Only about 10% of Lawrence landlords participate in housing voucher programs, and right now, 51 households with vouchers in hand are actively searching and struggling to find housing. Gabby Boyle, prevention specialist at the Sexual Trauma and Abuse Care Center, and Mariel Ferreiro, landlord liaison for the Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority, shared those statistics and context alongside other local housing experts Thursday evening during a panel at the Lawrence Public Library. Ferreiro explained that the housing authority administers transitional vouchers, which allow people to build rental history and acclimate from experiencing homelessness, and housing choice vouchers. Those subsidies provide landlords guaranteed monthly rent payments — but fewer and fewer landlords are accepting them. Lawrence’s Human Resources Commission recently advanced proposed changes to city ordinances that include creating a protected class based on source of income. If passed, the ordinance would prevent landlords from denying housing because someone’s rent money comes from housing assistance such as vouchers, settlements, benefits, subsidies, Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing vouchers and more.
Source: The Lawrence Times
