(The Center Square) – The latest count of homeless people in Pierce County signals an increasing number of unhoused people in the Seattle-Tacoma metro area. Pierce County conducted its annual Point-in-Time (PIT) count of sheltered and unsheltered people throughout the region on Jan. 26. The results revealed a 23% increase of people experiencing homelessness in Pierce County, with 2,661. Out of the 2,661 homeless people tallied, 1,445 (54%) were sheltered. Last year, there were 1,385 homeless people counted as being sheltered at the time of the PIT count. However, the number of people living wi…