Nov. 21, 2023
The good news is that Mecklenburg County is committed to creating one-stop sites where low-income applicants for various seasonal and year-round housing, heating and renovation assistance programs can go to meet with a trained employee to guide them through the application processes.
The less-good news is that just about anyone not already on county staff will likely need that kind of help navigating the process. Except of course it’s not just one process: Every program seems to have different rules, different eligiblity standards, different payment amounts, different deadlines.
And perhaps the least-good news is that the hard-working folks administering these programs face huge challenges locating and sharing their expertise with the people that the programs aim to serve. In a community awash in legacy and social media, “getting the information out” is clearly harder than it sounds.
Presenters this morning were:
- Ginny Harper, community program coordinator for Mecklenburg’s Department of Community Resources Economic Services at 301 Billingsley Rd. ([email protected]; 980-314-6027; 704-258-7418).
- Mildred Perez, HOMES Program Coordinator for Mecklenburg’s Department of Community Resources at 3205 Freedom Dr. Suite 1000 (980-314-4663).
- Tara Vannoy, Community Services Coordinator for Blue Ridge Community Action in Charlotte and Morganton ([email protected]; 828-438-6255 ext. 581).
On this one page are dozens of pieces of information. Presentation slides, fliers, and brochures are collected below the morning’s video by program category. As viewers of the video listen, they can scroll down and find supplemental information. All of the information shows as images on a smartphone or computer, but may also be downloaded for further study. That’s the easy part.
The much harder part is nailing down the right answers for a specific individual or household. And for that, the best answer may be in the last tranche of information about help that’s available at resource centers.
LIEAP
The Low-Income Energy Assistance Program assists households with high heating bills. The program is seasonal; seniors and disabled get first dibs in December. Houeshold income limit vary, and payments range from $3000-$500. Below are the slides from the energy programs presentation. They may be downloaded as a PDF here.
Images of the LIEAP program flier in English and Spanish are below. They may be downloaded as a PDF here.
CIP
The Crisis Assistance Program is a federal pot of dollars used to address household heating and cooling emergenies. Below is the flier in English and Spanish. Both may be downloaded as a PDF file here.
The fliers below may be downloaded in a PDF here.
Below are the slides from presentation prepared by Blue Ridge Action, a nonprofit providing assistance in a 10-county area including Mecklenburg. All the slides can be downloaded as a PDF here.
The brochure below is an example of the efforts under way to create one-stop centers for residents seeking community assistance. Three are in operation – Wallace H. Kuralt Center, 301 Billingsley Rd.; Valerie C. Woodard Center, Suite 1800, 3205 Freedom Dr.; and Ella B. Scarborough Community Resource Center, 430 Stitt Rd. Two more are on the drawing boards. The two-page brochure may be downloaded as a PDF here.
