Two local advocacy groups are urging City Council to adopt a housing bill of rights, aimed at strengthening tenant protections, addressing homelessness and improving housing conditions in Reading.<\/p>\n
Members of Berks Stands Up and Make the Road spoke at a recent council committee of the whole meeting.<\/p>\n
The proposal outlines several rights, including a right to rest that would decriminalize homelessness-related activities, protections for personal property and expanded access to public space when shelter is unavailable, members of the groups explained.<\/p>\n
It also calls for fair and predictable leases, including limits on rent increases, advance notice of hikes, and caps on application fees and security deposits.<\/p>\n
The presenters said the proposal is based on legislation passed in other cities and proposed bills making their way through the state Legislature.<\/p>\n
Cierra \u201cCece\u201d Mayo of Berks Stands Up and other speakers wove personal accounts with policy proposals, saying the two are inseparable.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need a housing bill of rights so that people are protected and cared for and able to stay in the communities they call home,\u201d Mayo said. \u201cI\u2019m asking you to listen to people\u2019s stories and remember that it could be anyone, even someone like me, someone who tried to do everything the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mayo shared her experience of being priced out of her apartment after the building was sold.<\/p>\n
The new owner nearly doubled her monthly rent to $1,000 from $577, she said.<\/p>\n
Mayo struggled to make ends meet and, after a series of family and personal emergencies, she fell behind.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe landlord filed for eviction as soon as legally possible,\u201d she said. \u201cI was 10 days late. After years of being on time or early on payments, I was being put out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Within days, Mayo said she was sleeping in her car with her dog.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I went through was dehumanizing. It was destabilizing and demoralizing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Safe and affordable housing is a fundamental need, said Maria Sosa, a member of Make the Road.<\/p>\n
\u201cSafe housing provides stability,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s not a luxury. It\u2019s a human right.\u201d<\/p>\n
The plan, she said, includes measures to strengthen anti-discrimination protections and expand access to home repair programs.<\/p>\n
Sosa also raised concerns about lead exposure and the safety of the city\u2019s aging housing stock. She called for stronger inspection requirements and enforcement.<\/p>\n
The city recently intensified its code enforcement and blight remediation strategies by disqualifying habitual offenders from bidding at Berks County tax sales, reorganizing code enforcement staff into districts and resuming all-hands neighborhood sweeps in targeted areas.<\/p>\n