With the expiration of the Centers for Disease Control COVID-19 moratorium on evictions over the weekend, local housing organizations are scrambling to find new funding to help renters and mortgage holders stay in their homes.
Organizations in Evansville that deal with those experiencing homelessness say the expiration of the eviction moratorium will likely mean there will be a surge in evictions in the coming weeks, they just don’t know how many people they’ll be dealing with yet.
Aurora Evansville executive director Zac Heronemus says the agency has paid out over $1.2 million in emergency COVID-19 payments to keep local families in their homes during the pandemic. But that money is drying up, and it’s getting more difficult to get renters and homeowners qualified under the stimulus funding guidelines.
Heronemus says, “It’s something- a recent development and we’re hoping to get funding in place to help stave off evictions moving forward.”
Heronemus says another issue is the lack of affordable housing for low income people in Evansville. That issue received public attention again recently during coverage of problems at the Woodland Park Apartments, where residents say they’re afraid to report problems because there is no nowhere for them to go that they can afford.
