County might help the sick and homeless
After two COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the local homeless population, St. Vincent de Paul, a local religious nonprofit, hopes to pair up with Kootenai County to provide safe housing.
As the weather gets colder and COVID cases are rising, achieving adequate distanced shelter for the homeless has become more difficult for St. Vincent de Paul. To combat this, St. Vincent de Paul executive director Larry Riley reached out to Commissioner Chris Fillios, asking about the possibility of allocating a portion of the county’s CARES Act funding for apartment-style housing.
A clear plan hasn't been determined yet. However, Kootenai County Resource Management Office director Jody Bieze noted that Riley has already worked out an agreement with Comfort Inn to house the homeless individuals while they isolate.
Bieze and RMO staff identified $60,000 to offer hotel rooms to 10 individuals over eight weeks.
“Currently, I understand from Larry that they’ve already had two individuals that have tested positive,” Bieze said. “I believe that he is just looking for the funds available to do self-isolation as people become COVID-positive.”
Kootenai County wouldn't be the only entity involved, Bieze said, as the city of Coeur d’Alene is planning to provide some funding as well. The difference is, Coeur d’Alene is using block grants instead of CARES Act dollars, Bieze said, which are not as time-constrained.
“The board could move toward allocating funds that then would also qualify for other entities providing self-isolation for homeless individuals who test positive as well,” Bieze said. “I suspect that Larry has been chatting with the jurisdictions, but I certainly can follow up on that.”
If the county does decide to use CARES dollars, its final decision would have to be confirmed by Dec. 11. Otherwise, the funding would be ineligible. In the Board of Commissioner status update meeting Monday morning, Chairman Fillios and Commissioner Leslie Duncan permitted Bieze to begin working with county staff to determine potential funding direction.