City gets $558K to stop homelessness.

By Catherine Kavanaugh, Daily Tribune Staff Writer

Katherine Bruner and her staff at the Salvation Army Royal Oak Citadel have $182,000 of federal money to help people stay in their homes. Craig Gaffield/Daily Tribune

Salvation Army, SOS distributing federal funds

ROYAL OAK — Two nonprofit agencies are ready to dole out $500,000 of federal funds to help people facing eviction stay in their homes and to get those who already have lost the roofs over their heads into new housing.

Residents and anyone who works in Royal Oak are eligible for the aid which originated with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and has been funneled through a grant to the federal Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program and then to the city.

Royal Oak received $558,200. It gave $299,500 to the South Oakland Shelter, $202,000 to the Salvation Army Royal Oak Citadel and put the rest into a city fund for low-income residents already on a list for housing assistance.

“Rather than the city starting its own program, we channeled the money to agencies already providing the services,” Royal Oak Planning Director Tim Thwing said.

The Salvation Army, 3015 N. Main St., has $182,000 left for people who received court-ordered evictions, shut-off notices from Consumer Powers and DTE, or need hotel vouchers for temporary housing while they wait for checks from new employers or Social Security.

“The money is sitting here waiting to keep people off the streets,” said Katherine Bruner, director of community ministries for the Salvation Army. “We’re trying to get the word out.”

Bruner and her two caseworkers can help individuals facing eviction as they look for jobs through Michigan Works! with up to six months of “reasonable” rent.

“The range would be between $650 and $850,” said Bruner, adding that people trying to stay in the city’s upscale housing would not be eligible.

Qualified households are at or below 50 percent of the area median income, which is $68,400.

The South Oakland Shelter, 431 N. Main St., is using its funding to help people who are already homeless. SOS is providing security deposits, utility deposits and rent assistance for up to three months to give people new starts in apartments and houses. SOS also can help a client with moving costs.

While there are signs the recession is ending nationally, Bruner said demands for services from the Salvation Army in Royal Oak have increased.

“We’re seeing about 500 families a month, up from 400 two years ago,” she said. “People are turning to us for emergency food, utility assistance and medical help because they have lost their insurance. We don’t cover doctor visits, but we can help with prescriptions.”

Joe Murphy, a city planner, said Royal Oak has distributed all but about $10,000 of the federal funds it received to help people eligible for Section 8 with rent subsidies.

The federal grant was administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which received $1.5 billion of stimulus money to prevent homelessness, help individuals re-enter the labor market more quickly, and prevent the further destabilization of neighborhoods.

For more information, call the Salvation Army at (248) 585-5600 or SOS at (248) 546-6566