The SoWe community group is launching a pilot program to provide lockers to Lancaster’s street homeless population.
On Thursday, SoWe took delivery of a trailer fitted with 12 lockers, surmounted by a shed roof. It will be stationed on the 100 block of South Water Street, behind the former Neighborhood Services building where the Lancaster County Homelessness Coalition is planning to build its homelessness services hub.
SoWe hopes to have the trailer installed and operational next week, Director Amos Stoltzfus said.
It will be the first deployment for Lockers for the Homeless, a local initiative launched by Richard “Doc” Canard, a certified state EMT instructor. He has been promoting the idea since before the pandemic and hopes to expand it countywide.
Canard previously served as a patient care navigator for Care Connections, a joint venture between Lancaster EMS and Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health that provided support to high-need patients with complex medical issues, including homeless patients. His clients were frequently having their medications lost or stolen, he realized, because they had no secure place to store their belongings.
He based the design on one developed by a nonprofit in Utah. Putting the lockers on a trailer provides flexibility, Canard said: “It fits in a parking space.” You can wheel it out for use, then store it offsite in a warehouse or garage if necessary. The shed roof shields the lockers from rain and provides a place to mount lights and a security camera.
The 12 lockers are part of a set of 18 salvaged from YWCA Lancaster’s basement, a former pool that is being renovated and repurposed.
All told, the trailer (bought used), the camera and other materials cost about $1,500, Canard estimated. Donations to Lockers for the Homeless are handled through the Redevelopment Fund, a nonprofit set up by the Lancaster County Redevelopment Authority, which houses the Homelessness Coalition. Thanks to $1,000 recently received from Lancaster Elks Lodge #134 Past Exhausted Rulers Association, along with other contributions, there was enough to cover SoWe’s build, he said.
SoWe plans to allocate the lockers to individuals referred by street outreach workers, Stoltzfus said. It is finalizing the contract that they will have to sign: Among other things, it prohibits using the lockers to store weapons or illegal drugs and gives SoWe the right to inspect anyone’s locker at any time. SoWe’s costs are being covered with a $5,000 challenge grant from Holy Trinity Lutheran Church.
Stoltzfus said he ran the plan by Lancaster’s Homeless Advocacy Board before moving foward. Organized recently by Pastor Mandy Mastros of the Moravian Center, it is a group of individuals with lived experience of being unhoused. They provided helpful feedback, Stolzfus said, including suggesting that the trailer have a bulletin board listing local community meals and showers.
SoWe hopes to keep the lockers in service at least until construction on the hub starts at the site, which is expected toward the end of the year. Stoltzfus and his team will document what works and what doesn’t work, with the hope of expanding locker availability and making the program permanent.
