Champaign, IL. September 15, 2020. The Housing Authority of Champaign County (HACC) is excited to announce that our agency has been designated as an “Envision Center” by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Envision Center is committed to empowering households to self-sufficiency by providing services to meet the four pillars: economic empowerment, educational advancement, health,Th and wellness, as well as character and leadership.
“Challenges already existed in our community, and the coronavirus pandemic just created more hurdles,” said David A. Northern Sr., Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Housing Authority of Champaign County. “We are committed to identifying resources and making them available to Champaign residents on a more far-reaching and consistent basis.”
Given this new designation, HACC is fully prepared to establish its presence in the community as a partner not only in housing advancement, but also as research-based pillars of self-sufficiency in education, career advancement, and leadership. The Envision Center designation does not have any federal funding attached to it; however, the program is part of HUD’s new initiative to provide additional support to economically disadvantaged clients and insecure housing communities. To learn more about the HACC Envision Center, please visit our website at www.hacc.net
About the Housing Authority of Champaign County: The Housing Authority of Champaign County (HACC) is a municipal corporation organized pursuant to the Illinois Housing Authority Act. The jurisdiction of HACC includes all incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county of Champaign, Illinois. In 2010, HACC became one of only 39 public housing authorities in the country to be designated as a Moving to Work (MTW) Agency. Today, HACC has had extensive development and management experience and developed over $100 million dollars of new affordable housing through mixed financing methods. In addition, HACC has administered over 1,200 tenant-based vouchers, a homeownership program, and a rental assistance program for homeless veterans. HACC also administers a multitude of resident support and service programs under various HUD and non-HUD grants.
For emergency COVID-19 related updates, please visit us at: https://hacc.net/emergency-updates-covid-19/. For social media updates, please visit us on Facebook at: Housing Authority of Champaign County, Housing Authority of Champaign County Enrichment Foundation, and Housing Authority of Champaign County YouthBuild. For more information visit www.hacc.net and for questions/concerns, please contact: concerns@hacc.net or 217-378-7100 ext. 5001.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information Contact:
Ashley Short, Executive Assistant
217-378-7100 Ext. 5028
ashleys@hacc.net
HACC AWARDED HUD IMPLEMENTS THREE NEW MTW ACTIVITIES
Champaign, IL. September 11, 2020. The Housing Authority of Champaign County (HACC) is one of 39 Moving to Work (MTW) housing authorities in the country. This designation provides HACC the flexibility to design and test innovative, locally designed programs to better serve and house residents while simultaneously meeting the needs of the community. Therefore, HACC is excited to announce newly implemented MTW activities that will strengthen community partnerships, provide housing options for clients pursuing higher education, and offer services to prepare rental residents for homeownership.
HACC is partnering with the University of Illinois to administer an Illinois Commitment Student Voucher Program. Illinois Commitment is a financial aid package that provides scholarships and grants to cover tuition and campus fees at the University of Illinois for students who are Illinois residents age 17 to 24 and have a family income of $61,000 or less. Illinois Commitment covers tuition and campus fees for new freshmen for up to four years, eight semesters of continuous enrollment, and tuition and campus fees for up to three years, six semesters of continuous enrollment for new transfer students. However, Illinois Commitment does not cover room and board.
Therefore, the Housing Authority of Champaign County will offer Student Vouchers to members of HACC assisted households who are compliant with HACC’s MTW Local Self-Sufficiency program; have been approved for admission at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; and are receiving assistance under Illinois Commitment. The Student Voucher will cover the full cost of on-campus housing during the time the student is actively enrolled at the UIUC campus as a full-time student and maintains a passing grade point average.
HACC is also continuing to strengthen its community partnerships through the Community Improvement and Support Initiative. HACC previously owned and operated 16 Single Family Scattered Site Homes under the traditional Public Housing Program. These units were removed from the Public Housing portfolio in December 2018 through the “de minimis” authority under the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) Program. Although two of the properties were acquired by the City of Champaign and demolished, upon working with community partners, it was determined that the remaining houses could be repurposed for use by local non-profit organizations to provide services or raise funds that benefit HACC program recipients or other low-income households in Champaign County.
As a result, two of the units are currently being used by FirstFollowers and WIN Recovery to provide reentry services through the Re-Entry Transitional Housing Program activity. One unit will serve as a rental home for Carle Foundation Hospital’s New Beginnings Program which provides supportive care and services directly to families in the program. HACC will continue to work with community organizations to identify uses for the remaining houses that directly benefit HACC program participants.
Another priority for HACC is expanding housing choices by making homeownership opportunities available to existing rental households. The Illinois Housing Development Authority Qualified Allocation Plan enables Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) units to convert to homeownership at the end of the initial 15-year compliance period. Through the Good Steward Lease Purchase Program, HACC will work with residents living in LIHTC rental properties during the initial tax credit compliance period to prepare residents for homeownership. After the end of the eight-year rental phrase, residents will have the opportunity to convert their tenancy to a lease purchase arrangement beginning in year nine. Upon determination of eligibility for the program, households will receive financial literacy and credit repair classes, homeownership counseling and training and earn Good Steward credits of $500 each calendar quarter towards the purchase of the housing unit they occupy as long as they remain compliant with all program requirements.
It is the Housing Authority of Champaign County’s primary mission to create quality living environments as a foundation for individuals to achieve their full potential, and we have a fundamental belief in “service above all else.” Through these new activities, we are able to assist our clients and the members of the community collectively. To learn more about our “Move to Work” Annual Plan, please visit our website.
