(WTTW News)
Approximately 14,000 Chicagoans who lost their jobs or found their paychecks scaled back because of the coronavirus pandemic asked the city of Chicago for help paying their rent or mortgages, officials said.
The city has set aside $33 million for a second round of grants, which includes $20 million in federal funds earmarked for helping people recover from the economic crisis and funds raised by Chicago charities, officials said.
Officials expected the fund to be enough to help 10,000 Chicagoans when the program launched last month.
Approximately 12,000 Chicagoans applied to the Chicago Department of Housing for grants of $2,000 to $3,000, officials said.
Winners of grants from the Department of Housing will be selected through a lottery, and those selected should get the money in the coming weeks, officials said.
Applications came from all parts of the city, but the highest demand came from South Side residents, including residents of Englewood, South Shore and Chatham, according to city officials.
Click to enlarge. (Courtesy City of Chicago)
Another 2,000 Chicagoans applied for help from an $8 million fund administered by the city’s Department of Family and Support Services designed to cover between three and six months of rent for those earning no more than 50% of the area’s median income, officials said. Half of the funds will be set aside for Chicagoans earning no more than 15% of the area’s median income, officials said.
Approximately 83,000 Chicagoans applied for help from the first round of housing assistance grants in early April, but the city only had enough money to fund 2,000 grants.
During the second round, city officials required those who asked for help to submit completed application packets, unlike the process during the first round, officials said.
Illinois’ ban on evictions will expire Sept. 22, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced.
Chicagoans who lost their jobs or found their paychecks scaled back because of the coronavirus are protected from evictions for an additional two months after the state’s ban ends, under a measure approved in June by the Chicago City Council.
Housing Commissioner Marisa Novara has said the city is committed to preventing a wave of evictions from sweeping the city after the ban is lifted.
Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]
