Baltimore will put $90.4 million in American Rescue Plan Act and federal relief funds towards homeless services, Mayor Brandon Scott said Tuesday.
The Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services will receive $75 million in ARPA funds and $15.4 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“If we are truly going to make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring, we need to make more dollars available for people experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity to access essential housing,” Scott said.
The COVID-19 pandemic shed light on the challenges Baltimore communities face and exacerbated housing issues, he said.
The city will use the funding to purchase and renovate two hotels to provide emergency housing.
The Mayor’s Office of Recovery Programs will also provide rental assistance and case management services for individuals who resided in hotels during the pandemic, support housing navigation and landlord recruitment strategies, increase the supply of permanent supportive housing units, and create a fund to provide short-term rental assistance.
“Our neighbors facing a housing crisis, who have been among the most vulnerable during the pandemic, deserve quick resolution and an adequate supply of affordable housing,” said Irene Agustin, director of the Mayor’s Office of Homeless Services.
