Walking along the Schuylkill River in Palo Alto between Pottsville and Port Carbon, homeless encampments are a familiar sight. They have been there for nearly two decades, recently growing into larger camps.
That changed earlier this week when a locally viral social media post called attention to a massive dumping ground in one area.
During a visit to the site on Friday (April 3), The Canary independently verified the conditions. Beyond the smaller camps established in the woods, the debris intensifies on the land behind the Walco Fabricating Co. building and across the rail line that runs parallel to the river.
Among the piles of clothes, furniture, shopping carts, toys, and random garbage are needles, human feces, discarded hygiene products, IV bags, and rotting food.
“I was shell-shocked,” a Palo Alto resident who discovered the site and posted videos of it to social media told The Canary during an interview on Friday. (The Canary is withholding the resident’s name due to safety concerns.) “It’s just a lot.”
This collection of trash is a new problem, according to the post’s author. While there has been trash near campsites in the past, it was never this extensive.
“Eighteen years. They’ve always been here. Nobody made this mess before. In the last two months, it got really bad,” the resident said. “This is a new problem.”
Local Officials React to Homeless Encampment Dump Site
The social media post captured the attention of local officials, who say work is already underway to clean up the site.
Palo Alto Borough Council President Brian Dries said several people shared a link to the post with him the day it went live. Dries said he immediately contacted the Borough’s Code Enforcement Officer, Nick Hazlett, and Saint Clair Police Chief Brad Blanner. (Saint Clair provides police coverage to Palo Alto.)
The council president said the immediate directive is to get the site cleaned up and secured.
Hazlett said he began investigating when he saw the post online, searching for the property owners. He said the worst of the dumping is likely split among two separate parcels.
Contact was made with one owner, Tayeb Roumila of New Jersey. A neighboring parcel that likely shares some of the dump site is owned by RP Hughes Land Development Inc. Hazlett said he is trying to establish contact with that company. County property records indicate they are the owners of the location in question.
Roumila told Hazlett he would be in the area beginning Saturday, April 4, and is “100% willing to clean it up.” He said he wasn’t aware of the severity of the issue.
“My major concern is getting all the biological stuff out of there,” said Hazlett, who is considering this an emergency due to the type of garbage and its proximity to the Schuylkill River.
Typically, in a situation like this, Hazlett gives a property owner 48 hours to respond- which has already happened – and 5 days to clean up the mess. If they are compliant, as Roumila has been so far, and need an extension, Hazlett said he will usually grant it.
Once the cleanup is complete, Hazlett said he wants Roumila to clearly post the property with “No Trespassing” signs. That, along with community and property owner vigilance, will help with future enforcement.
“Nobody’s ever brought this to my attention. If I had known, I absolutely would have taken action on it,” Hazlett said. “We will definitely make sure it doesn’t continue.”
Blanner said it falls on the property owner to ensure their land is not used as a dumping ground. In the last 15 months, since Saint Clair started providing coverage to Palo Alto, Blanner said several people have been cited, but “without a property owner complainant, we don’t have justification to go down there.”
The chief said his department has also been in contact with Roumila, who expressed that he does not want anyone on his property. After receiving word of the dump site on Thursday, April 2, Blanner said Officer Vincent Bennett visited the location to inform those living in the area that the property owner no longer wanted them there. Only three people were found during that visit. Police provided them with resources to get help.
Blanner stressed that his department’s goal is not to treat the homeless population along the river as criminals.
“We’re sympathetic,” he said. “We’re not trying to treat them as villains.”
Moving to a New Location
The encampments along the Schuylkill River in Palo Alto include tents, furniture, and systems for keeping food from animals.
Clearing the site will push the camps elsewhere along the river. According to the author of the social media post, that displacement may already be happening.
The post author shared a map of camp and dumping sites along the river between Pottsville and Port Carbon. A new site has developed along the riverbank behind the Costas Candies facility and the future home of Palo Alto Borough Hall (the former Citizens Fire Co. hall). From Route 209 across the river, it is visible that more garbage is being dumped in the water.
Help is Available
As local officials attempt to connect those living along the river with resources, homeless advocates in Schuylkill County are also intervening.
Staff at Servants to All in Pottsville told The Canary they are working to identify the people who may have been camping at or near the site. While outreach workers routinely provide information about available services – including the option to stay at the My Father’s House facility – some individuals decline shelter.
“Unfortunately, there are quite a few chronically homeless people in the county that just, for whatever reason, do not want to be in a shelter,” said Heather Boher, a case manager with Servants to All.
Transitioning people out of encampments is a complex process, said Rachael Coury, a street outreach coordinator and case manager at Servants to All. When Coury visits encampment sites, she brings emergency supplies alongside a list of resources.
Coury said her most difficult task is building trust with individuals living on the street.
“Sometimes, it’s taken a really long time to do that. Sometimes it hasn’t worked out,” Coury said.
Boher added that one of the most challenging steps is helping a person obtain formal identification, which is required for housing applications.
“It’s the barriers to getting their identification: their Social Security card, birth certificate, IDs,” Boher said. “If you don’t have all three of those things, you can’t do a housing application. You can’t get a job.”
Even with identification, securing housing is a long process that requires persistent navigation of the system.
Subscribe to Coal Region Canary
Get email updates from Coal Region Canary by becoming a subscriber today. Just enter your email address below to get started!Support Coal Region Canary
Like our reporting and want to support truly local news in Schuylkill County? Your small donations help. For as little as $5, your contribution will allow us to cover more news that directly affects you. Consider donating today by hitting the big yellow button below ...
Pingback: Drug, Trespassing Arrests Made at Palo Alto Homeless Encampment - Coal Region Canary