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Resident urges Fort Mill to consider tiny-home parcels, recounts six years of homelessness
Summary
At the Fort Mill Town Council meeting a resident urged the town to consider donating land and encouraging builders to construct tiny homes for people experiencing homelessness and described her personal experience living in a van for more than six years.
Karen W. Kemp, a resident who identified herself during the council’s public-comment period, asked the town to consider donating land or otherwise supporting construction of tiny homes for people experiencing homelessness.
Kemp told council members she has been homeless for “6 years and 3 months” and described the hardship of sleeping in a van. “It’s just too hard to work as a homeless person and not clean and it’s just too hard,” she said, and proposed that individual builders each construct one or two tiny homes that could be offered to people transitioning off the street.
The request was framed as a community-driven idea: Kemp suggested families or local volunteers could ‘adopt’ a household to help with chores and life skills, and that residents who build houses could be recognized for their contribution. She also proposed modest monthly payments from occupants to the builders as a path toward stability.
Council members acknowledged the comment and told Kemp that town staff would follow up. The presiding official said the town does not currently have land to donate for the purpose, but that staff member Virginia would speak with Kemp after the meeting to try to provide assistance.
Nut graf: The exchange took place during the meeting’s public-comment period under section 2-46 of the Town of Fort Mill Code of Ordinances, and did not include a council directive, budget allocation, or formal action. Kemp’s remarks were a request for the council and staff to consider whether local resources or partnerships might support a tiny-home approach to homelessness.
Discussion and next steps: Council members did not vote or direct staff to begin a program during the meeting. The presiding official said staff would follow up with Kemp to provide information on existing local assistance and agencies, but no formal investigation, land donation, or program development was authorized at the meeting.
Ending: Kemp’s account put a personal face on housing instability for council members and attendees; it was recorded as public comment and will remain part of the meeting minutes. The town’s public-comment rule, cited at the start of the meeting, is section 2-46 of the Town of Fort Mill Code of Ordinances.
