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Austin Mayor Steve Adler and the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA) have announced new funding worth $90,216,000 to provide 200 new project-based housing choice vouchers (PBVs) and 100 Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) project-based vouchers to meet the community’s goals of ending homelessness.
This vital contribution to help end homelessness in Austin supports and is part of the $515 million, Finding Home ATX community effort to help move 3,000 additional people out of tents, off our streets, and into housing where they can receive appropriate services.
The project‐based vouchers are being allocated to HACA by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and will be attached to specific units in properties for 20-year terms. Should low-income tenants living in those units relocate, the rental vouchers remain with the units and are available to other qualified households. These new vouchers are in addition to the 391 existing project-based vouchers currently managed by HACA, bringing the total to 691 rental vouchers allocated.
“No better way to honor our nation’s heroes this Veteran’s Day, than HACA’s commitment of $90 million to help our veterans and others facing chronic homelessness,” said Mayor Steve Adler. “Our community and HACA have put ourselves on a path to end homelessness. HACA is a community champion helping us get us closer to the promise of moving our unhoused neighbors into permanent housing.”
Both housing choice vouchers and VASH vouchers provide critical long-term subsidies to pay for the costs of rent associated with the unit. VASH vouchers provide additional support beyond rent to include casework and assistance provided by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Both programs and HACA’s project-basing of these vouchers are intended to serve the lowest-income persons in the community, especially the homeless. Households who receive project-based voucher rental assistance will pay 30% of their adjusted monthly income for rent and housing choice voucher program funding will pay the remaining rent to the property owner, making a home affordable.
HACA is opening a Request for Proposal process for qualified developers or owners to request an allocation of up to 50 regular housing choice vouchers and/or 25 VASH vouchers for homeless individuals or families to access affordable housing and support services. Eligible properties and owners should demonstrate a clear and proven capacity to successfully manage housing programs and to meet the rigorous long-term compliance requirements of the Housing Choice Voucher and VASH programs.
Interested parties who wish to respond to this RFP must register with the eProcurement Marketplace and submit the required documents electronically by 5:00 PM/CST on January 9, 2023.
“Throughout his tenure, Mayor Adler has prioritized housing our city’s homeless neighbors. These 300 new project-based vouchers are the direct result of his work to bring together HACA, and countless community partners working to end homelessness in Austin,” said Michael Gerber, Chief Executive Officer of HACA. “We look forward to reviewing the proposals and collaborating with our community partners, as we work to end homelessness in Austin.”
Individuals or families experiencing homelessness interested in receiving access to a future project-based voucher rental assistance need to apply through the Community-wide Coordinated Entry System managed by the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO) https://www.austinecho.org/get-help/experiencing-homelessness/.