Quite frankly, we are tired of writing about the growing problem of homelessness in Nashua. However, it seems the situation is getting worse instead of better, so we have an obligation to keep it in the minds of the public.

Last week, Nashua Alderman Tom Lopez told our reporter he believes there are about 20 people who are regularly sleeping outside in the city every night. He said he recently witnessed two people sleeping on the Nashua Heritage Rail Trail – and another person sleeping on the ground right under a window at City Hall.

Furthermore, the point-in-time count, which officials conduct each year, showed there were 266 people in Greater Nashua officially considered homeless in January. However, this does not count those who may be staying with their friends, or doubling up with parents or grandparents.

Evidence of the escalating problem of homelessness in Nashua is not difficult to find. A walk along either the Merrimack or the Nashua River will likely lead to at least a few campsites. People pushing carts containing their belongings along the city’s sidewalks is not a rare sight.

Also, officials at the Nashua Soup Kitchen & Shelter are working to raise $3 million to transform the former Sacred Heart School at 35 Spring St. into a new facility for the homeless by 2021.

This, of course, leads to the question of why homelessness is increasing in Nashua. It does not seem to be the lack of job opportunities, as the state’s unemployment rate is just 2.5%.

According to a report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition, a person needs to earn $23.23 per hour to afford a typical two-bedroom apartment in New Hampshire. The state’s minimum wage remains $7.25 per hour.

“There are people working living in the shelters,” Front Door Agency CEO Maryse Wirbal told our reporter of the situation.

Nashua Soup Kitchen & Shelter Executive Director Michael Reinke said rents have been going up in the city dramatically during the last two or three years. He said during this time, more calls are coming in from families staying in their vehicles or couch surfing that just need a place to stay.

“We have seen a significant increase in families calling us needing assistance,” Reinke told our reporter. “That makes sense because if you look at fair market rent in the city of Nashua, according to the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority, fair market rent in the past two years has gone up 20%.”

As we have said on multiple occasions, Nashua’s homeless issue is not caused by any single factor. Therefore, there is no one factor that will resolve the problem. Government leaders, nonprofit leaders, academic leaders, religious leaders and others must be working on solutions to address the matter.