Bellingham homeless camp cleared a day early over concerns about agitators, mayor says
Jan. 29—Mayor Seth Fleetwood said he authorized the clearance of a homeless tent encampment in front of City Hall a day early after receiving "credible information" from multiple sources that "certain groups known to have a history of confrontation" put a call out throughout the Northwest to gather in the city on Friday.
Under the original deadline, campers had until 4 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 29, to gather their belongings and leave Camp 210, which started in front of City Hall on Nov. 11 with five tents before spreading across Lottie Street to the Bellingham Public Library lawn. Campers were protesting the lack of housing.
"We acted today to reduce the risk of further injury, violence and vandalism by those who are using the plight of our community's most vulnerable to further their own agenda," Fleetwood said during a news conference on Thursday, Jan. 28.
Protests occurred last Friday, Jan. 22, when the city tried to clear what it called a safety zone around City Hall. Fleetwood said that confrontation occurred when "intentional agitators" from outside Bellingham joined peaceful protesters.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/bellingham-homeless-camp-cleared-a-day-early-over-concerns-about-agitators-mayor-says/ar-BB1ddkF5?ocid=hplocalnews
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