Tiny homes are coming to parts of Philadelphia, but there's a catch

Tiny homes are coming to parts of Philadelphia, but there’s a catch

Hank Flynn reports on the effort to bring tiny homes to NE and West Philadelphia

WEST PHILADELPHIA - Tiny homes are coming are coming to Philadelphia. They are part of the agreement that closed the controversial homeless encampments in October.

The city has agreed to build tiny house villages in Northeast and West Philadelphia. But, there is a catch – there is an age requirement.

“As soon as it is open in Philadelphia, Pastor Juanita Walters is going to be there with my sleeve up getting my vaccine,” Pastor Walters stated.

Pastor Walters is future-oriented and looking forward to getting her COVID vaccine. She’s also anticipating 20 to 40 homeless seniors moving into tiny houses next door to her Greater Mount Olive African Methodist Episcopal Church on Aspen Street in West Philadelphia.

“I love it. And, I welcome them! To come and worship with us, if they don’t have a church home,” Pastor Walters exclaimed.

City spokesman Mike Dunn confirmed the city is moving forward with two plots of land, one at 4917 Aspen, the other, he said, would likely be in the Northeast, but is not yet determined.

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“You’re gonna be hard-pressed to find any pushback when it comes to, you know, having seniors have housing,”

Tara Gontek, of Holmesburg Civic Association, says she hears it’ll be on a plot off State Road, near the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center. And, she says nobody in her neighborhood has a problem helping old folks.

“A lot of people aren’t realizing this is an effort for seniors exclusively. Not that everyone doesn’t deserve housing, but something like this should be a slam dunk for everyone,”

Tiny houses have become a potent tool in the fight against homelessness in San Jose, Seattle and elsewhere. Not much of it in the Delaware Valley, but Pastor Walters says it’s high time.

“People are in food lines that never thought that they would be in a food line. And, so here, at Great Mount Olive, we have a big heart. We love people and we welcome them to this community and anything we can do for them, our church is open to them,” Pastor Walters added.

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