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How a Water Bill Can Help Cities Help Their Most Vulnerable Residents

Cinnamon Janzer

January 28, 2021 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

A pilot program may be able to alleviate the utility debts incurred by struggling customers who were affected by the pandemic-induced economic slowdown. A pre-pandemic program used missed utility payments as an opportunity to provide people with “financial empowerment services like individualized repayment plans and financial counseling.” The program not only cut down on municipal costs but also benefited residents in all five cities. Participants were less likely to experience water shutoffs and paid significantly fewer late fees.

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Facing eviction, residents struggle to find help

Dan Polletta

January 26, 2021 |

The Land |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Slavic Village, Ohio

The Slavic Village Development, a non-profit community development agency, is helping to connect residents who are facing eviction during the coronavirus pandemic with financial assistance. The organization provides funds to those who don't qualify for CARES act funds and works to eliminate other barriers for low-income residents – such as paperwork requirements and housing inspection.

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Could This Housing Project Be A Model For Addressing Homelessness On Kauai?

Allan Parachini

December 24, 2020 |

Honolulu Civil Beat |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Kauai, Hawaii

Affordable housing and wraparound services are being offered to residents experiencing homelessness in Kauai, Hawaii. A new development constructed from shipping containers isn’t meant to be a permanent solution but it does provide “a place to land with a roof over their heads, paid utilities, a laundry room, and wraparound social services.” Residents, most of whom are working families, can take advantage of help finding and securing a job in addition to credit training.

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Door-to-door: Advocates canvass neighborhoods, informing tenants and trying to prevent evictions

Conor Morris

October 19, 2020 |

FreshWater Cleveland |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

Chapters of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are using door-to-door campaigns to inform tenants about their rights if facing an eviction. Although evidence is limited about the success in preventing the evictions, some tenants have expressed that the outreach has helped them feel heard and many are more likely to show up in court.

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Rapid rehousing strategy helps protect domestic violence victims during a pandemic

Conor Morris

September 21, 2020 |

FreshWater Cleveland |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Cleveland, Ohio

A housing program known as REACH Rapid Rehousing program is providing relief for domestic violence survivors who are left without shelter and financial aid. Rent, utilities, and security deposits are provided for up to nine months. The program proved to be a lifeline, especially during COVID-19 lockdowns.

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Detroiters are Fighting for the Right to Water

Nina Misuraca Ignaczak

September 18, 2020 |

Belt Magazine |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Throughout the United States, people living below the federal poverty level often struggle to pay for utilities, but in Philadelphia, the Tiered Assistance Program (TAP) aims to alleviate that burden by basing water utility rates on income. In the four years since the program launched, more than 15,000 residents have participated and 96% of those participants have avoided water shutoffs.

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How South African activists hope to integrate cities built to divide

Ryan Lenora Brown

September 11, 2020 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: South Africa, Johannesburg

The South African government has provided free apartments to millions of people since the end of apartheid, in part as a way to address structural inequalities rooted in apartheid. The program has been a lifeline for many but has also exacerbated segregation because the housing is built just outside of cities, where Black, Asian, and mixed-race South Africans were once legally required to live. This creates new structural inequalities because it makes it harder to access good jobs, which tend to be in the city center. Advocates are now petitioning the government to build housing in the city center.

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For many Chicago communities, there is no COVID safety net. So teachers are stepping in.

Yana Kunichoff

September 08, 2020 |

Chalkbeat |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

In Chicago, teachers across the city created mutual aid groups to help students and their families pay rent, buy groceries, or cover medical bills. By using their existing networks, social media, and apps like Venmo, groups have been able to raise thousands of dollars. One mutual aid group from Roberto Clemente Community Academy in Humboldt Park raised $34,288 in about six months. “If we don’t help, who will?”

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Minnesota roommate program hopes to improve caregiving for people with disabilities in Minnesota

Neal St. Anthony

September 06, 2020 |

Minneapolis Star Tribune |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Melrose, Minnesota

A new housing program in Minnesota is building off of an existing program to better provide housing for the developmentally disabled and their potential caregivers. The program known as "Rumi" helps cut costs associated with such housing by creating "a relationship-based model between developmentally disabled folks and full-time roommates who care for them in their homes."

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On dangerous ground

Emma Athena

August 06, 2020 |

Boulder Weekly |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Boulder, Colorado

When an eviction moratorium expired and the government's pandemic aid spigot closed, Boulder County nonprofits and public agencies mounted a coordinated response to address a looming homelessness crisis. A gusher of donations created an eviction legal defense fund, a rental assistance program, and other aid to people struggling to pay utility and food bills. In just three months, 800 households received help in forestalling evictions while thousands more received legal and humanitarian services. Despite the community support, housing risks remain without a resumption of emergency government aid.

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