The Housing Authority of Owensboro received $269,000 as part of the CARES Act, and the funds will go toward personal protective equipment for staff and offset expenses needed for teleworking.
Executive Director Shauna Boom said the money was made available on Tuesday.
“This funding keeps us afloat, keeps us functioning,” she said. “We have folks at risk and we want to keep our program running.”
The Housing Authority of Owensboro owns and maintains 580 apartments at six different complexes within the City. The agency administers Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV) that are funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The office has been closed to the public since March 26 due to COVID-19, but in order to continue helping Owensboro families, the agency has had to make some major changes.
“A lot of our staff is teleworking, so this money helps pay for the equipment needed, such as new software that enables those teleworking to remotely work securely, and it allowed us to upgrade our internet,” Boom said. “We work with sensitive information. We have had to find alternate ways to perform our jobs to meet the governor’s regulations and the needs of individuals we serve.”
Boom said she also had to furlough part of her staff after COVID-19 hit the area. However, the CARES Act funding will go toward making sure they get paid during their time away, she said.
To keep from needlessly exposing people, the agency is only doing emergency work orders at this time. Staff are working from home when they can, and a rotating schedule has been set up for when they come into the office.
“We do as much as we can over the phone and through our dropbox,” Boom said. “We don’t know when we’ll have public access in our office again.”
Despite these changes, Boom called the CARES Act funding a “forced gift” because it has pushed the Housing Authority of Owensboro to adapt to new methods of doing business they hadn’t executed before.
“Maybe there’s a different way we can do this and still be successful,” Boom said. “We’ve found that some people prefer it this way. We might be able to work things a little differently going forward — there’s a silver lining in that.”
Boom commended the residents of Owensboro for their giving spirit, as many have reached out and offered assistance toward the agency during this pandemic, she said.
“I’ve been in awe of the community of Owensboro,” she said. “Many people have reached out to ask us what we need, and to help, and it’s been a beautiful thing.”
—–
Click here for all of our coronavirus coverage.
The Owensboro Health coronavirus hotline is available 24/7 by calling 877-888-6647. Call the hotline before seeking in-person care. More information from OH can be found here.
For the latest information and data on COVID-19 in Kentucky visit kycovid19.ky.gov or dial the Kentucky state hotline at 800-722-5725.
For the latest health guidelines and resources from the CDC, visit their website here.
