Walnutport is the latest community to grapple with the issue of homelessness.

Borough police Chief Jason Nothstein addressed the matter of vagrancy with borough council on Thursday.

Nothstein discussed an instance on the Lehigh Canal Towpath that he said was handled this past week.

He said his department has been working with the Lehigh Township Police Department because the situation, while it occurred on borough property, is in Lehigh Township’s jurisdiction.

Nothstein said the local district magistrate put the person in Northampton County Prison because he was defiantly trespassing. A no trespassing order was issued in April and he continued to violate that order.

The chief then said the vagrancy issue has “become more and more of a problem,” Nothstein said. “We have a couple people (who are) transients.”

He said something needs to be done before the situation spirals out of control.

“Before this becomes a problem, I want to come up with some ideas,” said Nothstein, who added the borough has experienced the same situation the last few years, but with different people. “I don’t know what the solution is.”

Nothstein added that he’s noticed more and more transients in the area of late.

“We have a couple individuals come through the last couple of months,” he said. “Our hands are kind of tied.”

Councilwoman Jennifer Wentz said that the borough needs an ordinance for vagrancy.

Nothstein mentioned that the borough does have an ordinance that does not allow camping on borough property.

Councilwoman Patrice Hunsicker agreed the matter needs to be addressed.

“We just don’t want Tent City moving here,” Hunsicker said.

Walnutport isn’t the only local community dealing with the issue of homelessness.

A little over 10 miles away, Lehighton Borough has dealt with the situation for some time.

At Monday’s Lehighton Borough Council meeting, it was noted there’s been a swell in the homeless population spotted on the streets of that community.

Lehighton resident Marianne Rustad addressed council on Monday about what she termed the increasing issue of homelessness in the borough.

Lehighton police Chief Troy Abelovsky told Rustad that the Carbon County Task Force tries to find solutions for the issue.

Borough Manager Dane DeWire added that “homelessness has no one solution,” and added it’s a joint effort.

Abelovsky noted that all situations are different, and said that despite having other options available to them, a good percentage of the homeless population chooses not to take those opportunities.

Rustad said she was happy to try to facilitate a roundtable discussion, as she’s witnessed a lot of people sleeping in the cemetery.

Lehighton business owner Tina Henninger said, “We have noticed in the downtown an explosion.”

Henninger said that includes an influx of outsiders.

However, Abelovsky said that each situation is unique unto itself, and advised people to contact the police department before taking things into their own hands.

Henninger said recently an unknown man was camping on a resident’s porch.

Abelovsky said that while he understood the concerns, he noted the police department’s manpower is in short supply, and added the best thing residents can do is be the best informant as possible.

Mayor Ryan Saunders mentioned that the borough has received an “overwhelming amount of calls (of homeless people) sleeping in the amphitheater.”

“We’re working on putting something together to eradicate Tent City,” Saunders said on Monday.

The homeless encampment was broken up last year when the Carbon County commissioners had sheriff’s deputies clear the site along the Lehigh River between Weissport and Lehighton.

At one point, about 50 people had stayed there.

After Monday’s Lehighton Borough Council meeting, Saunders said he working with the county commissioners on putting together a plan.

Saunders added he’s “instructed our officers to recognize that we have a growing problem of homelessness within the borough, so they are patrolling the borough and specifically looking at high level areas of interest to homeless people and keeping an eye on this type of activity.”

Saunders said that “being homeless is not against the law.

“So if they’re just walking around, they aren’t breaking any laws,” he said. “If they’re shooting up drugs, harassing citizens, littering, then those are against the law, so we are absolutely going to better control that.”

Saunders added that since officers will be patrolling there more frequently and keeping a watchful eye on the activity, he’s encouraged anyone in the community who witnesses any kind if illegal activity to not make any type of contact with these individuals.

Instead, he said they should contact the Communications Center at 911 and report the medical emergency.