A homeless encampment that had been active for at least several weeks next to a Walmart store in East Lampeter Township was suddenly cleared out Wednesday morning.
Outreach workers helped homeless people remove their belongings from a wooded area next to the shopping plaza off Lincoln Highway East, according to reporting from One United Lancaster. The encampment grew after city officials in August began cracking down on camping regulations in parks.
Paige McFarling, executive director of Lancaster County Food Hub, said the nonprofit received a call early Wednesday morning from someone staying in the encampment asking for help. She said the person told Food Hub officials that a Bobcat machine was clearing brush in the area and people needed to leave. McFarling estimated about 20 people were living at the encampment.
After the call, Food Hub alerted other nonprofits including Tenfold and Blueprints for Addiction Recovery, and outreach workers from across organizations came to help.
“We tried to respond as best as we could,” McFarling said.
McFarling said Food Hub helped eight people, six of whom have been placed in hotel rooms for a week. Some people went to a nearby encampment.
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According to One United Lancaster, outreach workers had been told Walmart arranged to clear away the encampment. The wooded area is private property shared between Walmart and East Towne Center. Attempts to reach East Towne Center were unsuccessful.
Walmart issued a statement Thursday saying: “We work to maintain a safe and enjoyable experience for our associates and customers, both inside and outside of the store. As part owners of the land east of our store along Lincoln Highway, we, along with the other owners, were contacted by elected leaders to help address concerns with the property. Cleanup has been ongoing for several months, and with the help of local law enforcement and Haz Mat crews, we conducted final debris removal on Wednesday. Encampment occupants were notified of the site work days in advance.”
East Lampeter Township Manager Ralph Hutchison said the township was not involved and Walmart authorized the clearing of the encampment.
“It’s a tough situation,” Hutchison said. “I’m sympathetic to the unsheltered folks, but I’m also sympathetic to the property owner.”
Jake Thorsen, chief impact officer of Tenfold, said clearing the encampment will ultimately make it more difficult to connect people with much needed services. Many people were forced to scatter to different areas in the county over the summer when the city’s camping enforcements began as a response to health concerns.
“It’s just a shame considering that a lot of folks continuously are going to be moved from place to place throughout the city and county,” Thorsen said. “Outreach workers lose their touch points every time this happens.”
The county’s 40-bed low-barrier shelter on North Prince Street in Lancaster closed in June and a new, 80-bed shelter in Lancaster city will not open until December. The Lancaster County Redevelopment Authority is paying for full-time and part-time outreach workers at several nonprofits to fill the services gap.
Update, Sept. 27, 10 a.m.: The Lancaster County Homelessness Coalition sent a statement about the encampment after this story was first published. The group's statement is:
On Wednesday morning, the homelessness Street Outreach team learned that a group of unhoused individuals were going to be displaced within the hour from their Route 30 woodland location between Wal Mart and Ollies. The property owner began work to remove trees and brush late that morning using a motorized chipping machine. Upon being notified, representatives from Tenfold, Lancaster County Food Hub, Blueprints for Recovery and our office met with the individuals to preserve belongings and assist with needs. All individuals are known to the Street Outreach team and have previously been in the city before the enforcement of no trespassing ordinances. The Street Outreach team continues to provide services, explore mental health and recovery options and reunification/shared housing.