Our Housing Choice Voucher program provides assistance to over 1,100 individuals and families. HACC’s housing portfolio includes 338 Rental-Assistance-Demonstration (RAD) units and 469 units of Low-income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) affordable housing.
For social media updates, please visit us on Facebook at: Housing Authority of Champaign County, Housing Authority of Champaign County Enrichment Foundation, Housing Authority of Champaign County YouthBuild.
For more information, visit www.hacc.net, and for questions/concerns, please contact: concerns@hacc.net or 217-378-7100 ext. 5001.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For More Information Contact:
Ashley Short, Executive Assistant
217-378-7100 Ext. 5028
ashleys@hacc.net
THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF CHAMPAIGN COUNTY TO RECEIVE
RE-ENTRY RENTAL HOUSING SUPPORT DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM GRANT
Champaign, IL. July 20, 2020. The Housing Authority of Champaign County (HACC) will receive $487,674 in support to fund 15 units in Champaign County to help participants transition back into the community. This partnership was created by the Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton and the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC), and the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) to announce the launch of the Re-Entry Rental Housing Support Demonstration Program. This program is an interagency initiative design to meet the housing needs of individuals exiting IDOC facilities. Under the new program, IHDA has entered into funding agreements with four local administering agencies (LAA) who will deploy $3 million in grant funding over 3 years to support housing placement and ongoing rental subsidies for 75 eligible participants specifically referred by IDOC’s new Reentry Division. With the launch of the program, the IDOC may begin making referrals to the participating LAAs to connect individuals with available rental units in their community.
“It allows them to get their foot in the door, and if they’re able to secure a place to live, if they’re able to be with their families and be in a community, it makes it a little bit easier for them to succeed.” — David A. Northern Sr. Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer at the Housing Authority of Champaign County.
Individuals eligible for IDOC referral to the Re-Entry Rental Housing Support Demonstration Program are seniors (ages 55 and over), those with disabilities, and those ages 35 and over with additional consideration given to individuals who have completed or enrolled in post-secondary educational programming. Potential participants will have also completed in-depth pre-release programming. After the referrals, participating LAAs will coordinate with local landlords to secure stable housing and will administer rental assistance payments for tenants who will be released on parole directly into a Re-Entry program apartment.
The Re-Entry program was developed under guidance from the Justice, Equity, and Opportunity Initiative led by the Lt. Governor’s office. Through coordination across state agencies and advocates, the program aims to support positive reentry outcomes to reduce recidivism by helping formerly incarcerated individuals find and maintain stable housing. The rental assistance under this pilot initiative is funded through the state’s Rental Housing Support program, which receives its funding from a real estate document recording fee collected at the county level. An additional grant, secured on behalf of the program by New York University (NYU), will support the provision of basic housewares and home furnishings for program participants. Program partners are also actively pursuing philanthropic support for data analysis and an evaluation of program efficacy by measuring outcomes of individuals who are connected to housing and services.
About the Housing Authority of Champaign County: The Housing Authority of Champaign County (HACCA) is a municipal corporation organized pursuant to the Illinois Housing Authority Act. The jurisdiction of HACC includes all incorporated and unincorporated areas of the County of Champaign, Illinois. In 2010, HACC became one of only 39 Public Housing Authorities in the country to be designated as a Moving to Work (MTW) Agency. Today, HACC has extensive development and management experience having developed over $100 million dollars of the new affordable housing through mixed financing methods, in addition to administering over 1,200 tenant-based vouchers; a homeownership program; and a rental assistance program for homeless veterans. HACC also administers a multitude of resident support and service programs under various HUD and non-HUD grants.
For emergency COVID -19 related updates, please visit us at: https://hacc.net/emergency-updates-covid-19/.
For social media updates, please visit us on Facebook at: Housing Authority of Champaign County, Housing Authority of Champaign County Enrichment Foundation, Housing Authority of Champaign County YouthBuild.
For more information visit www.hacc.net and for questions/concerns, please contact: concerns@hacc.net or 217-378-7100 ext. 5001.
Public Notice is hereby given that the Housing Authority of Champaign County will open the waitlist for the Haven at Market Place (Court). The Haven Court is a 3-story building serving individuals ages 55 years and older. This development is a public/private partnership between The Housing Authority of Champaign County, and Brinshore Development a For Profit Developer.
Preliminary applications will be accepted for on Monday, July 6, 2020 12:01 a.m. – Friday, July 10, 2020 11:59 p.m.
*Skelton Place Relocated Residents Only: Previous residents of Skelton Place have the “First Right of Return” to the new development. If you were a resident who was relocated as a part of the Skelton Place Relocation, you do not need to apply through this application process. If you have questions or wish to live in the new development, please contact the following: HACC, Office of Constituent Services at concerns@hacc.net. First Right of Return will have priority over other applicants until all units are occupied. Once the development is fully occupied, the First Right of Return is null and void.
For all other applicants interested in Haven Court please see below on how to apply:
| Required Information
· A valid mailing address · Names & birthdates of all household members · Household gross income |
How to Apply
· Visit www.hacc.net · Select “Housing” on navigation bar · Select “Apply for Housing” |
| Reasonable Accommodations
Due to social distancing we do require a written or emailed statement requesting assistance for the preliminary application process. In your statement please be sure to include contact information. Staff from HACC will contact you regarding an appointment for you to come in. Please note, the date stamped by HACC of the initial request will be used for entering the information. No request can be made prior to the opening of the wait list
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Inquiries
For inquiries regarding this waitlist notice, please contact Robyn Dodd at
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