Tent City 4

Tent City 4 is a homeless encampment of up to 100 persons operated by homeless residents and sponsored by 501(c)(3) organizations Seattle Housing and Resources Effort (SHARE) and Women's Housing Equality and Enhancement League (WHEEL). The camp was created in May 2004 and limits itself to places of worship in eastern King County outside of Seattle. Minors are not allowed in Tent City 4, although there is a provision for emergency situations. Residents may use their own tents or community tents that are segregated by gender. Dumpsters, portable toilets and a shower, paid for by SHARE, are provided to address sanitation concerns. In order to control access to the encampment, there is only one entry/exit to the camp that is guarded at all times.

Unlike its sister tent city in Seattle, Tent City 3, which moves around Seattle with little to no resistance, Tent City 4's meanderings are often met with stiff resistance from some residents of the communities it moves into. King County and many of the cities therein have subsequently established land-use codes in an attempt to balance the desire of faith-based organizations to host the camp and the concerns of some of its neighbors over health and safety.

Read more about Tent City 4:  Controversy Over Tent City 4, See Also

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