Free water bottle barrels for homeless barred in Pasco without permits — even in the heat

A Tri-Cities group is reconsidering how it will serve Pasco’s most vulnerable during summer heatwaves after it was told that it cannot perform “public services” in some downtown areas.

Every summer for three years, the faith-based Clean Sweep Tri-Cities has set up blue 55-gallon barrels filled with ice and bottled water for those without shelter during triple-digit temperatures.

In the past, the barrels were placed in a park or common area such as Peanuts Park plaza near the downtown farmers market.

But the group was told last week it will now need a city permit to place the barrels in public spots and they will not be allowed in the city’s downtown shopping zone.

Their “water ministries” will also need a special event license costing $15, which will take 20 to 30 days to process, said Troy Hendren, Pasco’s building official and fire marshal.

“No notices have been sent out, just a couple phone calls. We received a complaint from a business owner. One of my staff checked into it and called Clean Sweep,” Hendren told the Tri-City Herald. “There’s no hammer coming down. This is just an educational piece that we would make with everybody. We didn’t say, ‘No,’ we just said, ‘Not right here.’”

Hendren said they are welcome with a permit to set up in the nearby industrial zones, located one block south or two blocks east of the Peanuts Park plaza.

Mark McKee, a founding member of Clean Sweep, said he was discouraged by Pasco’s response, especially since the city’s core homeless population is concentrated downtown. He believes a complaint was made because their activity attracts homeless people to the plaza area.

“It’s pretty important when you talk to the people in the city streets or at the city parks who appreciate the water. It’s an opportunity for the community to come together and help each other out and make sure no one dies from heat exhaustion,” he told the Herald.

He says the slow turnaround for a special events license will interfere with Clean Sweep’s ability to organize quickly since severe hot weather can come with little notice.

Permitting events

Clean Sweep Tri-Cities volunteers also pick up trash on the weekends, conduct outreach with the unhoused and hand out hot food and hand-warmers during cold spells.

Franklin County judges also use their volunteer work as a sentencing alternative for organized community service, McKee said.

They will not need a permit to continue those activities.

“Walking up and handing a bottle water to an individual who is hot and thirsty is not against code, but organizing an event providing ‘showers, clothing, haircuts, lunch, medical exams and water barrels’ is,” Hendren said.

The group was founded in June 2020. Dozens come out to volunteer at each event, and its Facebook group includes more than 3,800 people.

“It was a calling God placed on my life to go out into the community and make an impact,” said McKee, 47, who struggled with a drug addiction for 15 years. “We walk with people, hand-in-hand.”

But McKee says a city staffer told him June 9 that a permit would be required for his future events, and that it would cost $800. That figure was apparently a miscommunication and the correct amount is $15, said city officials.

In a post to Facebook, McKee announced that all future events in the city would be canceled due to the exorbitant amount, and asked for their volunteers to pray for the city of Pasco.

Hendren explained in a letter that was posted to the city’s Facebook page why the city is now requiring a permit and restricting the locations.

“Permits help us ensure that events are set up in a safe manner, without obstructing traffic, and in compliance with health, safety and equality standards,” Hendren wrote.

“Businesses and nonprofits alike follow the same guidelines. Placing items on public right of way, such as water barrels or other free items, providing medical services, placing mobile units and serving food requires a permit. This ensures that sidewalk, parks and rights of way remain safe and accessible for everyone at all times.”

City staff also included a link to their community development block grants program, which are made available to support the type of work of nonprofits like Clean Sweep.

The city has $715,000 available next year through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to dole out.

While McKee says they’ll likely submit an application, those funds won’t be available until mid-2024 and will not help with work the group conducts this summer and winter.

Future work in Pasco

McKee said they will continue to serve Pasco even if they cannot hold formal events.

Instead of holding a stationary water ministry, they will likely canvas the city and hand out water bottles.

“There is a need and we will be there, 110%,” he said.

McKee seemed a little more optimistic after learning that the fee would not be $800 per event.

He said he hopes to meet with the city manager to find some “middle ground” solution. Members of Clean Sweep plan to comment publicly at the next Pasco council meeting June 20.

A 1982 amendment to Pasco’s city code allows the government to place restrictions on “public services” in its downtown C2 zone, Hendren told the Herald.

Those types of events can block sidewalks or city rights of way and often produce a lot of trash.

“C2 is commercial. This is retail,” Hendren said. “The goal is to convince homeowners and citizens to come down to the commercial and retail areas. Retail businesses are meant for purchasing. It’s hard to do that when you have those large events down there that aren’t typically tended to well enough.”

But that could change.

City council members have comment in recent weeks about the need to come up with solutions to restrict drug use in public and to help the homeless in the downtown core.

That may include bringing organizations like Clean Sweep and other services into the mix downtown to help with those issues, said City Manager Adam Lincoln.