Statement of the Need/Problem:

In January of 2015, the McKean County Commissioners were notified by the Department of Economic and Community Development that the McKean County ESG (Emergency Solutions Grant) would not continue to be funded due to compliance issues on the part of the provider awarded the funding. The ESG funding lost was used for the following homeless services:

  • Case Management for homeless individuals
  • Rapid re-housing
  • Homeless Prevention Services
  • Homeless Shelter

The loss of this funding to the county was devastating. Suddenly we were faced with families who were homeless and the County was without funding to support emergency housing vouchers, payments to prevent eviction or maintain their current housing, utilities or shelter services. Also, as a result of losing the ESG funds, this provider would also lose the County’s HAP (Homeless Assistance Program) dollars which served as a match for ESG and the Commissioners were looking to find another provider to administer this funding.

Meetings were scheduled between the Director of the Department of Human Services, the McKean County Commissioners and the Executive Director of the McKean County Redevelopment & Housing Authority (MCRHA) to begin to strategize as to how best to continue to meet the housing needs of McKean County residents.

Innovative Approaches/Solutions:

The ED of the MCRHA approached the board of their affiliate nonprofit entity, A Partnership in Housing, Inc. to request funds to hire a Housing & Homeless Services Coordinator that could assist the County in restoring the lost funding. Approval was given for this position and Linda Thompson was hired by the MCRHA in March of 2015 as the Housing & Homeless Services Coordinator. (Note: although funded through our nonprofit, the position was hired through the Redevelopment Authority through a management agreement between the two entities as the nonprofit does not directly employ any staff). Shortly thereafter, the MCHRA began meeting via conference call with DCED to explore the possibility of restoring the ESG funding to McKean County. In addition, the County Commissioners reassigned the County’s HAP dollars to the Redevelopment Authority.

As a result of these efforts, the McKean County Housing & Homeless Assistance Program (MCHHAP) was created to aid households who are homeless or at eminent risk of becoming homeless. Adding the Housing & Homeless Services position to the MCRHA provides a “One-Stop” housing and homeless services program for the residents of McKean County. It has not only provided a service that is easy to use for those individuals who are currently homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, but it has connected individuals to services they may not otherwise have known about.

The homeless prevention component may assist households who would otherwise lose their housing, but for the homeless prevention assistance. Assistance may include: rental arrears, utility assistance, and rental assistance and case management. The mission is to provide the housing assistance necessary to avert the housing crisis and minimize the trauma that can occur if a family becomes homeless. For those who are homeless, MCHHAP will provide rapid re-housing assistance. Possible assistance to re-house households as quickly as possible includes: rental assistance (short or medium-term), housing relocation and stabilization services, security and utility deposits, utility payments and case management. The mission of the Rapid Re-Housing component is to quickly re-house the individual/family and to reconnect them to services and supports in the community.

Basing this position at the MCRHA offices has provided an added benefit to the residents of public housing and participants of the Section 8 program. Residents who are facing eviction for nonpayment of rent or lease violations are referred to the Housing & Homeless Services Coordinator and to date, 10 individuals have avoided eviction over the last 3 months because of the intervention provided.

Goals and Objectives:

  • Restore the ESG funds to McKean County.
  • Create a coordinated entry system whereby McKean County Residents can access housing and homeless services in one location.
  • Build a centralized, shared data base that will be used by MCRHA and faith based community.
  • Expand housing opportunities for specialized populations, i.e.; homeless youth, veterans, justice involved, etc…

Innovative Public/Private Partnership:

  • The Housing & Homeless Services Coordinator has established a working relationship with the faith based community to avoid duplication of services with regard to emergency housing needs. We are currently working on building a centralized, shared data base that will be used by the MCRHA and faith based communities to avoid this duplication.
  • Children & Youth Services has identified housing as the number one need for at risk families in McKean County. Funding will be provided to the MCRHA to support a housing case management position.
  • The Housing & Homeless Services Coordinator has also establisheda partnership with the McKean County Housing Authority Property Managers and Section 8 Coordinator. As a result, they have successfully avoided 10 evictions over the past three months and have also assisted five veterans with accessing Section 8 VASH Vouchers, which prior to this service McKean County was not utilizing.
  • As Co-Chair of the HUD Continuum of Care for Western PA, Linda Thompson has reintroduced McKean County to this process and as a result is accessing regional rental subsidy projects that were not being utilized prior to the creation of this position.
  • The MCRHA will be administering a PCCD grant (Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency) to provide supportive housing for the criminal justice population with a mental health and/or co-occurring substance abuse disorder.

Funding Resources:

  • ESG (Emergency Solutions Grant) – an application for funding was submitted on 7/31/2015
  • HAP (Housing Assistance Program) – The Redevelopment Authority is receiving this funding from the county effective 7/1/2015 in the amount of $36,192
  • The Housing Authority will be administering a grant on behalf of the Department of Human Services funded through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency in the amount $120,000 over two years.
  • A Partnership in Housing, Inc. is funding the costs associated with the Housing & Homeless Services Coordinator until alternative funds can be secured.

Project Replication:

This project can be easily replicated by any housing or redevelopment authority if there is an interest and funding is available. The advantage to providing this service through a housing and/or redevelopment authority is the networking and information sharing that occurs between our authority and local provider agencies. As an agency responsible for housing some of our most vulnerable populations, becoming more aware of specialized housing that is needed in the county has assisted us in our future planning efforts.

Summary:

Although this program was developed in a time of crisis it has truly brought all of the key providers in the county together, working towards a common goal. That goal is to ensure that the needs of some of McKean County’s most vulnerable population do not go unmet. The MCRHA was in a position to assist the county in meeting this need by funding a position to restore what the county had lost.

In addition to adding this position at the MCRHA, the Department of Human Services Director, Lee Sizemore created the McKean County Housing Stability Coalition that now meets monthly to address the needs of the homeless population. This group, which includes members of the faith based community has been instrumental in coming up with creative solutions to our most pressing problems, one of which was the constant duplication of services.

Although the county is dealing with the loss of ESG funding, it has created partnerships that did not previously exist and probably never would have without this crisis. The staff of the housing and redevelopment authority has been instrumental in the success of these efforts while also improving services to our tenants.