Fort Worth may spend $20 million in COVID-19 aid to buy hotels, fight homelessness
Fort Worth’s housing authority and the city are hoping to rapidly turn unused hotel rooms into supportive housing for those facing homelessness who are particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus.
The $18.6 million plan is funded through part of the city’s CARES Act stimulus allocation. The city has already set aside $15 million for small business grants and more than $7 million for a separate housing assistance program from the $158 million aid package.
The plan is simple, but the timeline is quick.
Fort Worth Housing Solutions will acquire a hotel, or more than one, to be converted into apartments for those facing homeless who have a chronic medical condition or require some form of long-term treatment. Altogether, the city would like to establish 200 units.
Locations must be determined by Friday to apply for the necessary zoning changes. Once those are approved next month, Fort Worth Housing Solutions will have until December to remodel and lease out the units because the stimulus aid expires at the end of the year.
The City Council will vote on the plan Tuesday with an agenda item contracting with Fort Worth Housing Solutions and will approve the actual hotel sites Sept. 15.
A spokeswoman for Fort Worth Housing Solutions said the agency would not comment until after the council vote. Information about possible sites was not immediately available, though a city presentation indicated they must be near grocery stores and bus lines. The housing units would operate for at least 20 years, according to the contract.
Unlike a typical shelter, permanent supportive housing provides long term housing for those who need additional care, such as medical treatment, counseling or rehab. The 200 units will be specifically for those who have been homeless for a year or more and are especially at risk to coronavirus because of their conditions, said Assistant City Manager Fernando Costa, who oversees the city’s homeless program. Most would be 65 years or older.
“This would be a place to call home,” Costa said. “You would have a permanent address and it would be much safer, much healthier.”
Known coronavirus cases have been relatively low among those facing homeless. On average the isolation shelter, a TownePlace Suites at 4200 International Plaza, has had nine sick people a night with a peak at 27, according to a city presentation.
Compared to emergency shelters, permanent supportive housing is cheaper, Costa said.
A single night at a shelter costs $48 compared to $35 in supportive housing, according to statistics he cited from the Tarrant County Homeless Coalition. Those facing chronic homelessness also have other expenses often taken on by the city or another agency, like emergency medical services. One person spending a year in shelters costs the city and its partners about $35,600, Costa said.
He briefed the council on the plan last week, but will provide a second briefing Tuesday after some council members inquired about the cost.
The city will reallocate about $560,000 to help cover case management expenses, but is not “on the hook” for other expenses, he said.
The city had planned to also contract with Presbyterian Night Shelter, but CEO Toby Owen said Monday the nonprofit would likely not participate over concerns about the quick timeline.
The city must spend or allocate it’s CARES Act funding by the end of the year, Costa said, unless Congress votes to extend deadlines into 2021.
The $18.6 million represents about 10% Fort Worth’s CARES Act allocation. As much as $16 million may be spent on purchasing the hotel sites, but Costa said the long term benefits are high.
“When you consider the number of beneficiaries, the unit cost, the duration of benefits and the risk that we will be mitigating, I think you can logically draw the conclusion that this $18.6 million investment is commensurate ... it is defensible, it is justifiable.”
This story was originally published August 11, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
