the homeless. Instead, the homeless are given clean needles or fentanyl pipes and are allowed to camp out for months wherever they’d like as the city waits for space in homeless hotels or permanent supported housing.
Harm reduction and housing first do not work
Seattle’s adopted models do not work. It’s why the homeless crisis has gotten worse, not better, over the last decade.
Harm reduction is a strategy that is supposed to mitigate the effects of illicit substance abuse to keep an addict alive long enough to get treatment. But harm reduction advocates eschew treatment, arguing that it’s stigmatizing to tell an addict there is anything wrong with their behaviors. Instead, the homeless “advocates” working for or with the city had out drug paraphilia that enables drug addiction. These addicts inevitably die from an overdose because supposedly reducing harm doesn’t mean that harm is eliminated.
Connected to the harm reduction model is a housing first strategy. It aims to put people in “housing” (hotels, tiny home villages, supportive housing, etc.) before addressing why the underlying reasons behind homelessness. This is a money pit that allows homeless addicts or people with severe mental illness to be given permanent supportive housing without any conditions, even after they get the housing. The drug addict may continue to use drugs, and the mentally ill are under no obligation to get treatment.
While data doesn’t support either approach, it’s favored by the Radical Left, a group of activists that terrify Seattle politicians.
We should stigmatize drug use
Society should stigmatize illicit substance abuse. It’s not something to be normalized or accepted; it is a death sentence for the addict, whether or not that person is homeless. That they’re addicts while living outside makes it that much harder to get them the treatment they deserve.
The Seattle approach with a harm reduction strategy makes pushing detox on addicts nearly impossible. It’s a reality that the entire state of Oregon faced after effectively legalizing drugs with Measure 110. After years of life under Measure 110, and a historic rise in fatal overdoses where the homeless were disproportionately impacted, the state legislature finally reversed course. Both the House and Senate essentially recriminalized drugs. Their legislation awaits the governor’s signature.
Endless drug paraphernalia and permanent housing mean the homeless have no incentive to stop using. It’s why Seattle continues to lead the way in homelessness failures.
“It is hard for people to willingly accept (detox) without a choice or a mandate and why often law enforcement and arrest is their only path out, which we urge,” Suarez said. “But outreach, family, friends, colleagues and everyday citizens can also become more involved and encourage, coerce, stigmatize because it will save their life period. End of story.”
Listen to the Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3-6 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow Jason on X, formerly known as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
SEATTLE – Remember that iconic Gap advertisement with the girl group dancing to “My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard” that took the internet by storm in August?
What we know:
Katseye, the girl-group in the ad, are taking center stage at Climate Pledge Arena on Nov. 17, with ticket sales dropping on Thursday, May 21 and their new EP, Wild, is set to release on Aug. 14 via Hybe x Geffen Records.
The global girl group announced their WILDWORLD TOUR on Wednesday, bringing Katseye to arenas across Europe and North America this fall.
Katseye’s tour will kickoff in Dublin, Ireland on September 1, at Dublin’s 3Arena, while the North American portion of their tour launches Oct. 13 in Miami, Florida at Kaseya Center. Other honorable tour venue mentions include UBS Arena in Belmont Park, NY and Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
The WILDWORLD TOUR will conclude at Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City on Nov. 27.
Keep reading for ticket information and the full tour itinerary.
Ticket Information
What’s next:
Tickets will be available beginning at the end of May. Specifically, Weverse Artist Presale tickets will be available on Wednesday, May 20 at 11:00 a.m. local time, before the Katseye.World Presale at 3:00 p.m. local time.
General onsale begins Thursday, May 21 at 3:00 p.m. local time at www.katseye.world.
Tour itinerary
KATSEYE – WILDWORLD TOUR
UK/EU
9/1 – Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena
9/3 – London, UK – The O2
9/6 – Manchester, UK – Co-Op Live
9/9 – Paris, France – Accor Arena
9/11 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Ziggo Dome
9/13 – Cologne, Germany – Lanxess Arena
9/15 – Antwerp, Belgium – AFAS Dome
9/17 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Royal Arena
North America
10/13 – Miami, FL – Kaseya Center
10/15 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
10/20 – Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center
10/22 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena
10/24 – Belmont Park, NY – UBS Arena
10/28 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
10/30 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
11/1 – Hamilton, ON – TD Coliseum
11/3 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena
11/5 – Chicago, IL – United Center
11/7 – Minneapolis, MN – Target Center
11/10 – Austin, TX – Moody Center
11/11 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center
11/14 – Las Vegas, NV – MGM Grand Garden Arena
11/17 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena
11/19 – Oakland, CA – Oakland Arena
11/21 – Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena
11/24 – Phoenix, AZ – Mortgage Matchup Center
11/27 – Mexico City, MX – Palacio de los Deportes
2026 Festival Dates
6/5 – New York, NY – The Governors Ball Music Festival
7/30 – Saint Charles, IA – Hinterland Music Festival
8/8 – Pasadena, CA – 88rising Festival: Head In The Clouds
The Source: Information in this story came from a press release from Katseye and the katseye.world website.
