Community Panel on community solutions to eviction

Posted by Office of Councilwoman Helen Gym on March 20, 2017

I write today to invite you to a major upcoming event related to Philadelphia’s mounting eviction crisis and what we can do to solve it.

Evictions are targeting our most vulnerable neighbors, in particular low-income people, single mothers, African Americans and people of color, and people with disabilities. Last year alone, eviction impacted at least 24,000 Philadelphia households—not including thousands of illegal and unregistered evictions. Recently, the Reinvestment Fund issued a report that found that evictions in Philadelphia occur far more frequently than foreclosures – four times greater, in fact.[1] But while the foreclosure crisis has sparked changes in policy and resource distribution, very little has changed to address the eviction crisis.

Legal representation for renters facing eviction is key to ending this crisis. And yet, while 80% of landlords have legal representation, only 1% of low-income renters in Philadelphia who face eviction do.

I invite you to attend a major public event that focuses on the eviction crisis and possible solutions for the city:

April 5, 5:30 p.m. at New Covenant Church: A Community Panel on community solutions to eviction. Please RSVP here

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdlJCLpuwk75PnYcee3NJKscfJHwbzzENLq3q5wecrOYfjfXA/viewform

As the city works to advance policies that strengthen protections for low-income renters, I hope that you will join us to hear from housing, legal, and public health experts on how eviction and the lack of legal representation impacts our most vulnerable neighbors.

– Councilwoman Helen Gym