December 31, 2020
Dear Greenbelt City Council Members,
We call upon the City of Greenbelt to develop a housing security plan for the coming year to ensure the public health and safety of Greenbelt residents as we face the massive challenges of the current pandemic and associated recession and their aftermath.
We recognize that the Council and City have already done significant work to keep residents safe and protected, especially through Greenbelt CARES. We understand that Greenbelt was one of the few — maybe the only — cities in Prince George’s County that was able to distribute CARES Act money to renters in arrears. The City also passed ordinances to ban fees and rent increases. In coordination with GILA, the city is collecting and distributing funds for housing and utility support for families in need.
However, we see a troubling lack of comprehensive planning to face a potential housing crisis looming for early 2021 that could involve hundreds of evictions with an accompanying risk of homelessness. We note that Greenbelt BIPOC residents are disproportionately facing housing insecurity and are also at much greater risk of contracting and dying from COVID-19. These are our most at-risk neighbors, who disproportionately live in more crowded conditions, hold service jobs requiring them to leave home, and use public transportation.
Should hundreds of evictions turn into hundreds of homeless individuals and families, the City must coordinate with County shelter services. If County services are overwhelmed, the City needs contingency plans to help those with nowhere to go.
Here are some practical suggestions to add to an emerging plan. We have great confidence that the City and residents can rise to the challenge.
1) Rework and pass the Eviction Ordinance proposed by Mayor Byrd. The final vote of 3-3-1 was close enough to warrant revisiting this important legislation. Eviction protection is critical. At the recent Work Session with the Council, representatives of Fieldstone Properties, managers of Franklin Park, indicated delinquent rents currently totaled $2.6 million. 40% of renters were in arrears. The normal rate is 5%.
2) Expand Greenbelt CARES by temporarily reassigning staff from other departments.
3) Develop consistent, timely, and clear communications on rights and options for all residents involving effective distribution through multiple channels. Hear from all neighborhoods and make sure that BIPOC residents have a clear feedback channel and a place at the table for this planning effort. In the absence of metrics from the county, state, and federal governments, information from local networks will be critical.
4) Develop partnerships with existing local organizations and networks to gather ideas and information. The work of GILA in expanding and promoting the emergency assistance funds is a good example.
5) Add Public Health and Welfare to the FY2021 City Management Objectives to help give this planning the priority it deserves.
Housing is a basic need and right. The pandemic has pushed millions more people into homelessness or unstable housing. Our work to address this acute crisis must lead us to a future where no one is unhoused or under threat of homelessness.
We hope you will strongly consider the points we have raised above and act upon them.
Signed by:
Greenbelt Racial Equity Alliance (GREA)
The Peace and Justice Coalition of Prince George’s County
Connecting Across Greenbelt
RUAK (Random Unselfish Acts of Kindness)