State Announces Winter Shelter Awards and Homelessness Data
OHCS distributed over $1.7 million statewide to strengthen winter shelter capacity
SALEM, OR – Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) provided over $1.7 million to organizations across the state that provide shelter to those without homes. To help ensure the safety, health and wellbeing of Oregonians experiencing homelessness, these investments will strengthen winter shelters by securing facilities to operate shelter, increasing the number of shelter beds, expanding operating hours, providing extended outreach, funding shelter staff, and purchasing bedding, mats, and blankets.
“Temperatures have dropped below freezing across the state, and I am heartbroken for those without a roof over their heads,” said Director Margaret Salazar. “These resources will bring in Oregonians from the cold and allow local communities to address local needs.”
OHCS made the following awards:
These funds are from a one-time allocation of $5 million made to OHCS during the 2019 Legislative Session to address statewide winter shelter capacity. OHCS will release the remainder of these funds through a competitive process in 2020, using the recently released Statewide Shelter Study to prioritize investments. The Shelter Study found that Oregon needs an additional 5,814 shelter beds to provide relief to Oregonians experiencing homelessness identified in the Point-in-Time Count.
The Point-in-Time Count attempts to capture both sheltered and unsheltered persons experiencing homelessness to provide a snapshot of homelessness in the United States. The 2019 Point-In-Time Count data demonstrates the continued need for shelter across the state. While the Point-in-Time Count provides critical information about those who cannot find a permanent place to call home on a given night in January, it does not tell the full story of homelessness in each community. Counting those impacted by homelessness is difficult due to a variety of factors and the intention of the Count is to give a general sense of homeless trends in Oregon and across the country.
Oregon Housing and Community Services Receives National Award
Oregon has the top program in the nation for encouraging new affordable housing development.
SALEM, OR – Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) received the Rental Housing: Encouraging New Production Award from the National Council of State Housing Agencies for the Local Innovation Fast Track (LIFT) Housing Program. LIFT is innovated, replicable, responds to an urgent housing need, provides measurable benefits to Oregonians, and achieves strategic objectives outlined in Oregon’s Statewide Housing Plan.
“The LIFT program helps to put the dream of affordable housing within reach for Oregon families who have historically faced barriers to owning or renting a home,” said Governor Kate Brown. “I am proud of the public servants at OHCS for their selfless work to open the doors of opportunity to Oregonians across the state.”
Established in 2016 to provide housing for underserved population, the LIFT program targets housing development in rural communities and for communities of color. LIFT provides resources for the development of affordable housing, both rental housing and homeownership opportunities. The Oregon Legislature allocated $150 million to LIFT in the 2019-2021 biennium.
“I was honored to accept this award on behalf of the State of Oregon and my staff,” said OHCS Director Margaret Salazar. “LIFT is opening the doors of opportunity across the state. Thanks to LIFT, more than 2,200 families now have access to safe, stable affordable homes.”
Award materials can be accesses on National Council of State Housing Agencies’ website.
About the National Council of State Housing Agencies
Housing Finance Agencies (HFAs) play a central role in the nation’s affordable housing system, delivering financing to make possible the purchase, development, and rehabilitation of affordable homes and rental apartments for low- and middle-income households. The National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization created to advance, through advocacy and education, the efforts of the nation’s state HFAs and their partners to provide affordable housing to those who need it.
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The next Housing Stability Council meeting will be on Friday, November 1, 2019. The meeting will be held at Oregon Housing and Community Services (725 Summer St NE, Salem OR) in conference room 124 A/B.
If you cannot attend in person, please join us by phone at:
1-877-273-4202; Participant Code: 4978330
AGENDA:
9:00 Meeting Called to Order - Roll Call
9:05 Public Comment
9:15 Meeting Minutes for Review –Oct 6, 2019
9:30 Housing Stabilization Division update
- Shelter Funding Opportunities
10:00 Affordable Housing Finance Division updates
- Multifamily Housing Transactions
11:15 BREAK
11:30 Affordable Housing Finance Division
- Construction Workforce Equity Strategy Briefing
12:00 Housing Stabilization Division
- Energy Assistance Evaluation
12:30 Statewide Housing Plan: Quarterly Report Out
1:00 Report of the Director
1:15 Report of the Chair
1:30 Meeting Adjourned