Affordable Housing Trust Discusses Emergency Rent Assistance Program and Threatened Evictions

Report On The Meeting Of the Amherst Affordable Housing Trust Of 8/13/20

The meeting was held via Zoom webcast and was recorded.

Emergency Rental Assistance
Round 1 of the Amherst Municipal Affordable Trust Emergency Rent Assistance Program ended last week. Janna Tetreault of Community Action of the Pioneer Valley (CAPV), the organization administering the program, reported that there were 104 total applications, but 42 remained incomplete even after CAPV tried repeatedly to reach the applicants. Twenty-two applicants did not qualify because they either live in subsidized housing, have too many assets, are full-time students, or do not live in Amherst. Eleven households qualified for assistance and 13 more applications are pending. Tetreault estimated that funding these requests would cost about $50,000 of the $250,000 allocated by the Trust. 

The number of incomplete applications was troubling to several Trust members. Hwei Ling Greeney of Amherst Community Connections said that three applicants from her program had difficulty applying for the assistance. Tetreault said that with other CAPV programs, the staff goes through the application on a phone call, as opposed to the on-line application for this program. Also, advisor to the Trust Rita Farrell suggested that maybe those in subsidized programs could be helped for rent in arrears only. As round 2 gets under way, Farrell, Trust Chair John Hornik, and Tetreault will discuss how to reach out to more of the Amherst community who may need help with paying rent.

Town Planner Nate Malloy said that the Trust may be eligible for reimbursement for the $250,000 under the Block Grant program for expenses related to COVID-19. 

Sixty-three communities in the Commonwealth now have rental assistance programs.

Eviction Notices at Southpoint and Rolling Green
Several residents of Southpoint and Rolling Green apartments received eviction notices effective at the end of August. However, State Representative Mindy Domb stated that Governor Charlie Baker has extended the eviction moratorium another three months, to mid-October so these evictions are illegal, even if someone’s lease is up. The Southpoint landlords were informed of the moratorium extension and have now rescinded the notices. Anyone who experiences further threats of eviction should contact Domb’s office.

Affordable Housing Grants
Domb also informed the Trust of an Economic Bond Bill which would give the Trust $250,000 to develop affordable housing in Amherst and an additional $250,000 for climate resilience, targeting the creation of multifamily affordable units with LEED Gold certification.

Supportive Housing at 132 Northampton Road
Hornik reported that the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) will continue its discussion of the proposed studio housing project at 132 Northampton Road on August 20 at 6:30 p.m. Malloy said that it would be helpful for supporters of the project to again send letters to the ZBA and emphasize the need for the project. Letters can be emailed to Maureen Pollock in the planning department at pollockm@amherstma.gov

Housing Trust Goals
Hornik proposed three main goals for the Trust in the coming year: a revised Request for Proposals (RFP) for the East Street School by November, promoting the Emergency Rental Assistance program, and advocating for the supportive studio apartment project at 132 Northampton Road. Malloy said he has arranged for a wetlands survey of the East Street site, which should help in developing the revised RFP, though a documentation of any harmful substances in the building still must be done.

Other possible goals for the Trust are evaluating other properties in town for affordable housing, ongoing rental assistance, possibly through local housing vouchers, reviewing the Trust’s strategic plan, legislative advocacy, a homelessness subcommittee, a rental assistance subcommittee, a draft of an affordable housing policy for the town, and participation in the Town Council’s plan to revise the Zoning Bylaw.

The Community Resources Committee of the Town Council is slated to discuss Housing Policy at its 2 p.m. meeting on August 18. 

The homeless shelter at Craig’s Doors is planning to open in October, but with a maximum capacity of 15 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Housing Trust will meet again on September 10 at 7 p.m.