Asylum-seekers in Kent face intense heat as volunteers work to secure housing

KENT, Wash. — Temperatures are taking a toll on about 150 asylum-seekers who are camping near a vacant motel in Kent while they try to connect with shelter and other services.

Volunteers were at the site on Tuesday helping the people brace for another day of heat, which forecasters say could reach into the mid-90s. Many are families with young children and it has been a challenge to keep everyone cool.

The asylum-seekers arrived in Washington from countries in Africa and Central and South America.

Staff with the Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) have been working with the group to find stable housing and have pushed for the empty EconoLodge to be opened up to them.

Jon Grant, LIHI’s chief strategy officer, said dozens of people would be placed in apartment buildings over the coming week, with a focus on housing the most vulnerable first. King County provided the money to pay for the housing placements, and additional assistance is coming from the Refugee Women's Alliance and the Riverton Park United Methodist Church.

“Our part is that we have affordable housing units that have come online and we're trying to prioritize them for asylum-seekers. We're moving a few dozen families over the next week or so, actually this week, so we're hoping to get them out of the heat as quickly as possible,” Grant said. “You know, it’s so hard. I'm watching these very young children, toddlers, sweating it out in the sun. We brought some water. There's not a lot of shade. We're trying to do our part by getting people moved inside."

Donations are helping to sustain the rest who remain at the camp on Central Ave N. The extreme heat has exacerbated the issues they face. Tents are stifling and shady spots few. Drinking water did appear to be readily available.

Asylum-seekers have called for the former EconoLodge to be opened to house the people living next to it, and Grant said it seems like a viable option.

“At the same time that we're moving families into affordable housing units, there's a building that's sitting vacant here,” Grant said.

Amy Enbysk, a spokesperson for King County Executive’s Office, wrote in an email that they are trying to address the most immediate concerns until state funding and programs are in place.

“We are focused on quickly getting the most vulnerable asylees on this site into emergency housing and shelter. We are working with providers to conduct outreach and offer emergency housing options for the people at the site as quickly as possible. The State money and programming will be allocated before any permitting would be secured for the former hotel on that site, so our focus is on collaborating with providers and the State to house people now,” Enbysk wrote.

Last year, King County provided $3 million to help house of 350 asylees and in April, awarded another $2 million in grants.

More money is expected to follow into the effort, Enbysk said, but it is subject to approval by the King County Council.

In the meantime, King County has offered funding for people living at the camp to pay for a safety barrier, port-a-potties, hand washing stations and potable water at the camp.

“The Kent EconoLodge was leased to isolate and quarantine people during the peak of the Covid pandemic. While some hotels have transitioned to Health through Housing, this EconoLodge is not part of that program,” Enbysk wrote. “As the Covid emergency ended, Kent informed the County they wanted to use the site for economic development, not Health through Housing. I understand the City has publicly stated that the County hasn't applied for a permit, but if we do, it will be considered appropriately. Obtaining a permit for the former EconoLodge is a longer-term option we are exploring, but the County never planned to keep this building in our portfolio and has been in conversations about selling our lease on that site.”