ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Advocates for homeless residents are asking city officials to put their money where their mouths are in next year’s municipal budget.
“We know that the budget has already been written, but it has not been approved," Christina DiPierro, co-chairwoman of Allentown’s Commission on Homelessness told City Council on Wednesday.
"We really would like you to consider adding a line item that would impact the lives of our unsheltered neighbors.”
The commission is requesting $100,000 in 2026.
A handout DiPierro provided to council shows half of that money would be set aside to shelter people in hotels and help stop some from becoming homeless with rent assistance and other financial help.
A further $21,500 would go toward restrooms and outdoor water stations.
And $20,000 would be split between laundry resources — through Loads of Blessing — and an expansion of the city’s geographic-information systems to “enhance coordination, efficiency and accuracy in serving unsheltered individuals,” DiPierro said.
“People are getting pushed around from here to there and everywhere with no place to go. There's no land for people to lay their bodies down at night and rest their heads.”Christina DiPierro, Commission on Homelessness co-chair
Better maps could be the difference between life and death for some, she said.
Service providers, including Valley Health Partners’ Street Medicine Team, have struggled to find some of the people they serve since the city started clearing a large homeless camp along Jordan Creek in September.
Homeless in two other encampments along the creek are scheduled to be evicted over the next two weeks.
“People are getting pushed around from here to there and everywhere with no place to go,” DiPierro said. “There's no land for people to lay their bodies down at night and rest their heads.”
The rest of the requested funding — about $8,500 — would be used to buy gift cards to compensate volunteers who help with the creation of a Homeless Advisory Board, according to the handout from the commission.
'Let this be the year'
The proposed initiatives are “not a long-term solution” to homelessness; they are “things that we need right now to be able to care for our unsheltered neighbors,” DiPierro said.
She called for city officials to develop a five-year plan.
Investing $100,000 could save three to seven times that amount in prevented emergency medical care, law enforcement and shelter costs, according to projections from the commission, she said.
“Let this … year be the one where our budget reflects the inclusive, humane and forward-thinking city we strive to be.”Christina DiPierro, Commission on Homeless co-chair
“Failing to invest in the unsheltered community costs the city far more in the long run,” DiPierro said.
Dedicating funding through a budgetary line item “isn't just good governance,” she told council members.
“It's an act of courage and compassion," DiPierro said.
"It tells the community that we see every resident housed and unhoused are worthy of care.
"It acknowledges that we cannot build a thriving city by ignoring those who live in the margins.
“Let this … year be the one where our budget reflects the inclusive, humane and forward-thinking city we strive to be.”
Mayor Matt Tuerk is proposing a 3.96% property tax increase and $135 trash-fee hike in his 2026 budget, which council members are reviewing.
They are aiming to adopt the city’s budget Dec. 3.
