The Smokey Point rest area, seen here May 17, 2022, was closed for months due to homeless encampments at the Arlington site. (Olivia Vanni / Herald file)

The Smokey Point rest area, seen here May 17, 2022, was closed for months due to homeless encampments at the Arlington site. (Olivia Vanni / Herald file)

‘Massive amount’ of homeless RV camping closed Smokey Point rest area

Since November, 38 homeless people were identified through outreach. Six have accepted housing offers with case management.

ARLINGTON — Homeless people in recreational vehicles were filling the parking lot almost nightly at the Smokey Point rest area before it was closed in 2021, according to a state report on encampments in state right-of-way.

It was one of 281 encampments identified between 2015 and September 2022 on Washington State Department of Transportation right-of-ways in Snohomish County. That was the second-highest tally, behind King County’s 922.

“The fact there are unhoused people on DOT right of way is not a new thing,” the agency’s assistant secretary Mike Gribner said in a Washington State Transportation Commission meeting Tuesday. “What is different is the volume and the prolific increases we see now across the United States.”

Encampments aren’t safe for people sleeping alongside highways and under bridges or for state transportation maintenance crews, WSDOT maintenance policy manager Andrea Fortune said.

Conditions at encampments, where propane tanks and hypodermic needles were sometimes found, kept employees from reaching traffic signals and other infrastructure, she said.

Costs to clean those sites grew from around $200,000 in 2008 to $2.8 million last year, according to WSDOT data. The state normally relies on volunteers or incarcerated people for litter cleanup along its highways. But that isn’t an option for encampments, which require contractors or state employees, WSDOT Secretary Roger Millar said.

The Smokey Point rest areas were some of the busiest in the state in 2018 with over 838,000 southbound and 1.2 million northbound visits, according to state data.

Located about 1½ miles north of the Highway 531 and I-5 interchange, vandalism and a shortage of maintenance workers led the state to close the rest area from October 2021 until mid-January last year.

The rest areas have closed occasionally since then for maintenance and pavement work.

They’ve been open since the summer, but RV parking has stayed closed.

“We saw a massive amount of RVs showing up there,” WSDOT Gateway homeless response coordinator Colin DeForrest said Tuesday.

State funding for the Right of Way Safety Initiative requires an offer for housing before an encampment can be cleared. There’s over $143 million available for the program across several state departments, with $5.8 million dedicated to Snohomish County.

Millar said “sweeping” people from an encampment only pushes them into other areas, like downtown, where they get pushed out again.

“We need to do it right,” Millar said Tuesday. “These are people. What would you want done for your child or your mom?”

Of three encampment sites in Snohomish County covered by the initiative’s funding, two have since closed with a majority of people accepting housing, according to the state.

Only the Smokey Point rest area was considered active.

Since outreach began in November, 38 people staying at the Smokey Point rest area were identified as being homeless, WSDOT spokesperson James Poling wrote in an email to The Daily Herald. Of that total, six people were offered and accepted housing through a program run by the Volunteers of America of Western Washington as of Tuesday.

The offer comes with “intensive” case management and a goal of employment, Poling wrote.

People living in vehicles tend to be easier to get into services but people in RVs are “a tough nut to crack,” DeForrest said. They’re mobile and relatively safe at sites like a rest area, especially at Smokey Point, which is farther from metropolitan areas like Everett and Seattle, DeForrest said.

When the Smokey Point rest areas reopen, the RV parking will stay closed but the dump stations will open, DeForrest said. The state has already changed the parking limits signs, assigned numbers to parking stalls to help with enforcement and stenciled commercial parking stalls to reserve them for freight haulers, who can park there up to 11 hours within a day.

The state also plans to add patrols from state troopers and distribute fliers about resources for homeless people.

Ben Watanabe: 425-339-3037; bwatanabe@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @benwatanabe.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

North Middle School Principal Tyler Ream and teacher Jenny Overstreet look through historic photographs of North Middle School on Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
North Middle School to celebrate 100 years in Everett

On Saturday, the school will display memorabilia from years past and showcase the recently renovated building.

Traffic moves along Bowdoin Way past Yost Park on Monday, Aug. 25, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
A new online tool could aid in local planning to increase tree coverage

The map, created by Washington Department of Natural Resources and conservation nonprofit American Forests, illustrates tree canopy disparities across the state.

Logo for news use featuring Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Snohomish PUD preps for more state home electrification funding

The district’s home electrification rebate program distributed over 14,000 appliances last year with Climate Commitment funds.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Everett in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
One person dead in single-vehicle crash on Wednesday in Everett

One man died in a single-vehicle crash early Wednesday morning… Continue reading

A firefighter moves hazard fuel while working on the Bear Gulch fire this summer. Many in the wildland fire community believe the leadership team managing the fire sent crews into an ambush by federal immigration agents. (Facebook/Bear Gulch Fire 2025)
Firefighters question leaders’ role in Washington immigration raid

Wildfire veterans believe top officials on the fire sent their crews into an ambush.

More frequent service coming for Community Transit buses

As part of a regular update to its service hours, the agency will boost the frequencies of its Swift lines and other popular routes.

More than $1 million is available for housing-related programs in Snohomish County, and the Human Services Department is seeking applications. (File photo)
Applicants sought for housing programs in Snohomish County

More than $1 million is available for housing-related programs in… Continue reading

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Arlington in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
A road rage incident escalated when bystander displayed firearm outside Arlington School District office

Presidents Elementary School activated a precautionary lock-out following the incident.

Lynnwood
Man arrested after police pursuit in stolen vehicle on Friday

The suspect was booked into Snohomish County Jail on suspicion of 18 charges.

Niko Battle (campaign photo)
Judge rules Everett council candidate cannot appear on Nov. ballot

Niko Battle, who won the August primary, plans to appeal. County staff are set to finalize the ballots once they receive a court order.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Arlington in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Arlington police investigating an altercation that left one woman stabbed on Tuesday

One man in custody for unlawful imprisonment and fourth-degree assault.

Security guard pleads not guilty of impersonating Edmonds detective

In his first court appearance Monday, a judge set bail at $50,000 for Michael Scaletta-Teates.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.