HUD AWARDS $8.2 MILLION IN GRANTS TO HOMELESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS IN METRO KANSAS CITY

Local U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development officials announced today more than $8.2 million in grants to homeless assistance providers in the Kansas City metro area. The funding will help local homeless individuals and families obtain housing, receive job training, mental health services, substance abuse treatment and other services they need to escape homelessness and become self-sufficient.

The assistance announced today is part of HUD's Continuum of Care approach to address homelessness. The funding will go to ten long-term homeless assistance programs in the Kansas City metro area. These competitive grants are awarded to states, local governments and non-profit groups based on a number of factors that measure the effectiveness of their plans. The Kansas City metro area homeless assistance award winners are:

• The Salvation Army, KCMO--$696,962 to be used to pay for a portion of 6 bedrooms and 25 beds of
  transitional housing at 101 West Linwood
• Truman Medical Center, Inc.,--$1,539,747 to continue supportive services and operation of a ten-person transitional housing facility, Access House, at 5101 E. 24th Street
• The City of Kansas City, Missouri--$2,284,858 to be distributed to ten currently operating agencies Housing Information Center, Goodwill, Community Kitchen, Legal Aid, Metropolitan Lutheran Ministries, Newhouse, reStart, Rose Brooks, Swope Parkway Health Center and United Services Community Action Agency
• Missouri Department of Mental Health, KCMO--$1,776,900 to provide five years of housing funds for 50 units
  in the area, 25 one-bedrooms, 15 two-bedrooms and 10 three-bedrooms
• Missouri Department of Mental Health, Independence, MO--$504,180 (the first competitive award for Independence) to provide five years of housing funds for 15 units in the Independence area, 10 one-
  bedrooms, 3 two-bedrooms and 2 three-bedrooms
• Wyandotte Mental Health Center--$246,919 to provide two outreach case managers and a part-time program coordinator that will service 45 families and 339 individuals over the three-year term of the grant
• Unified Government of Wyandotte County--$297,675 to be distributed to three agencies currently operating, Catholic Community Services assisting families with children with a variety of needs, Economic Opportunity Foundation providing rental assistance for emergency needs, and Friends of Yates, a domestic violence shelter
• Economic Opportunity Foundation, Inc.--$194,000 for transportation services that will serve approximately 4,680 people over the next three years of the grant
• St. Luke's Ministries, Incorporated--$153,563 to provide life skills training to approximately 1,032 individuals
  over the next three years
• The Johnson County Housing Coalition--$511,500 to construct two duplexes that will house two families and
  six individuals

The Continuum of Care grants, developed by HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo and first awarded in 1994, have helped more than 400,000 homeless individuals nationwide get housing and jobs. It is the centerpiece of the federal policy
on homelessness and is the recipient of Harvard University and the Ford Foundation's prestigious Innovations in American Government Award.

According to a recent HUD study, the majority of homeless families who receive housing and support services ultimately find an improved living situation. Homelessness: Programs and People They Serve found that 76 percent
of homeless persons living in families and 60 percent of homeless individuals ceased being homeless after completion
of the assistance program.

"Intervention is the key to turning around the lives of the homeless," said Stan Quy, HUD's Supervisory Community Builder. "The funding announced today will provide the flexible framework for communities to use in providing the
much needed outreach and assessment, emergency shelter, transitional housing, permanent housing and permanent supportive housing that help the homeless become self-sufficient."

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