Following occupation of downtown hotel, Olympia officials say they don’t plan to meet group’s demands

Ten people were arrested yesterday following an incident in downtown Olympia where a group occupied the Red Lion Hotel and provided a list of five demands of additional resources for homeless individuals.

The occupation was sparked by Oly Housing Now. The organization released a statement with demands, kicking it off with: “It’s too cold for people to be sleeping on the streets — especially during a pandemic.”

The group, according to the statement, is comprised of “Olympia residents working to end homelessness throughout our city. We support direct action to end our city’s housing crisis and get everyone housed.”

Among their demands were for the Thurston County Health Department to apply for FEMA funding for COVID-19 prevention sites and shelter for people 65 years or older, to stop sweeps of and provide resources to encampments, support homeless people with hotel vouchers, “increase impact fees on luxury and commercial property” in downtown Olympia and incentivize housing construction for people with low incomes.

During a press conference on the incident this afternoon, Assistant City Manager Keith Stahley said the city, despite the demands, wasn’t likely to change its approach to providing resources for the homeless population.

“We will continue to work with FEMA to access the maximum amount of funds that are available to Thurston County,” he said, adding later: “We’re very aware of the guidance from the attorney general’s office in regards to quote unquote sweeps of homeless encampments. So we’ll be following the attorney general’s guidance on that.”

Thurston County Homelessness Prevention Coordinator Keylee Marineau said the county will address FEMA funding at the Board of County Commissioner’s agenda-setting meeting at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

The occupation began at around 11 a.m. Sunday, according to a City of Olympia press release. Interim Police Chief Aaron Jelcick said during the press conference that hotel staff alerted the Olympia Police Department that there were about 30 to 35 protestors outside the building carrying items like sticks, clubs and hatchets. Rioters then entered the building, scaring staff members. Hotel staffers locked themselves in the basement, said Jelcick.

One staff member told police a member of the group pushed them and threatened them with a knife.

Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the hotel, forming a large law enforcement presence on the scene.

The group had booked 17 rooms on Saturday. They then entered various encampments and found 30 homeless individuals to stay in the rooms, Jelcick said, adding that none of the people who came in from encampments were charged for occupying the rooms, because they weren’t a part of the organizing group. Five people were arrested for first-degree burglary, one for first-degree assault for allegedly making threats with a knife, one for possession of a controlled substance and one for obstructing an officer. Others were arrested on unrelated warrants.

The hotel was cleared out after police obtained a warrant from a Thurston County Superior Court judge, and went room to room. The hotel was cleared out without any major uses of force, Jelcick said.

According to a city press release, the City’s Crisis Response Unit was on-hand to connect unhoused people with services. Four people accepted services, said Jelcick.

The City of Olympia released a statement following the event, in which Mayor Cheryl Selby lauded the city’s efforts to combat homelessness and called Oly Housing Now’s tactics “unproductive.”