THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, FEbRuARy 7, 2025 Page 3 State assistance program helps homeless fi nd affordable, livable housing T By Neil Zolot he new rental assistance program HomeBASE could help landlords and tenants cover costs. “Families are trying to find stable homes,” Housing Families Inc. Landlord Liaison Stacey Brice said. “Rents are really high and a program like this is a blessing.” The impetus is Governor Healey’s plan for 2025 to end the practice of housing migrant families in hotels and motels like enVision on Revere Beach Parkway this year. Funds come from the state Executive Offi ce of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) Division of Housing Stabilization and are distributed through nine regional agencies in the state, including Metro Boston Housing, which covers Everett. Housing Families is an advocacy group that helps landlords and potential tenants access the aid. Given their service area includes Everett, Malden, Revere and Saugus, among other nearby communities, Housing Families has held informational forums at some city and town halls, including one at Everett City Hall Monday, February 3. “Funding is being redirected from temporary shelter into supporting families’ exits into longer term housing, using HomeBASE as a tool,” their literature reads. “As hotels and motels start to close and families are given HomeBASE aid to secure housing, there will be an infl ux of families looking to rent units using HomeBASE funds.” “It’s not a new initiative, but it’s become a more widely used tool to help facilitate exits from shelters,” Housing Families Manager of Policy and Community Engagement Katie Charcalis explained. Defi nitions of an immigrant and a migrant are similar, but not exactly the same. Both the International Institute of New England and International Catholic Migration Commission defi ne a migrant as someone moving within a country or internationally, usually for economic reasons (i.e., a job) without necessarily intending to stay in their new location. An immigrant is defi ned as someone moving from one country to another to resettle. In many cases “migrants” resettle permanently and become “immigrants.” An emigrant describes an immigrant from the perHOMEBASE | SEE PAGE 16 Stacey Brice and Carlos Acevedo of Housing Families Inc. SABATINO/MASTROCOLA INSURANCE AGENCY 519 BROADWAY EVERETT, MA 02149 Auto * Home * Boat * Renter * Condo * Life * Multi-Policy Discounts * Commercial 10% Discounts * Registry Service Also Available Sabatino Insurance is proud to welcome the loyal customers of ALWAYS READY TO SERVE YOU: Our Staff are, Emma Davidson, Jeimy Sanchez, Josephine Leone, Marie D’Amore, Rocco Longo, Z’andre Lopez, Anthony DiPierro, Darius Goudreau, Laurette Murphy, Danielle Goudreau and Tina Davidson. PHONE: (617) 387-7466 FAX: (617) 381-9186 Visit us online at: WWW.SABATINO-INS.COM
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