Roberts County Eligible for Rental Assistance Program

HUD approved a new partnership agreement recently between Aberdeen Housing and Redevelopment Commission (AHRC) and Roberts County to provide housing subsidy vouchers for low-income renters throughout the county.

The agreement allows qualified residents of Roberts County to apply for rental assistance through HUD's Housing Choice Voucher program. The vouchers allow very-low income families to choose safe, decent affordable privately owned rental housing.

After several requests for rental assistance in Roberts County, staff from HUD, AHRC, and Northeast South Dakota Community Action Program (NESDCAP) approached the County Commission to help set up the program. Although the local HRC in Sisseton has 73 public housing units, it does not have any rental vouchers to offer residents. AHRC volunteered to administer the program and NESDCAP offered to help market the program in the county. To comply with legal requirements, the County held a public hearing, passed a series of resolutions, appointed a board, and signed a joint powers agreement with AHRC. HUD approved the partnership on December 9, 2004.

In January AHRC Executive Director Jody Zueger said, �We already have a half dozen people in Roberts County signed up for the program.� AHRC currently has 468 vouchers with a waiting list of about two months.

This is the fifth countywide partnership for AHRC. They also serve Brown, Day, Marshall and McPherson Counties. Roberts County, with a population of just over 10,000, includes a large portion of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Sioux Reservation.

For more information or to apply for a voucher contact AHRC at (605) 225-9095.

Content Archived: April 5, 2011