Housing Authority works to keep people in homes as time runs out on CARES Act

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Nearly a third of Americans missed housing payments in the month of July.

The CARES Act protecting renters from evictions from federally-assisted housing expired this past Saturday. However, Kentucky residents will still be protected from evictions under the state of emergency that lasts through Aug. 1, according to the order of the Kentucky Supreme Court.

Housing Authority of Bowling Green occupancy specialist Shawn Sales witnessed what some people experienced firsthand. The authority is working with affected residents to keep them in their homes.

“It is one devastation after another because you’re interacting with people who have created these lives and have been able to provide for themselves and their family,” Sales said. “And now all of a sudden they’re having to deal with the idea that they don’t have the means and not only do they not have them now, but they don’t know what tomorrow looks like,” said Sales.

The objective of the Housing Authority of Bowling Green is to provide safe and sanitary housing to low income persons. Cathye Gumm, project manager at the Housing Authority of Bowling Green, spoke to those she saw affected.

“The people who were affected by the pandemic didn’t have a choice. If they were not essential, they lost their jobs and that’s scary. And when you have a situation of that nature, human nature has to come in,” said Gumm.

The staff at the Housing Authority went above and beyond to help their tenants as they tried to think about how they would feel. This included checking in on them to ensure they had food and basic necessities.

“You have to put yourself in their feet, their shoes. We could very easily be on the other end of that spectrum. Because we were essential employees we weren’t (affected),” said Gumm.