Landry Seeks Control of $50 Million New Orleans Homeless Funds as HUD Shifts Away From Permanent Housing
Updated
Updated · NOLA.com · Aug 6
Landry Seeks Control of $50 Million New Orleans Homeless Funds as HUD Shifts Away From Permanent Housing
3 articles · Updated · NOLA.com · Aug 6
Summary
$50 million in federal homeless-services funding for the New Orleans area is at the center of Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry’s bid to replace the region’s longtime lead agency, UNITY, with the state housing corporation.
The proposal would steer much of the money toward temporary housing, treatment programs and a several-hundred-bed shelter outside downtown, reflecting HUD’s June move to redirect $1.2 billion nationwide away from permanent housing models.
State officials said current voucher holders would keep their assistance, but advocates warned the shift could eventually put as many as 2,600 formerly homeless residents at risk of returning to the street.
The application deepens Landry’s broader push to reshape New Orleans homelessness policy after last year’s encampment relocations and a $17.5 million transitional center, while city officials said they knew of the state bid but not its details.
HUD will make the final award decision after UNITY submits the regional application by Aug. 26, with results expected by December and the state planning an appeal if its project ranks poorly.