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SEATTLE – An upper level low will increase showers and isolated storms overnight. Some storms that develop could produce locally heavy rain, thunder and lightning along with gusty winds. The best chance will be along and east of the I-5 corridor. Scattered showers will be possible during the day. There is also a chance for a light dusting of snow in the higher mountains.
Upper level low will increase showers and isolated storms overnight with scattered showers possible during the day. (FOX13 Seattle)
Wind Advisory in Eastern Washington
As the disturbance crosses through the region, winds will be especially gusty in Central and Eastern Washington. A Wind Advisory will be in effect for many of these locations through late Wednesday night.
Winds will be picking up on Wednesday with gusts nearing 50 mph. (FOX13 Seattle)
What’s next:
After warming into the low 80s on Tuesday, Wednesday will feel quite a bit different. Afternoon highs will only be in the upper 50s and low 60s, a good 20 degrees cooler than just 24 hours ago.
Afternoon highs will be significantly cooler on Wednesday.
Looking Ahead:
Even after Wednesday’s early morning rain, the rest of the week will remain unsettled. Additional chances for showers and cooler into the weekend. We will again near 70 degrees by early next week.
Cooler and wet for Wednesday with additional showers possible this week.
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To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.
Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
The Source: Information in this story came from the FOX 13 Seattle Weather Team and the National Weather Service.
There’s been a question about the future of Seattle Seahawks edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence this offseason.
It may have been answered Monday.
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Just weeks after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl in February, ESPN’s Brady Henderson said “one of the first questions” the Hawks had to answer this offseason is “whether or not DeMarcus Lawrence is coming back.”
Generally, the sentiment in the months since has been that the 34 year old is not retiring, but there has not been a concrete answer from the five-time Pro Bowler or the Seahawks on his status for 2026. The closest thing to it came from Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald in late March, when he said, “To my knowledge, he’s coming back” to reporters at the NFL’s annual league meeting in Phoenix.
In the Seahawks.com article Monday announcing Seattle’s signing of veteran edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr., there was a statement that seemed to indicate where Lawrence, who is a 12-year NFL veteran, stands on the retirement question.
Fowler said that before he ultimately decided to sign with the Seahawks, he talked for roughly a half-hour on FaceTime with Lawrence, who was his teammate with the Dallas Cowboys in 2022 and 2023.
Lawrence had a message that helped convince Fowler to join Seattle: “If you want to win a Super Bowl, you should come here.”
That sounds like a statement you’d hear from somebody who’s planning to play in 2026, doesn’t it?
Seattle Sports’ Brock Huard thinks so.
“(The Seahawks) have gotten no indication whatsoever that he is retiring. And on top of it, I kind of read this as I don’t think you go full-boat and sell the organization in that way unless you also want to be a part of it and … go get that ring again,” said Huard, a longtime FOX football analyst and former NFL quarterback, on Tuesday’s edition of Brock and Salk.
On top of it all, what Lawrence said to Fowler is a great sales pitch for the Seahawks.
“Dante Fowler made it really abundantly clear, the final push was DeMarcus Lawrence. And the final push was: you want to win a Super Bowl, then you’ve got to be a Seattle Seahawk. And I don’t think there is any stronger (sales pitch than) word of mouth,” Huard said. “… That’s what you want, right? In any business, in any kind of marketing, the best advertising and the best marketing and the best sales pitch is what? Word of mouth. And when it comes from within and somebody with the credibility that DeMarcus Lawrence has too and the relationship he has with Dante Fowler, that was the final selling point. Job well done.”
Brock Huard answers three football questions in the Blue 88 segment at 7:45 a.m. during each episode of Brock and Salk. Catch Brock and Salk weekdays from 6-10 a.m. on Seattle Sports.
More on the Seattle Seahawks
• ESPN’s Wickersham explains why sale could mean a new stadium
• Seahawks’ list of potential Week 1 opponents continues to narrow
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