ASHEVILLE – Speaking about possible rent reductions in Asheville’s public housing neighborhoods, Housing Authority CEO Monique Pierre said that residents who have “experienced a hardship” due to Tropical Storm Helene would “immediately” have rents taken “down to zero.”
“But we can’t just carte blanche, we have to make sure that we serve our residents individually based on their individual needs,” Pierre said. She clarified later, via email, that “hardship” referred to a loss of income and that residents can request a rent adjustment.
What that meant for potential future rent abatement or forgiveness was unclear.
Pierre stood in a vacant unit in Klondyke Homes, a public housing neighborhood in Montford, along with Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Adrianne Todman, who was visiting Asheville Oct. 11 to tour the damage done by Helene.
“As was stated today we are looking at all of the options for helping residents impacted by the hurricane. My hope is to discuss this concern with our local HUD field office and put together options to bring to our Board of Commissioners,” Pierre told the Citizen Times via email Oct. 11.
“This is not an issue of us not wanting to provide as much relief and resources as possible for impacted families. As always, our residents are our first priority, and we will continue to support them as we work through this recovery period.”
The storm devastated areas of Western North Carolina, leaving thousands without power and water. In Buncombe County alone there are 72 confirmed deaths.
The lights were on at Klondyke. But, like the majority of the city, residents were without running water. Restoration could take weeks.
Mayor Esther Manheimer and Buncombe County Commissioner Parker Sloan were also on the tour, which trailed from the North Asheville public housing apartment to the River Arts District, an area of the city decimated by Helene. The group stood in the wreckage of beloved local breweries and studios, surveying damage — buildings and debris amassed in tangled piles, entire buildings collapsed to their foundations.
When asked by Blue Ridge Public Radio if a rent freeze might be considered, given “economic anxiety” experienced by people living in public housing, apartments affordable to the city’s most low-income residents, Todman said, at HUD, they “try to provide folks like (the) executive director maximum flexibility to make the kind of decisions that she needs to make.”
“I’m sure that’s something that she will take back to her team and pursue,” Todman said.
“I’m sure that the housing authority will look at what it needs to do to make sure their tenants are protected as well. We don’t want a hurricane to be the reason why people self-evict. And so we’ll be talking with her about what her next steps will be.”
HUD administers federal aid to local agencies that manage housing for residents.
Pierre said fliers were left on the doors of public housing residents to let them know no late fees would be charged on rent in October. She was unable to provide a number of residents whose rent would be waived due to hardships from Helene, but that “we have received some requests.”
“We love our residents. We don’t just come once a month, or once in a while,” Pierre said. “We are there every single day to serve their needs and that is commitment we have made to our community.”
In the weeks since the storm, advocates have urged lawmakers and leaders to create an eviction mortarium, similar to that during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jen Hampton, housing and wages organizer with WNC Just Economics, also with the WNC Tenants Network, said she and other advocacy groups were pushing for a rent freeze in public housing, but as of now, HACA still plans to collect for October.
Groups also are advocating for a rent, foreclosure and eviction moratorium for all of WNC.
$3 million for NC homelessness support
Homeless service providers told the Citizen Times this week that Helene was devastating for the city’s unhoused population, with popular camping areas swept by high waters and people still missing or confirmed dead. The storm also threatens to leave an entirely new population of people facing homelessness.
“We try to be creative and fill the gaps that only government can fill,” Todman said in response to questions about resources for homeless residents in Buncombe County.
HUD announced $3 million for North Carolina to support people experiencing homelessness in communities affected by Helene in an Oct. 10 release. Funding from the Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing (RUSH) program will help residents and families who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and have needs that are not otherwise served or fully met by existing Federal disaster relief programs.
Eligible uses for people experiencing homelessness before the disaster include emergency shelter; rapid re-housing, which provides up to 24 months of rental assistance; financial assistance for move in costs; and supportive services.
For people who were at-risk of experiencing homelessness before the disaster resources include homelessness prevention, which provides up to 24 months of rental assistance; utility assistance and supportive services for people at risk of homelessness; as well as outreach assistance, including assistance to meet urgent needs.
For the new population of people displaced by the storm, Todman said short-term relief is available through FEMA, which has stood up a Disaster Recovery Center at A.C. Reynolds High School at 1 Rocket Drive, and the Small Business Administration, which has opened an assistance center at the Chamber of Commerce at 36 Montford Ave.
“The long term plan is that HUD does receive disaster recovery funds that will help the governor, will help this mayor rebuild the homes that were lost, rebuild the rental units that were lost,” Todman said.
Visiting the wreckage in the River Arts District
In the RAD, Todman met with Lucious Wilson, general manager of Wedge Brewing, whose Foundy Street location was in ruins.
In the early days of the disaster, after Helene swept WNC Sept. 27, Wilson said “you had to survive on your neighbors.” Be it sharing a camp stove to prepare food or checking on those along your street, door-to-door.
Todman said HUD’s disaster recovery funds could help not only to rebuild homes, but bring back the area’s small businesses. After a disaster, Congress may provide millions, sometimes billions, of dollars to HUD to distribute via Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds, according to its site. Funds may also go toward mitigating future disaster risks and losses by implementing high-impact activities.
“I’m going to make sure that people know your story back in D.C.,” Todman told Wilson.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck for the entire federal government, and we wanted to be here, so you’ve heard it from the top,” Todman said during the Oct. 11 news conference. “At least from shelter and housing, that we’ll be here with you for the long haul. Short term and the long term.”
More: ‘Taking care of each other’: Asheville public housing neighbors bonded after Helene
More: Asheville’s Hillcrest public housing ‘pitch black’ nightly after Helene: Asking for help
More: For Asheville’s homeless, Helene brought further devastation and crisis; Will numbers grow?
Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: US HUD Secretary visits Asheville; advocates call for rent freeze
