Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano announced the City of Yonkers successfully completed its Emergency Rental Assistance Program (Y-ERAP) to aid Yonkers residents with their payments of back rent, prospective rent, utilities and relocation expenses due to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yonkers granted approximately $14.5 million in aid since June 2021, from funds received from the U.S. Department of Treasury under the American Rescue Plan.
Working in collaboration with local community-based organizations, specifically CLUSTER Community Services, The Bridge Fund of Westchester, Inc., Westchester Residential Opportunities, Catholic Charities and Westhab, Yonkers’ ERA program provided financial assistance and housing stability services to 853 unique Yonkers tenant households and paid rental arrears to 360 different Yonkers landlords, owners and management companies.
“Yonkers is proud to help struggling renters who have been impacted by the economic fallout of the pandemic,” said Mayor Spano. “More than anyone, we know how to best serve our local tenants and landlords and connect them to our local nonprofits who are the ‘boots on the ground’ with those in need.”
Mayor Spano added, “Contracting with multiple not-for-profits allowed us to swiftly mobilize senior staff from multiple agencies experienced with addressing rent arrears and conducting outreach to multiple high-need populations, thus minimizing the time needed for start-up and enabling us to begin enrolling participants before New York State.”
Yonkers was the only community in Westchester to operate its own ERA program. Those eligible for the Yonkers Emergency Rental Assistance Program must have suffered a reduction of income or unemployment due to COVID-19, owed back rent beginning after March 20, 2020 and faced homelessness or housing insecurity in 2021.
Yonkers residents who still need funding for rental arrears are eligible to apply for assistance from the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance through its online application portal until January 20, at https://otda.ny.gov/programs/emergency-rental-assistance/ and from the Westchester County Department of Social Services.
