The wide-ranging meeting heard from dozens of voters who rose to speak for or against articles related to the town budget, housing and town charter revisions, among other issues.
WILLIAMSTOWN â As affordable housing advocates, renters and homeowners brace for expiration of federal and state coronavirus pandemic protections against evictions and foreclosures, the townâs Affordable Housing Trust is ready and able to help.
On June 29, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a plea from landlords to end the Centers for Disease Control and Preventionâs moratorium on evicting tenants who fail to pay rent during the pandemic, keeping the ban in place until July 31.
Massachusetts pandemic eviction protections expired in October, but a new law extends hardship protections by continuing the practice of offering temporary continuances to tenants who have filed applications for rental assistance to prevent evictions in cases where tenants are unable to pay rent because of pandemic-related financial hardship until April 2022.
To date, the Williamstown Emergency Rental Assistance Program, funded by the trust and administered by Berkshire Housing Development Corp., has awarded just more than $17,000 in grants since its inception. There also is one pending $1,500 award waiting for some documentation, said Liz Costley, who serves as the trust s liaison to the Pittsfield non-profit. You can see that s a second-time support for a restaurant worker in town, It may be increased depending on the conversation between the renter and the caseworker at Berkshire Housing. It s a hard time for a restaurant worker. They re trying to get more hours, but it s difficult, as you might imagine.