Residents of Wayne County that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic will be eligible for food and rent assistance. | Stock Photo
Residents of Wayne County that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic will be eligible for food and rent assistance. | Stock Photo
Wayne County is rolling out a plan to provide $4.8 million for rent and food to those most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Michigan Radio NPR reported.
A total of $3.5 million will be set aside for those who are having trouble paying their rent, while $400,000 will be allotted for food assistance, according to NPR.
The funds come from the federal Corovonavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES), along with money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which will be sent to the Wayne Metro Community Action Agency.
Wayne Metro Community Action Agency has already helped residents with food and income assistance, water and energy help, emergency plumbing repair, lowering property taxes and making taxes them more affordable. More information on the agency can be found here.
Residents will have to qualify for the assistance, starting with living in a smaller area in the county that already gets HUD assistance, Wayne County Deputy Executive Khalil Rahal told NPR. But the money might not cover everything residents need assistance with.
“We thought this was a good opportunity to help provide people who are out of work, who are facing poverty, that little bit of relief to keep them in their homes," Rahal told MPR. "So they don’t get kicked out in the street, or have bills sort of stacked up, because they’ve lost their job, or because they’ve fallen on hard times due to the pandemic.”
The money is set to be distributed within the next few weeks. But Rahal is expecting it go quickly as applications are already “through the roof,” he told NPR.
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