CHARLOTTE — Mecklenburg commissioner to continue to invest in affordable housing.
Affordable housing has long been considered a city of Charlotte issue, but it impacts everyone in Mecklenburg County.
Over the past few years, the county has invested millions in this crisis. Commissioners say they don’t plan to stop.
Hundreds of affordable housing units are in the works thanks to millions the county has invested over the last few years. But the county is taking more approaches to affordable housing than just funding new units.
One of the investments is in eviction prevention. The county says Legal Aid helped 706 tenants avoid or defer eviction last year.
The county also invests in aging in place, which means helping people with low incomes stay in their homes. Last year, officials said 726 households received financial help with property taxes.
Commissioner Vilma Leake says affordable housing is too important for the county to just let the city handle.
“We have no choice in the matter,” Leake said. “It’s a demand upon us by the community. So if we are serving wraparound services to the community that embraces all of our people, we have to support what the city is doing and make sure we do our part as best we can.”
Last week, the county provided Round 2 of COVID-19 relief funding. Of the $99 million handed out, $39 million went to affordable housing. Projects include housing for veterans, seniors and formerly incarcerated people.
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