Pittsburgh City Council is attempting to find solutions for what members called a homelessness crisis. Council President Theresa Kail-Smith and Councilor Deb Gross introduced a resolution Tuesday that would, among other things, set aside city-owned land to create short- and long-term shelter for those living on the streets.
The resolution comes as members say they have received dozens of calls from the public about homeless camps popping up throughout the city. Kail-Smith said she has witnessed first-hand an increased number of people sleeping on the streets of Mt. Washington.
“I think it’s absolutely a crisis right now. You can see that there are people struggling,” Kail-Smith said. “We ought to take some responsibility and try to make sure that we are giving people that are working with the unhoused population some resources, and that includes housing. Safe housing.”
According to Allegheny County data, 880 people were identified as homeless earlier this year, but tent camps have grown in the Strip District and the North Side this summer. Council members cite inflation and rising rent costs as possible factors driving the increase.
If passed, the bill would instruct the city’s Department of Finance and the Department of Innovation and Performance to find 40 city-owned parcels of land to designate for homelessness services. Ten parcels would be consolidated and used for housing that could include a village of tiny homes — downsized dwellings that typically measure less than 500 square feet. Ten more parcels could be used for affordable housing, or temporary shelters. Another 10 would be dedicated to affordable housing development. The remaining parcels would be designated as the sites for future heating and cooling centers.
Council members characterized the bill Tuesday as the start of a larger conversation about how Pittsburgh cares for people without homes, and what council’s role is in that conversation. The bill would direct the city to help create a path toward permanent shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
Officials are considering renovating vacant housing and using vacant hotel rooms as potential short-term solutions.
“If you look across the city of Pittsburgh, we have [available housing],” Kail-Smith said Tuesday.
The bill also directs the mayor, the city's Housing Authority and five city departments to propose long-term policies and programs to support the city’s homeless by getting people into stable housing situations. On Tuesday, Kail-Smith called on Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald to play a role in establishing more services for the homeless.
Earlier media reports about the bill raised fear among some members of the public that the city would consider using police to disperse encampments. Several members of the public spoke out against that strategy during the Tuesday meeting's public-comment period: Speakers proposed adding language to the bill that prevents camp “sweeps” and establishes areas where people may set up camps.
A spokesperson for Gainey’s office said Tuesday that the city has no plans to uproot any camps.
“We are exploring several immediate solutions at this time while also focusing on building out long-term sustainable housing options for our residents and are eager to work with Council to make that happen,” said Maria Montaño.
For her part, Kail-Smith said she does not support dispersing encampments without resources to direct people toward. “I’ve never once said that I want people physically removed from the street," she said. “What I said was I want tents down. I want housing up… What we are doing to our unhoused population is disgusting.”
Kail-Smith said some percentage of the transient population may not wish to buy or rent housing in the city. "But there are people that really need help,” she said.
City leaders are counting on a new 24-hour shelter along Second Avenue Downtown to help provide space for those living on the street. The $21 million building is scheduled to open next month as a low-barrier shelter that accepts anyone regardless of their sobriety, and that allows pets.
“We look forward to the opening of Second Avenue Commons this fall, which will help many of our unhoused residents have access to a low-barrier shelter," Montaño said.
But Councilor Deb Gross, who co-sponsored the bill, argued that the city must go beyond providing beds in a shelter.
“Having a bed just for a few hours … having to leave in the morning and being out all day and maybe being allowed to come back at night —that’s not housing,” she said. “Let’s actually get people under a roof, even if it’s a temporary roof.”
Gross argued that when people are in a stable housing situation, it’s easier for them to get help finding employment, finding a permanent home and treating mental illness or addiction.
Kail-Smith said Tuesday that council will also work with the community outreach office, the mayor and county officials to come up with new ideas to create a path toward permanent shelter for those living on the streets.
“People should not be homeless in the City of Pittsburgh when we have so many resources coming in here,” Kail-Smith said.
Council is expected to further discuss the measure next week.
