Committee forwards grants for senior housing/support programs and scales IOA contract to two years

The Budget & Finance Committee voted to forward two connected human services grants to the full Board: a four‑year grant with Brilliant Corners to administer scattered‑site housing and rental subsidy services for seniors and adults with disabilities (not to exceed approximately $15,000,000 over four years), and a restructured grant with the Institute on Aging (IOA) for the Community Living Fund.

Melissa McGee, program manager at the Office of Community Partnerships, said the scattered‑site housing program identifies and secures community housing for residents transitioning from skilled nursing facilities or at risk of institutionalization and provides rental subsidies, tenancy support, and home modifications. The BLA review found the Brilliant Corners program monitoring report had no major issues.

BLA flagged underperformance by IOA: the agency served about half the contracted clients last year (roughly 218 of 425) but spent the full purchase‑of‑service allocation, and BLA recommended a shorter term or right‑sizing of the budget until performance improves. HSA agreed to scale the IOA grant to two years with a reduced not‑to‑exceed amount (about $11.4 million), and the committee amended Item 6 accordingly before forwarding both items with a positive recommendation.

Next steps:Both grants will be considered by the full Board; HSA will monitor performance more closely, pursue outreach to additional skilled nursing facilities to increase referrals, and report back on progress.