Scarce Low-Income Housing Opens

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Volunteers needed to help applicants file

 

Laguna Beach’s Friendship Shelter is participating in the Orange County Housing Authority Section 8 waiting list application process, which last accepted new applicants seven years ago.

 

Dedicated volunteers are needed who can make a commitment to helping homeless and housing-insecure Laguna residents apply during the two-week window during which the application process will be open.

 

The Section 8 waiting list is the only opportunity for very low-income families, seniors, disabled persons, and individuals to obtain a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher. Due to the limited number of vouchers and the large number of people that applied, the last time OCHA’s waiting list opened was November 2005, according to Karen Roper of Orange County Community Services. Roper added, “The February 2012 waiting list opening may be the only opportunity for Orange County residents to apply for many years to come.”

 

Dawn Price, executive director of Friendship Shelter, said, “We need help from volunteers with submitting online applications for our clients and other low-income individuals and families in our area. This commitment requires patience, excellent communication skills, knowledge of online applications, compliance with federal documents, and a mandatory training session.”

 

Friendship Shelter’s resource room and Bridge Hall at the Neighborhood Congregational Church will be open to the public to submit applications on selected dates Feb. 16-25 (see schedule, below). The organization will also be taking applications at the Alternative Sleeping Location (ASL) in Laguna Canyon for the clients who use that facility for food and shelter.

 

Volunteer trainings will be offered Friday, Feb. 10 and Saturday, Feb. 11 only. It is not necessary for applicants to attend the training.  For volunteers, however, attending a training session is mandatory in order to help with the application process. Various shifts will be offered to volunteers during the two-week application window.

 

Volunteers who sign up to assist at the Neighborhood Congregational Church must be able to bring a working laptop with the ability to connect to wi-fi. Volunteers can call outreach manager Taylor Mathieson at 949-494-6928 ext. 16 or email her at [email protected].

 

Mark Miller, the shelter’s associate executive director, said, “Applying for a Section 8 voucher will not solve anyone’s problem immediately, but it is a critical, necessary first step in accessing housing subsidies that are available to low-income individuals and families. No one walks away from these initial application clinics with a voucher in hand, but only those who sign up during this short, two-week window will have vouchers available to them for the foreseeable future.

 

“A Section 8 Housing Voucher is, for many of the people Friendship Shelter serves, the permanent solution they need in order to secure stable, permanent housing. Friendship Shelter is pulling out all the stops to ensure we are doing everything we can and employing every resource we can marshal to ensure that all who qualify have the opportunity to apply for this life-changing assistance,” said Miller. “Despite our best efforts and the heroic work our clients do to rebuild their lives, at the end of that process we are often faced with insurmountable obstacles when it comes to housing. The Section 8 voucher can solve that problem.”

The business community is encouraged to help spread the word of the application window.

 

“It’s entirely possible that many of Laguna Beach’s front-line workers such as food servers and hotel cleaning and maintenance staff will qualify for these vouchers. We are asking local businesses to inform their employees of this opportunity,” added Price.

 

Planned Section 8 Housing Voucher Application Clinics

Laguna Beach, CA

 

Date/Time Location
Wed, Feb 15, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Laguna Beach Alternative Sleeping Location

(For ASL clients only)

Thurs., Feb 16, 9 a.m. – noon Bridge Hall, Neighborhood Congregational Church

340 St. Ann’s Drive, Laguna Beach

Thurs., Feb 16, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Laguna Beach Alternative Sleeping Location

(For ASL clients only)

Thurs., Feb 16, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. Friendship Shelter

1335 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach

Sat., Feb 18, noon – 6 p.m. Friendship Shelter

1335 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach

Tues., Feb 21, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Friendship Shelter

1335 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach

Tues., Feb 21, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Laguna Beach Alternative Sleeping Location

(For ASL clients only)

Tues., Feb 21, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Bridge Hall, Neighborhood Congregational Church

340 St. Ann’s Drive, Laguna Beach

Wed., Feb 22, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Friendship Shelter

1335 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach

Wed., Feb 22, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Laguna Beach Alternative Sleeping Location

(For ASL clients only)

Thurs., Feb 23, 9 a.m. – noon Bridge Hall, Neighborhood Congregational Church

340 St. Ann’s Drive, Laguna Beach

Thurs., Feb 23, 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Laguna Beach Alternative Sleeping Location

(For ASL clients only)

Thurs., Feb 23, 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. Friendship Shelter

1335 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach

Sat., Feb 25, noon – 6 p.m. Friendship Shelter

1335 S. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach

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