A group of homeless people who live in an encampment along the Lehigh River in Lehighton will eventually have to vacate the premises.

Carbon County Commissioners’ Chairman Michael Sofranko said the sheriff’s department was directed by commissioners to go down by Tent City and do some documentation for what may be offered to those who live there. Tent City is located on county property, but within Lehighton borough limits.

“They were given information where they could go for help, and that the county will be posting that property shortly,” Sofranko said.

“One of the big issues is while they have certain rights, so do the residents who are living in that area, and they are tolerating the burning, garbage, fear of entering into their homes. As much as (the unsheltered) have rights, so do those who are living there.”

Sofranko said it’s also a liability to the county.

“They were there trying to provide assistance,” he said. “This is happening in the Borough of Lehighton; it’s not just a county issue, it’s a borough issue.”

Sofranko emphasized it isn’t a case where they want to push the people out of Tent City.

“The goal here is to clean it up and make sure those people find a place and they get the help that they need,” he said.

Sofranko added “as spring starts coming, this needs to be addressed. The time has come that the county and everyone involved needs to take an active role; we need to work on solving the problem (and) the first step is documentation.

“There will be postings put up and signage in areas. After that, there will be action taken.”

Robert Frycklund, county solicitor, explained the county’s stance.

“We can’t just sweep them out, nor do we want to,” Frycklund said. “We’re empathetic, understand people are in hard times.

“When there are services available, it’s not that they don’t have a choice. “We’re having medical emergencies, fire emergencies, some flooding down there.”

Frycklund added, “there’s a great deal of liability.”

“It’s not a great place for anybody to live,” he said. “We’re giving people the information that they need to relocate to shelter facilities and whatever they need.”

Frycklund said there are mental health issues, as well as drug issues, and “we need law enforcement down there to check in on this.”

“We’re respecting their humanity, but we can’t allow them to remain there; it is not good for them, and not safe for the people of the county,” he said. “It is not fit for habitation.”

Additionally, Frycklund noted the challenges the location presents in the event of an emergency, even for a four-wheel vehicle to get through.

“It’s really hard to get to; if we have an emergency vehicle that can’t get through there, gets stuck, we could have deaths,” he said. “If we have a vehicle that gets stuck, somebody might die, and that vehicle may be out of service; it’s a very unique situation that’s got to be resolved.”

The people

Last month, a couple who lives in Tent City came forward to share their circumstances with Lehighton Borough Council.

Brian Snyder and Jenna Daly introduced themselves to discuss their current living arrangement.

Daly said at that time there are about 22 people who live in Tent City, and said she and Snyder attempt to assist others who live there.

Daly said they try to help them get food, clothes, shoes, tents, and other needs.

Daly said very few of the people who live in Tent City are employed “because they have demons.”

Earlier in the meeting, Nancy Berchtold, member of St. Vincent DePaul Society, addressed council about St. Peter’s Community Resource Center in Weissport, which is open to the homeless in the Lehighton area.

Berchtold added the Society of Saint Vincent DePaul’s president started making phone calls, and within a 24-hour period, they had cots from a Carbon County Commissioner.

She said that for nine days straight, the resource center was open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and added that about 25 unsheltered people spent the night over the course of that time.

On Jan. 24, Carbon County held its annual “Unsheltered Homeless” Point-in-Time Count.

Kimberly Miller, executive director, Carbon County Action Committee for Human Services, said representatives from county agencies and community groups combed local communities to identify those who are homeless the evening of the count to gather information about them and offer care packages including toiletries, gloves, hats, socks, blankets, snacks, Narcan (in some of the bags), and other valuable tools and information regarding available services.

Several warm sites were opened that day for homeless people to visit, share information about their circumstances, and receive similar care packages, tools and information on other services.

The county initiated its latest edition of a task force aimed at assisting those in need with a meeting in Jim Thorpe on Jan. 26.

Miller said at that meeting that while they couldn’t give numbers as they had not received surveys back from all the partners, the homeless count is higher than it has been in many years.

A 45-year-old man died at the camp earlier this year.