‘Housing not citations’ rally focuses on homelessness in Montgomery County

NORRISTOWN — “Housing is a human right. Housing is a human right.”

Chants from attendees of a “housing, not citations” rally Tuesday evening could be heard in downtown Norristown as nearly two dozen people gathered to have their voices heard on the topics of housing and homelessness.

“Montgomery County, we are in a crisis,” said Kelly Horvat, co-founder of the Pottstown-based Ann Frances Outreach Foundation. “We cannot allow for this to go on.”

More than 1,000 single adult county residents reportedly experienced homelessness last year, according to figures from the Philadelphia-based Resources for Human Development. Another 435 people were found sleeping outside or in temporary shelters on a night in January, according to a Montgomery County spokesperson.

Rally speakers stressed the need for more affordable housing and shelter options for those in the area as the county does not have a full-time homeless shelter.

The Coordinated Homeless Outreach Center, operated by Resources for Human Development, served as the county’s only shelter for single adults before closing in June 2022 when the lease lapsed. No new facility has been rebuilt.

Organized by several local nonprofits, including the Norristown Hospitality Center, Montco 30% Project, Better Days Ahead and Habitat for Humanity, officials had hoped to use the Tuesday evening forum to react to a U.S. Supreme Court decision in the case of City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson. However, a ruling had not been issued by the time of the rally.

The case “challenges a municipality’s ability to bar people from sleeping or camping in public areas, such as sidewalks and parks,” according to Harvard Law Today. A ruling had not been issued as of Wednesday afternoon.

“I was hoping to be able to have this rally post-SCOTUS decision, but obviously that didn’t happen. But what I think this rally will enable people to do is to feel empowered again,” said Mike Hays, co-founder of the Montco 30% Project.

Sunanda Charles, executive director of the Norristown Hospitality Center, shared concerns prior to Tuesday’s rally.

“I am anxious about what will happen if the Supreme Court does not uphold the lower court’s decision on this case,” she said in a statement. “We will see criminalization of unsheltered individuals at a more rapid rate than we see now. It will only push people deeper into homelessness and poverty.”

In recent months, sweeps of homeless encampments have taken place across Montgomery County in Norristown and Pottstown. Nearly 30 individuals who were situated along the Schuylkill River Trail in Pottstown were told they had to vacate the area. Legal advocates filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, citing that the borough did not offer suitable options.

The judge’s decision, issued in November, permitted the borough to move forward but prevented borough officials from arresting those camped there, or using the threat of arrest, to accomplish the task.

Advocates like Chris Brickhouse, president and head of outreach at Better Days Ahead Outreach Inc., of Phoenixville, stressed that using legal action against the homeless for simply being outside “criminaliz(es) an entire class of people.”

Officials called for more affordable housing and “housing first” options, urging participants to contact their elected officials in order to “keep the civic dialogue going,” Hays said.