• Join the MICH webinar on November 6 
• Minnesota Housing seeks comments on Annual Emergency Rental Assistance by November 15 
• DHS issues RFP to address homelessness and housing support for people with serious mental illness or co-occurring substance use disorder 
• Apply for Bridges Program Funding 
• Social media highlight: Rico and Dee at the Met Council 
• Crossroads to Justice: Implementation Consultant Mercedes Elder on collaborating with the Department of Corrections 

Be sure to join the monthly webinar on Wednesday, November 6 from 1 - 2 p.m. If you have any questions about your webinar registration, please email dan.gregory@state.mn.us   

Topics for the November 6 webinar include: 

• Overview of 2023 Minnesota Homeless Study results by Wilder Research
• COVID-19 Shelter Supply Project results from Minnesota Department of Health  

Minnesota Housing is developing an estimate of the funding needed to meet all emergency rental assistance needs in Minnesota. Members of the public are invited to provide input on the methods and estimated annual need. You can review a draft of the annual estimate on their Opportunities to Engage webpage.  

Please provide any feedback on the draft by November 15, 2024 by emailing mn.housing@state.mn.us with the subject line “Comments on Annual Emergency Rental Assistance”.  

Minnesota Housing may not be able to incorporate all suggested changes for this year’s report. However, they will produce this report annually and will have the opportunity to make additional adjustments for future reports. The annual estimate is a statutory requirement passed into law by the 2024 Minnesota Legislature.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) is seeking to prevent or end homelessness for people with serious mental illness or co-occurring substance use disorder, to increase the availability of housing with support, and to achieve the goals of the housing mission statement. 

DHS, through its Behavioral Health Division, is seeking to provide Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) homeless outreach services, and Housing with Supports for Adults with Serious Mental Illness grant program (HSASMI) housing services, for adults with serious mental illness, or co-occurring SMI and substance use disorder who are homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness, have complex needs, and face high barriers to obtaining and maintaining housing. 

Click here to learn more about and submit for this RFP. Information is due on November 22, 2024.

Minnesota Housing is pleased to announce the availability of up to approximately $15 million in funding to provide temporary rental assistance, security deposits, and access to housing supports and supportive services to people with a mental illness in under-resourced communities through the Bridges Rental Assistance (Bridges) Program and Bridges Regional Treatment Center (Bridges RTC) Program. The $15 million will be distributed as grants through a competitive request for proposals (RFP) process. 

Bridges Program RFP applications are due to Minnesota Housing by 12:00 p.m. (noon) Central Time on Wednesday, December 4, 2024. 

The Bridges Program and Bridges RTC Program operate as a partnership between local housing agencies and local mental health entities, behavioral health service agencies, and partners. 

Eligible applicants include housing agencies, housing authorities, nonprofit organizations, and Tribal Nations. Applicants must also be in partnership with a local mental health entity. 

More information, including the application materials, can be found on Minnesota Housing’s Bridges Program webpage. 

Crossroads to Justice is the strategic plan of the Minnesota Interagency Council on Homelessness, bringing a housing, racial and health justice approach for people facing homelessness in Minnesota to guide the work of state government.

The implementation of this plan is being co-led and co-monitored by 14 paid Implementation Consultants, all people with lived experience of homelessness representing different experiences and different parts of the state. They were onboarded in April and assigned agencies to support in May, and their expertise and priorities help shape the work of agency Action Leads.

Today, we’re starting a new series introducing the Implementation Consultants and their insights from the work they’re doing with one of the agencies.   

Meet Mercedes Elder 

Mercedes is a wife, mother of 5, educated, proud Black Woman from Minneapolis. She lives and works in the Twin Cities as a housing specialist for The Wilder Foundation, and finds joy in finding housing for previously displaced families. Mercedes graduated from Saint Paul College in 2018 with an Associate of Arts emphasis in Criminology and is now pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice at Metro State University. She has experience advocating for vulnerable populations, food insecurities, diversity, equity, and inclusion within higher education and the community. Mercedes enjoyed attending Homeless Day on the Hill 2024 at the State Capital and Housing First Partners Conference 2024 in Atlanta, GA. 

Mercedes’ reflections on working with the Department of Corrections 

“It has been a pleasure to work alongside my co-consultants and change makers in the Department of Corrections. I appreciate how we all have a mutual understanding and openness to anyone who was or currently is affected by the Justice System. Right now, we are working on establishing pathways and breaking down barriers for recently released individuals.

There are many barriers associated upon release, and getting housing is the biggest. Some of the pathways we’re working on include having public benefits available upon release, having access to healthcare within thirty-days of release, and our overall goal is to make sure every individual leaving incarceration has housing! I am honored that the department trusts my leadership abilities and my experience to make wise, tough, and life changing decisions for the population we serve.”