When there’s a confluence of need and opportunity, that’s usually a good time for philanthropy to step up. The Harold K.L. Castle Foundation saw that need during the first year of the pandemic, when so many families lost work and income and were unable to fully pay their rent. Opportunity came in the form of a big pulse of Federal funds to help states and counties to launch rent and utility support programs. But without grassroots people to do outreach and help neighbors submit all the documents needed to get such support, would those at greatest risk of eviction get the support they need to remain housed?
Thus was born the Koʻolau Housing Hui in spring 2021, designed by nearly two dozen nonprofit, government, and community leaders. The model is simple, as the picture below shows:
- Creation of a strong team of 14 community navigators based at five locally trusted organizations1 who reach out to families in need and help them apply for the City & County’s rental and utility assistance program;
- Close coordination with larger nonprofits to ensure that all Windward households at risk of eviction have access to free legal advice, landlord-tenant mediation, and emergency budgeting; and
- Use of a Salesforce database with help from Purple Maiʻa to track our progress, data visualization by the Hawaii Data Collaborative, and access to real-time insights from a UH team of social scientists on what is and isn’t working.
1 Hui o Hauʻula, KEY Project, Adventist Health Castle, Waimānalo Health Center, and Hui Mahiʻai ‘Āina.
Here’s a picture of this partnership in action on a Saturday in Waimānalo last June:
On the right side of picnic table, Catholic Charities staff, Hope, is helping Hui Mahiʻai ‘Āina community navigator Robbie to scan documents to load up into the portal. The kupuna on the left heard through the coconut wireless about the event, brought all her papers, is behind on her rent, and hopes to secure federal funds to pay her landlord so she can avoid getting evicted.
Our 2022 goal for the Koʻolau Housing Hui is to prevent 750 evictions in the region (from Kahuku to Waiamānalo) and get 100 households qualified for rapid rehousing. Data to date indicate we’re likely to hit these goals as long as the City reopens the funding spigot for rent and utility help. The Foundation’s grants of $1 million last year and half a million this year have helped the Hui to assist over 1,600 households.
Over the past two years we’ve learned a lot about Windward families that are struggling. Long-term, this one-time pandemic rent and utility funding is just a temporary solution. The core problem is the high cost of rental housing and the need for families to earn more income to stay on top of all their bills. To do that, they need to get qualified for higher-paying jobs. One Hui member is already experimenting with a job-readiness training program in partnership with Windward Community College, and three others are eager to do the same.
We’ve started a small design team to explore whether we should add an upskilling element in 2023 using our Salesforce database of over 1,600 households.
In sum, this program was designed well, has built a durable, well-functioning network, and has strong evidence of progress. Hawaiʻi Data Collaborative and UH evaluators say we’re reaching neighborhoods with the greatest housing insecurity.
Our cost was just under $1,000 per household we’ve helped. Honolulu City & County average rent/utility relief is $11,800 per household. If only 500 Windward households got rent/utility help directly due to the Koʻolau Housing Hui, then our $1.6 million resulted in $5.9 million of direct housing help to Windward houeholds. That’s a pretty good return on investment!
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