New social service center at Bush House Hotel to help struggling Quakertown residents

The Bush House Hotel in Quakertown recently hosted an open house for its new social services resource center that will serve the mostly low-income residents of the West Broad Street residential hotel and the surrounding Upper Bucks County community.

The center, which will open soon, will be located in the 100-room residential hotel, will provide office space for local social service organization to provide case-management services and other resources. The hotel owner, Tom Skiffington, is donating the space rent-free as well as a $2,000 donation to the Quakertown Ministerium.

“Because of the pandemic, some agencies were forced to close or scale down their Upper Bucks services,” said Rev. Denise Fry, president of The Quakertown Ministerium. “This new social services center in the Bush House will finally give local agencies the space they need to directly interact with the community members who need it the most.”

At the recent open house residents learned about the services available at the property. In addition, free personal hygiene supplies, to-go meals, and snacks were provided by the Quakertown Ministerium, Salvation Army, and Dough 2 Door.

The historic hotel reopened in January roughly two month after Quakertown officials condemned the property and evacuated the roughly 60 low-income residents after an inspector declared the conditions were unfit for human occupation. Skiffington has denied the conditions at the building were unsafe and unsanitary, and accused the borough of abusing its power an attempt to get him to sell the property.

If you are an agency who is interested in providing services at Bush House Hotel, contact Rev. Denise Fry at revfry@comcast.net.

More:Bug-infested or high-end living? What it's like inside the reopened Bush House Hotel

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Bush House Hotel opens social service center in Quakertown