Housing for the Homeless and Working Poor


I.   TOPIC          Parvins Branch Townhouses

II.  LOCATION  Southern New Jersey

III. SUBJECT        Housing for the Homeless and Working Poor

IV.  SUMMARY

     The Tri-County Community Action Agency (CAA) began working with state and local
     officials several years ago to change the way housing was provided to the homeless.
     Government social service agencies had been paying area hotels up to $50,000 a year
     from AFDC Emergency Assistance funds to house homeless families when the CAA
     asked them to redirect some of those funds to a project that would create new, affordable,
     permanent housing for homeless and working poor families.
     
     The state and local agencies agreed to participate and made AFDC funds available for the
     project. The CAA developed additional partnerships with the U.S. Department of
     Housing and Urban Development (HUD), several New Jersey banks, and the Cumberland
     County Welfare Board to set the project in motion.
     
     The CAA built 24 two-and-three bedroom units, six are for transitional housing for the
     homeless, 12 are for HUD Section 8 renters, and six are rented at market rates. The CAA
     also provides case management services to help families achieve self-sufficiency.
     
V.     SUCCESSFUL PRACTICE

     Developed partnership with local, state, and federal government agencies, banks, and
     non-profit social service providers to build homes for the homeless and working poor,
     and provide family self-sufficiency case management services.
     
VI.    CONTACT

     Albert B. Kelly, Executive Director
     Gerard Velazquez, Project Director
     Tri-County Community Action Agency
     (A Community Action Agency)
     143 West Broad Street
     Bridgeton, New Jersey 08302
     609-451-6330
     FAX: 609-455-7288
     VII.   CASE STUDY

     The Problem: Government agencies were spending up to $50,000 a year to area hotels
     to house homeless families in the southern New Jersey area, an area lacking in needed
     affordable low-income housing for the homeless and the working poor.
     
     The Approach Adopted: The Tri-County Community Action Agency (CAA) began
     working with state and local officials several years ago to change the way housing was
     provided to the homeless. The CAA asked them to redirect some of those funds to a
     project that would create new, affordable, permanent housing for homeless and working
     poor families.
     
     How They Implemented The Approach: The state and local agencies agreed to
     participate and made AFDC funds available for the project. Leveraging federal low-income housing tax credits, the CAA developed partnerships with the U.S. Department of
     Housing and Urban Development (HUD), several New Jersey banks, the New Jersey
     Department of Community Affairs, and the Cumberland County Welfare Board to set the
     project in motion.
     
     Results: The CAA built a $2 million rural housing project consisting of 24 two-and-three bedroom units, six for transitional housing for the homeless, 12 for HUD Section 8
     renters, and six are rented at market rates. The CAA also provides case management
     services to help families achieve self-sufficiency.
     
     Funded a case management and transportation system associated with residents of the
     development through per diem payments by the county for the housing of the homeless
     families. These funds also help pay the mortgage acquisition and construction costs.
     
VIII.  KEY WORDS

     Aid to Families With Dependent Children
     Case Management
     Community Action Agency
     Homeless
     Housing
     Low Income Housing Tax Credits
     Self-Sufficiency
     Transportation
     Welfare
     Working Poor
     

ref:   parvins.doc