By Richard L. Gaw
Staff Writer

Regarding the issue of homelessness in Chester County, the good news is that a consortium of agencies is conspiring to provide a hand-up to those who are struggling to find secure housing in the county, in the form of bold initiatives and collaborations.

Yet against that grain of hope, the bad news is that the rate of homelessness in the county has increased from 2024, federal funding is on the verge of being eliminated to combat homelessness and the cost of living continues to price out the majority of county residents who are living at, near or below the poverty line.

These realities were shared during a presentation by the Chester County Partnership to End Homelessness on June 2 that pulled the lid off of what is working and what is not, as shared by several of the county’s leading experts in the field. 

In his opening comments, County Commissioner Josh Maxwell said that the issue of homelessness and affordable housing has been discussed around the world, but it is also being felt in towns like Coatesville, Phoenixville and West Chester. 

“A lot of us know the people who are struggling to find housing in our communities, which makes these discussions so much more personal, because we’re going out and helping our neighbors,” he said. “In some shape or form, a lot of us are only a few paychecks away from being homeless, and homelessness can happen to every single one of us.

“It will take lots of tools in our toolbox to make sure that everyone in Chester County has enough housing.”

Homelessness point-in-time count shows slight increase from last year

Rob Henry, administrator of the Chester County Partnership to End Homelessness, said that the agency is currently working with 24 “housing solution partners” in the county to address homelessness, which he said increased to 313 people – either in shelter or non-sheltered - during a point-in-time count in the county that was held on Jan. 29 – a number that increased from the same data that registered 213 people during a similar point-in-time count in 2024. 

“There are a lot of variables in this count and things can change from year to year,” he said. “For instance, it was much colder [during this year’s count] than it was the year before, so we saw more people utilizing code blue and other emergency shelters.”

Despite the increased number, Henry said that the 2025 count was lower than in 2022, when the point-in-time count was 402 and in 2020, when the point-in-time count registered 522. Overall, Henry said that those using housing shelters over the last five years have decreased from 1,200 in 2020 to 699 in 2024, and the length of stay in emergency shelters decreased as well last year. Research also showed that the county saw a 12 percent drop in the number of first-time homelessness during 2024 and is down 33 percent over the last two years.

“When we look at solving homelessness from a data perspective, we’re trying to limit the in-flow through programs like diversion and prevention, and if they do become homeless, we want to get them housed as soon as possible,” Henry said.

Henry then discussed a well-trod topic that serves as perhaps the major reason why Chester County’s rates of homelessness continue to be a cause of concern in one of the most advantaged counties in the Commonwealth: housing affordability. Right now, the median monthly rent of an apartment in the county is $1,719 and the median home value is approaching $500,000, which Henry said is a near impossible price tag to pay up for those earning at, near or below the poverty line.

“While poverty, health and domestic violence can exacerbate someone’s housing situation, the truth is that if you do not have enough income to support your housing, you are at risk of homelessness,” he said. “The math doesn’t make sense. The high price of housing affects everyone.”

Federal funding cuts expected

In 2024, the county’s Department of Community Development (DCD) invested $5.9 million in funding resources that were funneled into planning, management and development of affordable housing, economic development, combatting homelessness and revitalizing urban centers. In total, the DCD helped 790 households receive services to assist in stabilizing their current housing situation, an investment of over $3 million.

That amount is in severe danger of changing dramatically. In her presentation, department Director Dolores Colligan said that funding could be affected by the current federal budget discussions. 

“Congress is expected to release their federal 2026 appropriation bills this summer, which is when we will get our first glimpse into how they will approach funding for the new fiscal year,” she said. “The preliminary budget passed onto the Senate decreases our homeless assistance grants by $532 million and consolidates the continuum of care program and the housing opportunities for persons with AIDS into the emergency solutions grants program.”

Under this proposal, Colligan said that people experiencing homelessness or who are at the risk of homelessness would only be able to receive the DCD’s assistance for two years, and that the proposed consolidation would effectively eliminate critical activities including permanent support of housing, coordinated entry and overall continuing care. Further, she said that the reappropriation of funds would return more than 166,000 households nationwide who currently reside in a permanent supportive housing facility – all with a disability many of whom who were at the risk of chronic homelessness – back to homelessness.

Changing demographics

The change in Chester County’s demographics is having a significant effect on its current housing scenario, which will be complicated by a forecast that the county is expected to add 111,000 new residents through 2050, and while the population is growing and there are fewer people living in each unit. 

“Part of what is causing this is the growth of the senior population in the county,” said Libby Horwitz, senior housing and economic planner for the Chester County Planning Commission. “By 2034 nationally, older adults are expected to exceed children in population for the first time in our nation’s history.”

Horwitz said for the county to adequately accommodate the anticipated population growth, between 41,000 and 71,000 new homes will need to be built, but despite that growing need, the county is experiencing a declining inventory of available housing, coupled with increasing inflation, rising residential development costs and less turnover of existing homes which has led to declining real estate transactions. 

“We’re pricing people out of the county entirely,” she said. “We’re pricing out workers in lower- and middle-income brackets. We will see declining services, increased traffic and pollution as people will have to travel further for their job and employers being unable to attract workers, and younger residents who grew up in the county who are relocating since they cannot afford to live in the county.” 

Street outreach

In its on-going effort to help eradicate homelessness, the Chester County Coordinated Entry System – which began in 2024 and is coordinated by the Human Needs Network of Chester County - is providing on-the-street outreach to connect those affected by homelessness to housing assistance and emergency services for individuals experiencing homelessness. The system operates through its 211-call center, which connects people affected by homelessness to various resources, including emergency housing and long-term stability services. 

In 2024, the five-member Coordinated Entry team provided coordinated efforts for 1,290 households and moved 201 households to permanent housing.

“We are required by HUD (the Department of Housing and Urban Development) to go out and physically meet clients where they are sleeping, to physically lay eyes on the car, the park bench, the tent in the woods, wherever it is the client says they are sleeping,” said Emily Kopp, street outreach and lead coordinator. “Going to a shelter while you are in a crisis is a possible solution if you have nowhere else to go, but it can be traumatic, especially for families who have children.

“A lot of times, they don’t have anybody [to turn to], which is really sad, but that’s where we come in. We are then able to make referrals and get them to a shelter so that they can decompress and start to work towards a solution. As always, our goal is to make homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring.”

Additional speakers at the event included Pat Bokovitz, director of the county’s Department of Housing Services; Jen Manthey, director of information and assistance for Brandywine Valley Active Aging; Corrie Livera, the community resource manager for Open Hearth, Inc.; and Katie Havalcheck of the LMK Realty Investment Group. 

“It will be a major achievement when we end chronic homelessness, but I want to emphasize that we won’t be done if we end chronic homelessness,” Henry said about the county-wide efforts shared at the event. “It’s about striving toward the goal of ending chronic homelessness, to make improvements that will allow us to make reductions for years to come.”

To learn more about the Chester County Partnership to End Homelessness, visit www.endhomelessnesschesco.org.

To learn more about the Human Needs Network of Chester County, visit www.chescohumanneeds.org.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email [email protected].