East Lampeter Township officials want to do better when it comes to responding to homelessness. A plan on the table could streamline a complicated process.
Township supervisor Ethan Demme led a discussion Monday evening to advance a proposed plan to strengthen the township’s ability to aid the homeless community. At its core, the proposal would establish processes that ensure township staff, police officers and nonprofit leaders are trained and connected to one another to help people in need.
“When we drive around, we still see folks who don’t have houses or places to sleep. So we’re now looking at what’s our immediate need,” Demme said. “Our goal is we want to connect people who are experiencing homelessness to existing resources.”
Supervisors in October agreed the township needed a path forward after several encampments on private properties were cleared out in a matter of weeks. Two encampments were on the Route 30 corridor behind Walmart and Sonic. A third encampment behind Weis on Old Philadelphia Pike was also cleared.
Encampments grew in size after the county’s low-barrier shelter closed in June. City and county officials also began to crack down on sleeping in public spaces, specifically around the county government building on North Queen Street where many people congregated. People who were staying in the encampments said they were suddenly asked to leave, causing outreach workers to scramble in an attempt to help.
Demme, who worked with supervisor Michael Thornton to draft the plan, said the township typically learns about unsheltered people from police reports, public complaints or simply community awareness. The plan would require officials to connect the homeless with outreach workers who will create an individualized response to each person’s needs.
“We don’t want a one-size-fits-all approach,” Demme said. “From the township’s staff point of view, we don’t know what the best thing to do in every situation (is).”
The township in September earmarked $10,000 for the nonprofit Conestoga Valley SEEDS to provide outreach work in the community. The plan also highlights the Lancaster County Homelessness Coalition and the nonprofit Tenfold as other key stakeholders with existing connections to the homeless.
The police department’s current response to homelessness will also be reviewed. Demme said he wants outreach workers and police officers to feel comfortable working together.
Private property owners will also be given guidelines on how to best handle encampments.
Demme also proposed the township empower religious entities to use their resources to help the homeless community, whether that be opening space for portable bathrooms or a few shelter beds.
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Comprehensive data
Another focus of the plan is tracking data on homelessness in the township. Demme said data would help officials keep a pulse on the issue but also maintain relationships with people in the homeless community.
The Lancaster County Homelessness Coalition broadly collects data on homelessness every year. The data collection, called the point-in-time count, is mostly a snapshot of homelessness as volunteers go to different areas in the county on one night to take count of people experiencing homelessness.
Demme pointed out the process has flaws because it takes only one day into account. That likely leaves a lot of people unaccounted for.
This year’s annual count identified 597 people in the county as experiencing homelessness, a 13.5% increase from 2023. At least 122 of those people were identified as living on the streets.
Supervisors will next meet with township staff, nonprofit leaders and outreach workers to discuss the plan. The board did not take any formal action on the plan Monday evening, though many spoke positively of the proposal.
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