Specialists connect community members to financial assistance, legal and mediation help, and community partner services to keep residents safely housed during the pandemic

Boulder County, Colo. -- Boulder County’s Housing Helpline has provided over $1 million in assistance to 414 households since April, a reflection of the significant need in the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Specialists at the Housing Helpline have been working to connect residents with rental assistance, landlord supports, free mediation and legal services, financial coaching, and more.

Access to a safe, affordable home is always important, but it is essential while our community is working hard to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The ongoing public health emergency and the financial hardships faced by many individuals and families in Boulder County has made it even more difficult for them to afford the cost of their housing. We launched the Boulder County Housing Helpline in April 2020 to provide emergency rental assistance, prevent evictions, and support safety and well-being, and it’s clearly helping. We encourage anyone who needs support with housing costs to reach out to the Helpline today.

-Angela Lanci-Macris, Director, Case Management and Community Outreach Division, Boulder County Housing and Human Services

The Housing Helpline (303-441-1206) is one of many supports Boulder County is providing to help the community safely endure and recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 public health emergency. The county continues to focus its pandemic response efforts around an initiative known as Forward Together Safely, through which supports and services are boosted by federal funding and targeted to those families and individuals in the community who are struggling as a result of the coronavirus.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating to so many of our neighbors, particularly working individuals providing essential services, families, older adults, and those members of our community at higher risk of respiratory illness. As a community, we are working hard to make efficient, coordinated investments of both local and state funding and federal CARES Act dollars to counteract the extreme stress of COVID-19 impacts. Investing in housing supports such as the Boulder County Housing Help Line is one of the most powerful ways we can protect our community and ensure that our residents are able to recover and thrive going forward.

-Boulder County Commissioner Matt Jones

The bilingual Housing Helpline also represents the county’s focus on connecting resources with Boulder County’s communities of color, which have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

So many of our neighbors already pay so much for their housing that they are just one disaster away from losing their homes. We know there is economic inequality and lack of access to affordable housing in Boulder County, but it is impossible to ignore it during this prolonged disaster. The Housing Helpline is a great example of what we can achieve when we direct our resources toward the root causes of crisis and instability and focus our attention on creating conditions in which everyone can be healthy, safe, and thriving.

-Albino Bustillos, Bilingual Case Manager, Boulder County Housing Help Line

The Housing Helpline is also supported through collaboration with Boulder County’s Family Resource Centers Sister Carmen Community Center in Lafayette (303-665-4342), Emergency Family Assistance Association (EFAA) in Boulder (303-442-3042), and Outreach United Resources (OUR) Center in Longmont (303-772-5529). These non-profit community partners provide financial assistance for rent and utilities, mortgage support, free food boxes or prepared meals, and much more.

Residents can also contact Boulder County to apply for a wide range of additional benefits that are currently available, including food, financial, and childcare assistance, unemployment benefits and business loans, free or reduced-cost health insurance, and more. These supports can relieve financial pressure in other areas so that individuals are better able to cover their housing costs.

More information is available at www.boco.org/COVID-19Resources and www.boco.org/COVID-19Recursos.

Contact Boulder County Housing & Human Services in the following ways:

• Text 303-441-1069
• Email hhscallcenter@bouldercounty.org
• Use the Boulder County Connect Chat function at BoulderCountyConnect.org
• Call the Housing Helpline and leave a message at 303-441-1206 (for rental assistance, mortgage questions, landlord/tenant mediation, etc.)
• Email documents to Imaging@BoulderCounty.org
• Call and leave a message at 303-441-1069 (due to high call volume, there may be a delay, but calls will be returned as soon as possible)
• This information is also at www.boco.org/COVID-19ContactHHS

More about Boulder County Housing and Human Services

The Boulder County Department of Housing and Human Services (BCDHHS) is a 500-person integrated services organization that focuses on connecting individuals and multiple generations of families with a full spectrum of supports.

Over an average 12 months during typical times, BCDHHS connects more than 90,000 people with a wide range of wrap-around services, including food, housing, health coverage, child care, safety, education and skill building, parenting supports, and much more.

Follow Boulder County Housing and Human Services on Facebook and visit the website to learn more about BCDHHS’ prevention-based wrap-around community supports and services.