Tacoma offers rent help during pandemic; nearly half set aside for people of color
As people across the country find themselves unemployed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the city of Tacoma is launching a program to help residents pay their rent.
The program, weeks in the making, uses $1.2 million from the city’s Housing Trust Fund with an award of up to $1,000 per household.
Of the available funds, 45 percent will be made directly available to referrals from community agencies already engaged in assisting persons of color, including black, Hispanic and Pacific Islander residents.
“Recognizing that housing instability and homelessness disproportionately affect persons of color, specifically black people, it is important the City consider equitable distribution of funds,” according to city documents.
To qualify, residents must:
Be located within city limits
Meet 50 percent of Area Median Income (AMI)
Demonstrate unemployment since March 12
Demonstrate lease documentation
In Pierce County, 50 percent AMI equates to $32,100 for a two-person household or $40,100 for a four-person household.
Residents can apply at cityoftacoma.org/covidrent. The link will close May 6.
Recipients will be selected through a lottery system.
The city chose a lottery system to recognize that people may have varying schedules that allow them to access the application at differing times of day.
“In order to allow all members of our community access to this opportunity, we have chosen a lottery approach over a ‘first come, first served’ approach,” city spokesperson Megan Snow shared in an email.
The funds will go directly to landlords.
City officials expect the money to go quickly.
“As soon as we get this out the door, it’s going to be gone, and people are still going to be needing help,” Mayor Victoria Woodards said in an April 3 City Council meeting.
The city will work to identify other sources of funding, Woodards said.
The city is administering the program through a $95,000 contract with Living Access Support Alliance, a Lakewood-based nonprofit.
This story was originally published April 22, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
