Media Contact: Brett McPherson | 303-656-7464
The Colorado Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) Division of Housing (DOH) in March launched the new Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP), received $800K from Kaiser Permanente and awarded $2.06M for affordable housing.
DOH recently merged the Emergency Housing Assistance Program (EHAP) and Property Owner Preservation (POP) program into ERAP, in order to meet new requirements for the $247M Colorado received as part of the Bipartisan-Bicameral Omnibus COVID Relief Deal. New procedures are required for all landlords and tenants through an updated website portal, while an expanded team of customer service administrators continue to work at a feverish pace to process a significant backlog of rental assistance applications.
“We face the immense task of processing applications for tens of thousands of Coloradans and we have the funds available,” said Deputy Director of Housing Wendy Hawthorne. “So now with our partners across the state, we have ramped up staffing to reduce the backlog and speed up processing time."
Also in March, Kaiser Permanente awarded DOH $800K to provide additional Tenant Support Services (TSS) for new and existing supportive housing projects in Colorado. Supportive housing combines affordable community-based housing with access to flexible voluntary services to help extremely low-income individuals and families, a solution recently highlighted in the DOLA Making Homelessness History Playbook.
“Kaiser has provided a much needed boost to our Tenant Supportive Services, which are an important part of our affordable housing provisions,” Hawthorne added. “We continue to find that holistic approaches to housing helps Coloradans be healthy and stable.”
DOLA awarded Southeast Health Group $889K to assist in construction of the First Street Apartments, a 12-unit Supportive Housing project in Lamar, Colorado. The one- and two bedroom apartments will be modular units constructed offsite, and an on-site behavioral health case manager will provide access to optional supportive services for residents. First Street is open to individuals or families experiencing homelessness with incomes at or below 30 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI.)
DOLA awarded Jefferson County Housing Authority $1.17M for Alison Village, a 100-unit development in Arvada, Colorado. Two buildings three and four stories in elevation will contain one- and two-bedroom apartments with a shared common area for fitness, bike repair, dog grooming and more. Alison Village is open to those with incomes between 30 and 70 percent of the AMI with 30 units restricted to those below 30 percent.
The State Housing Board and DOLA’s Division of Housing continue to support the creation of affordable housing that is accessible, safe and secure for all Coloradoans.