MANCHESTER, Ky. — Homelessness has become increasingly visible in Manchester and Clay County over the past five years, according to an overwhelming number of readers responding to a question posed by The Manchester Enterprise, with residents pointing to everything from soaring housing costs and addiction to mental health problems and a shortage of local resources.
The Enterprise asked readers on Facebook: “Do you think the homeless problem in Manchester/Clay County is worse now than it was five years ago?”
The response was strikingly one-sided.
Dozens of readers simply answered “yes,” “absolutely” or “definitely,” while others described seeing more people walking the streets, sleeping under bridges, staying in abandoned buildings or otherwise living without permanent housing.
But the discussion quickly moved beyond whether homelessness has increased to the more difficult questions of why it is happening and what Clay County can do about it.
Affordable housing was among the most frequently cited concerns.
Patty Sumner said the community needs “more affordable housing and a true homeless shelter that has good case management,” along with a larger low-income housing development.
Jody Gregory agreed, saying even people with income are struggling to find housing they can afford.
“Even when they have income housing is almost impossible to find,” Gregory wrote. “We need more low income housing desperately. Once people are on the street it’s a really hard cycle to escape.”
Melanie Wagers pushed back against the idea that someone receiving approximately $1,000 a month should automatically be able to afford a home, noting that rent alone can consume most or all of that income.
“Rent is over a $1000 a month for most places,” Wagers wrote, questioning how someone could then pay for electricity, water, food and other necessities. She called for the community to focus less on blame and more on finding solutions.
Others said homelessness cannot be blamed on any single cause.
Terry Spurlock said the community should focus on why people become homeless rather than simply treating the symptoms.
“The bigger question is why they’re homeless,” Spurlock wrote. “Find the root cause and fix that instead of only putting Band-Aids on the problem.”
Spurlock said education, job training, addiction recovery and opportunities that allow people to become self-sufficient should be part of any long-term approach.
Teah Jones, who said she works in case management, offered one of the most detailed responses.
Jones said housing and transportation are two of the biggest barriers locally, while limited employment opportunities make it difficult for people to regain stability. She advocated for something beyond a temporary overnight shelter — a structured program that could teach budgeting, employment readiness, personal hygiene, meal preparation and other skills necessary to maintain a home.
“People need support, accountability, and a realistic plan for moving forward, not simply a bed for the night,” Jones wrote.
Jones said mental health issues, substance use, domestic violence, poverty and limited family support also contribute to homelessness. Even those willing to work, she said, may lack transportation, identification, appropriate clothing, child care or access to treatment.
Tina Edwards Carnahan described the issue as “VERY complicated,” drawing on her own family’s experience with homelessness.
Carnahan said untreated mental health problems can lead to homelessness while homelessness itself can worsen those problems. Something as simple as losing identification documents can make it more difficult for a person to access government services, she said.
“There’s no quick fix,” Carnahan wrote, adding that while some people struggling with active addiction may refuse assistance, others will accept it.
She also supported a shelter coupled with case management.
Kevin Reid said the issue is not “one size fits all.”
Reid said poor financial decisions, drug addiction and gambling can contribute, but so can circumstances affecting people who are otherwise trying to make ends meet.
“Life is just expensive,” Reid wrote, adding that many people are only one unexpected expense away from being unable to make their next payment.
Combine high living expenses with limited high-paying jobs, Reid said, and the result is a serious problem for the community.
Not everyone agreed that building a shelter would solve the problem.
Mary Lou White Moore recalled a previous shelter and said it became difficult to maintain, in part because people from outside the area came to Manchester. She also pointed to addiction, mental health problems, lack of education and basic job skills as obstacles that cannot necessarily be corrected simply by providing housing.
Moore said she has empathy for people experiencing homelessness but questioned whether the problem can ever be completely solved.
Several readers also blamed addiction, while some alleged that game rooms have contributed to increased foot traffic and other problems. Those comments reflected readers’ opinions and observations rather than independently established causes of homelessness.
Other respondents emphasized compassion.
Thomas Robinson said serious illness, depression, addiction or mental illness can change a person's circumstances quickly, even after a lifetime of working and saving.
“Don’t think it could happen to you?” Robinson wrote. “I pray it never does but the cold hard fact is yes it could.”
Robinson said the community needs compassion and empathy, adding that homelessness is “getting worse in our small community.”
Judy Collins Henson offered a similar message.
“There’s more than ever,” Henson wrote. “People need to realize, there but for the grace of God ... It can happen for many reasons.”
Her message ended with a reminder that those living on the streets “are people with feelings too. Not trash.”
Angela N Terry Shell, who said her church conducts street ministry in Clay County, said volunteers see significant need firsthand and called for a soup kitchen and additional resources. Later in the discussion, she said the most immediate needs include food, hygiene items, tents, blankets and pillows, with food and shelter at the top of the list.
The comments offered no consensus on a single solution, but several ideas appeared repeatedly: more affordable and income-based housing, an emergency shelter, a soup kitchen, expanded addiction and mental health services, job training, transportation assistance and intensive case management.
Perhaps the clearest consensus was simply that residents believe the problem has become much harder to ignore.
Donna Collins said people are sleeping in abandoned houses and under bridges and sometimes depend on others for food.
“Yes homelessness is a major problem in Manchester and Clay County,” Collins wrote.
For a community that once may have viewed homelessness primarily as a problem of larger cities, the hundreds of responses and observations offered to The Enterprise suggest many Clay Countians now see it much closer to home — and increasingly believe something needs to be done about it.
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