SEATTLE - Police officers raided a new homeless camp in Seattle dubbed "Nickelsville" on Friday and began arresting a number of camp occupants who defied orders to leave. Others were temporarily allowed to stay at a nearby parking lot.

Some 22 occupants and organizers of the encampment were arrested around 2 p.m. as officers methodically moved from tent to tent through the camp. They later were released after processing at the Southwest Precinct.

The arrests came just after dozens of the homeless had moved to an adjacent state Department of Transportation parking lot. There were more than 40 bright pink tents in that lot.

Due to an agreement cut Friday afternoon between the state and the city, they can stay for five days.

Ron Judd, Gov. Chris Gregoire's senior adviser, who was on the scene, said that Mayor Greg Nickels had agreed with the governor to allow the group to stay on the state lot until Wednesday. Judd said the governor wanted to give the Church Council of Greater Seattle more time to work out a long-term solution.

Judd called the agreement "a good short term solution."

Camp residents earlier were given until 12:35 p.m. Friday to leave - or else face arrest. The deadline later was extended to 1 p.m.

Many of the camp's residents left the impromptu town of bright pink tents as the deadline loomed, but others remained defiant and said they planned to stay.

A formation of uniformed Seattle police officers marched into the camp at about 1:20 p.m. and began systematically searching tents and other makeshift structures at the camp, located off West Marginal Way Southwest in South Seattle.

At the same time, residents of the camp were being strongly encouraged to leave on their own. The camp was set up on Sunday.

Four buses and two vans were staged near the tent city to transport people from the scene who refused to leave on their own.

City representatives also were on hand, offering shelter beds and other services to the homeless.

By 3:30 p.m., the Nickelsville camp was abandoned and surrounded by webbed orange fencing.

Critics of Mayor Greg Nickels say he doesn't do enough to help the homeless.

Nickels supports finding permanent housing for the homeless but says they can't be allowed to camp in the city, for health and safety reasons.

City officials originally ordered residents of the tent city to leave at 5 p.m. Thursday, but that deadline came and went with no action.