ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A prominent Allentown developer is suing the city, saying its inaction on a homeless encampment is hurting his bottom line.
Nat Hyman’s nuisance complaint against Allentown, filed last week, says city officials have “failed to adequately maintain, police and manage” a part of Jordan Creek Greenway that borders four of his properties.
More than a dozen tents have been set up behind Meadow Place and Allen Flats along the creek on both sides of Tilghman Street, according to the lawsuit.
“The existence of the tents and huts … has and will continue to make [Hyman’s] properties less attractive and less valuable due to their proximity to the homeless community,” his attorney, James Scanlon, wrote in the suit.
People who live in that area “frequently trespass upon [Hyman’s] properties, urinate and defecate on [Hyman’s] properties, and unlawfully connect to water and electric utilities,” the suit states.
Hyman said he has reached out multiple times to Allentown officials, asking them to deal with the “unsightly, unsanitary and dangerous conditions,” including piles of garbage, along Jordan Park Greenway.
But the city has refused, “effectively permitting the use of the Jordan Park Greenway properties … by unidentified homeless individuals,” according to the lawsuit.
Hyman is asking a Lehigh County judge to declare a “public nuisance” and order Allentown to “immediately abate and remedy” its properties that border his.
And he’s seeking $50,000 or more in damages from the city, as well as court costs and other relief.
Lawsuit questions new approach
Hyman’s lawsuit is the first legal challenge to Mayor Matt Tuerk’s new directive to clean up rather than clear out homeless encampments in Allentown.
“I haven't been back there since — because there hasn’t been a need. They know that they are still residents, they are still community members.”Sgt. John Leonard
Police used to post no-trespassing signs at encampments and let residents pack up their belongings and relocate before city crews bulldozed the site, Allentown Police Sgt. John Leonard said in March at a meeting of the city’s Commission on Homelessness.
“These individuals move somewhere else until that becomes a problem, and then we do the same thing,” Leonard said.
Tuerk last fall ordered city workers to “clean up the areas without moving everybody around,” Leonard said.
“I haven't been back there since — because there hasn’t been a need,” Leonard said. “They know that they are still residents, they are still community members.
“As long as the community is safe, there's no need for us to bother” people living in encampments.
'We could be in that situation'
Tuerk said he called for a different approach because it solves nothing to “clear people out without a place to shelter.”
“Why just bulldoze somebody’s tent if they have nowhere else to go?"Mayor Matt Tuerk
“It’s not really addressing the problem, it’s just brushing it aside,” he said. “Why just bulldoze somebody’s tent if they have nowhere else to go?”
Tuerk did not speak Monday about Hyman’s lawsuit against the city.
Allentown City Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach regularly highlights how close many Allentown residents are to losing their housing, as she did at last month’s commission meeting.
Gerlach slept in her car for six months in 2009 after getting a flat tire. She said she opted to repair her car to get to work instead of paying rent that month.
She suggested the commission and city work to encourage connections between residents and business owners in the area and people who live at the encampment.
“Those of us who live in Center City and are working class, we intellectually understand we could be in that situation tomorrow,” Gerlach said.
