City of Knoxville staff will hold an interest meeting on Monday, Aug. 10, 3 p.m. for local groups interested in applying for federal grant funds to provide services to Knoxville residents experiencing homelessness or at risk of experiencing homelessness due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This meeting is specifically for smaller organizations that have had difficulty being able to access these types of funds in the past.  

The meeting will be held online via Zoom. Register online here. Anyone needing technical support to attend should contact Cicely Henderson at 865-215-2180.  

In May, the City received notice of an award of $2.2 million in Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for pandemic-specific relief as part of the CARES Act legislation.  

“With this additional allocation of funds from the CARES Act, we have the opportunity and the timeframe to reach out to organizations that haven’t received ESG funding through the City in the past,” said Becky Wade, Director of Housing and Neighborhood Development (formerly Community Development). “It’s imperative to partner with a diverse group of service providers to reach as many residents as possible, including minority and other underserved populations affected by homelessness.”  

Wade said her department is motivated to pair less experienced groups with established community groups to provide support and build capacity for administering ESG funds for the entire community of homelessness service providers. 

During the meeting, City staff will outline HUD requirements and the kinds of services that will qualify for funding, including but not limited to street outreach; emergency shelter, shelter operations and essential services related to emergency shelter; rapid re-housing services; and homelessness prevention services. Federal regulations are posted at https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/esg/.

Participants will be asked to report on the challenges their clients are experiencing and the needs going unmet by existing programs. This feedback will help identify and prioritize where the funding can have the most impact.