Lorain Metropolitan Housing Authority gets $3.8 million in federal funding to help upgrade public housing

LORAIN — The Lorain Metropolitan Housing Authority will receive more than $3.8 million in federal funding in 2021 to help improve and preserve public housing in the county, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Tuesday. The $3,871,351 awarded to LMHA is among $104.3 million in funds received by agencies across the state of Ohio, and part of $2.7 billion being spent nationwide, in Washington, D.C., and in U.S. territories including Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands. The Erie Metropolitan Housing Authority also received $475,986 from HUD, the agency announced. The money is to be used to build, renovate and modernize public housing and is the agency's annual capital funding source, Executive Director Judith Carlin said Wednesday. "This is something we do get every year and it is based upon a formula that HUD uses based on occupancy and number of units," she said. "It's something we expected." Carlin, who came on board as LMHA's executive director at the end of November 2020, said her goal is to do a "physical needs assessment" of all LMHA properties this year, review work orders and look at the root causes and system issues that can be targeted with the federal funds while creating additional affordable housing through private and public partnerships. That could include project-based vouchers for affordable housing providers and builders who are looking to close gaps in their financing, she said. "We're looking at ways to leverage our programs and maintain the quality of housing and level of service and leverage what we can bring to the table to support affordable housing in the area," Carlin said. Federal agencies "are doing what they can do to keep people stabilized and housed during the pandemic and we are looking forward to hopefully keeping our families housed," she said. LMHA's community partners also have used CARES Act funds to increase opportunities for students and their families during the pandemic as children navigate learning from home with tablets and remote schooling. "There's been incredible collaboration within Lorain County to serve our most vulnerable populations in Lorain County," Carlin said. "I think we will receive some additional funding hopefully. We are grateful for our capital funds and we'll continue to engage with our residents." The amount of federal funding making its way to the agency is expected to remain stable this year, Carlin said. "I don't think we're expecting a reduction in funding this year, and we did benefit from CARES Act funding" that kept staff members and the community safe last year during the still-ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, she said. LMHA also is partnering with county agencies to do vaccine outreach to its clients, Carlin said. "We feel we're a partner and want to do whatever we can do to make Lorain County, our community and our home, stronger during this challenging time," she said. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com. Follow him at @daveobrienCT on Twitter.