San Jose Opens Second Rental Assistance Center

SAN JOSE (BCN) -- Less than a month after opening its first center at city hall to help tenants and landlords most affected by the COVID pandemic, the city has opened a second center at the main office of Franklin McKinley School District.

"This pandemic has deepened our housing crisis, and we must continue to take decisive steps to support families vulnerable to homelessness," said Mayor Sam Liccardo, in a statement released by his office.

"The rental assistance center provides a critical tool connecting our residents to available funding to help them out of housing insecurity. This newest location doubles our ability to do so."

City officials said more than 2,900 applications had been submitted through the local assistance program as of Aug. 20, requesting over $30 million in emergency rental assistance.

These applications come from extremely low-income households, many of whom earn less than 30 percent of the area median income. Over 84 percent of applicants are people of color.

More than 3,100 applications from San Jose households have been submitted to the State program, requesting over $43 million in rental assistance.

The new center is in District 7, represented by councilman Maya Esparza.

"We need to get rental assistance to residents in need as soon as possible," she said.

The new center is located at 645 Wool Creek Drive in San Jose, and is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Wednesdays from 1-8 p.m.

The center at city hall is at 200 E. Santa Clara Street, and is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Parking will be validated and is available underneath city hall through the garage entrance on 6th Street

Residents who are unable to visit these locations in person can also call (408) 975-4444 or email evictionhelp@sanjoseca.gov. Residents are encouraged to call or visit right away if they are in danger of eviction or facing housing insecurity. English, Spanish and Vietnamese translations are available.

For more information, visit https://www.sanjoseca.gov/your-government/departments-offices/housing/covid-19-resources.

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