INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Housing Agency is stepping up its efforts to help people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The IHA helps low-income residents with public housing or Section 8 vouchers and that need is expected to grow.
The rooms in this public housing facility are full and inside an effort to keep residents safe is underway. Masks, gloves and hand sanitizer all being packed away in bags and delivered door-to-door.
"The coronavirus is not over yet and we want to provide as much material as we can to our residents to keep them safe," Bonita Davis, resident council president for IHA, said.
Residents like Rosetta Rush, who has lived in the housing facility for 18 years.
"You just have to take it day-by-day," Rush said.
Rush and others applied for housing assistance well before the pandemic.
"There's always been a need," Elizabeth Choi, chief communications officer for IHA, said. "We serve the Indianapolis community and there is always a need, in fact, we have waitlists for people needing our services."
That number could continue to grow as people continue to deal with job loss and reduced income due to the pandemic. IHA is working to prepare.
"What we are doing in light of COVID and in light of us identifying there is a growing need is that we are processing our applications, particularly with public housing, we are processing them much quicker," Choi said.
Choi said IHA is also working to clean and turnover vacant units quicker than before so they can be ready for someone in need.
The IHA is federally funded and the amount of people they're able to help depends on the amount of funding they get from HUD and the number of available units. They are doing what they can to prepare for an increased need while protecting their current residents from the virus.
"Yeah, I appreciate it," Rush said.
