The Yakima City Council held a study session Tuesday to talk about a 10-point-plan to establish a homeless encampment on East Nob Hill Blvd. next to fire station 95. The council, instead of making  a decision decided to continue to study the issue with area service providers and be ready with a plan by the end of the week.

Mayor Kathy Coffey says if another encampment is established it'll need lighting and security. She says the last encampment was dangerous. "There were drug deals going on constantly. There were stabbings. The people that were in there for the purposes we put the camp together were fearful." One of the people who spoke to the council was Jeremy Rodriguez President of the Yakima Firefighters Association. He says fire officials aren't happy with a proposed camp next to the fire station. "We've had issues with graffiti and people breaking into a back lots. We do have hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of equipment stored on our back lots and we're concerned about that and our personal vehicles."
Council members will meet with members of the Neighborhood Community and Building Committee and will be back at city hall for a meeting again on Friday at 4:00 p.m. to make a recommendation on the location and how the encampment will be funded.

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