Norristown municipal officials recently removed a homeless encampment in a wooded area located along Stony Creek and near ball fields. Mark Boorse, director of program development at Access Services, which provides street outreach services, estimated the encampment has been in existence since at least 2017. Norristown municipal administrator Leonard Lightner said that a month’s notice was given to people inhabiting the space, with signs posted in mid-February, but some advocates heard residents had between 10 days to two weeks. Homelessness has increased in Montgomery County, which has been without a major operational shelter for nearly three years since the closure of the Coordinated Homeless Outreach Center in Norristown. County officials have earmarked $10 million for a homeless shelter over the next five years in its capital improvement plan and leased hotel rooms in Pottstown for housing, and officials recently broke ground on a 20-bed, supportive short-term housing facility in Lansdale.
Source: Pottstown Mercury; 3/31/2025