A church cited by city officials for allowing the homeless to stay the night inside its shelter will not have to shut down.
The Hope Outreach United Church of Christ located at C and Indiana Streets in the Kensington section of Philadelphia has been sparring with the city for violating building codes.
The 114-year-old church had been allowing dozens of the homeless to sleep on mats in the second floor sanctuary since September 2009.
But recently, officials from the Department of Licenses and Inspections informed Pastor Rev. Deborah Savage that a lack of proper exits presented a significant fire hazard. They were told to remove the mats or shut down the shelter.
Rev. Savage led an all-night prayer vigil inside the sanctuary Tuesday into Wednesday -- on the eve of a new round of inspections by L&I officials.
When inspectors arrived Wednesday, the mats had been removed and the church was given the all clear to continue operating the shelter.
The church's zoning allows it to continuously operate 24-hours a day, but disallows any sleeping inside its walls, officials say.
The homeless will still be able to sit inside the sanctuary, but will not be able to sleep on the floor.
L&I plans to make subsequent visits to the church to ensure they're complying with the new decision.
