Readers had strong opinions on a Citizen Times report, published Sept. 23, about $4.7 million in homelessness prevention funds for the Asheville area. None of that money, administered by city government on behalf of the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium, has been spent since the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced the award in April 2021.
“Why can’t government function properly?” asked Nick Tarlton, in a representative comment on the Citizen Times Facebook page.
“Asheville doesn’t care about anything except tourism and making the community homeless and destitute while abandoning our infrastructure to rot,” added Brittany McCarson.
Asheville officials have blamed the funding delay on a mix of staffing vacancies and the emergency
demands of Tropical Storm Helene. The Citizen Times reached out to learn more about the money, known as HOME-ARP funds, and what the city will do next.
What is the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium?
Instead of going to Asheville directly, the HOME-ARP money was awarded to a body called the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium. This entity covers four Western North Carolina counties — Buncombe, Madison, Henderson, and Transylvania — as well as the cities and towns within that area. It’s managed by a 17-member board chaired by Asheville City Council member Sage Turner.
As a group, the ARHC board sets funding priorities, reviews grant applications and recommends projects to receive money. Asheville is the ARHC’s “participating jurisdiction,” which means it’s responsible for handling the group’s finances and carrying out its wishes. City Council must authorize its plans and funding allocations, while city staff do the day-to-day work.
“The housing and unhoused crisis is known and growing,” Turner wrote to the Citizen Times. “We’ve been trying to bring solutions for over a decade, and we need to be working with specialists and the greater region to understand long-term needs and tools.”
Why hasn’t ARHC awarded any HOME-ARP money yet?
As previously reported by the Citizen Times, HUD required ARHC to conduct planning and public input on the money before Asheville could make awards. Council approved a strategy for HOME-ARP in March 2023. According to city spokesperson Meredith Friedheim, “staffing transitions and regional disaster response” delayed subsequent work to get the money deployed.
Turner also noted that ARHC and the city have had more pressing funds to consider. She pointed to the city’s $26.2 million in 2021 American Rescue Plan Act money, much of which went to housing and homelessness prevention organizations in 2022, and $225 million in federal Helene recovery money.
“My hope is, the delays will bring lasting and meaningful solutions in partnership with regional experts,” wrote Turner.
Who has tried to get HOME-ARP funds so far?
To date, Asheville has opened only one opportunity for local organizations to get HOME-ARP money. In March, the city invited groups to apply for $3 million to support affordable housing developments.
According to a May 13 presentation to the ARHC, hopefuls opened about 25 applications. James Shelton, Asheville’s community development division manager, listed nonprofits such as Haywood Street Congregation, Homeward Bound, Safe Shelter and the Salvation Army as among those applicants.
But none formally submitted an application. According to Shelton, who followed up with those groups, “most that began an application indicated they were looking for supportive services funding and did not understand that the application was strictly for rental construction financing.”
Per Shelton, the organizations also said it was hard to use HOME-ARP money without another source of funds to support affordable rents or tenant services. And the timing of the city’s application didn’t align with that of the N.C. Housing Finance Agency’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, a program that many developers depend on to finance affordable housing.
“We knew that we wouldn't align with that cycle, but this was acceptable because HOME-ARP does not require matching funds,” Shelton wrote to the Citizen Times. “We knew that if we didn't get a decent application pool, we would return with a new application cycle in the fall.”
Where is the money now?
Shelton explained that the HOME-ARP funds weren’t in Asheville’s custody. As is typical for federal awards, the city won’t get the money until it requests reimbursement for payments on grant activities.
The funds are currently in a U.S. Treasury account, so the city cannot invest or earn interest on the money. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, due to inflation, the $4.7 million awarded in April 2021 has the rough buying power of $3.75 million awarded today.
When can organizations next apply for HOME-ARP support?
Shelton wrote that the city will open applications both for $3 million in housing development money and $1 million in supportive services funds sometime this fall. Turner indicated that ARHC would review projects over the winter and pass them to Council for approval by April.
Some community members have suggested that the money could support the Salvation Army’s Center of Hope shelter in downtown Asheville, which is slated to close in November due to a lack of funding. According to Shelton, however, “congregate shelter operating expenses are specifically not an eligible cost” for HOME-ARP.
Turner noted that she was “talking to colleagues about Salvation Army.” In the meantime, she encouraged “impactful, nearing shovel-ready, strong projects” to connect with the city.
The ARHC’s next meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 18, at the Harrah’s Cherokee Center Asheville.
Daniel Walton is the City Government Watchdog Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email him at dwalton@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: What's happening with $4.7M in homelessness prevention funds?
