Monarch Housing’s Blog!

The pending closure of Fort Monmouth and proposed redevelopment plan have recently received much press as the local planning body prepares to finalize the redevelopment plan that will be submitted to the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Defense. The HUB, a local Monmouth County paper, reports:

Plans for homeless accommodations on Fort Monmouth propose to meet 20 percent of the need in Monmouth County, yet advocates continued to contest the lack of affordable housing at a Aug. 15 public hearing.

At the fourth and final hearing for the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Planning Authority (FMERPA) reuse plan, affordable housing advocates once again criticized numbers that they said were “just not enough.”

FMERPA Deputy Director Rick Harrison went over the authority’s Homeless Assistance submission, a mandated measure under the McKinney Act, which requires that federal agencies identify and make available surplus federal property to assist homeless people.

Harrison said that during its Notice of Interest (NOI) application process, FMERPA had received 14 NOIs.

“We think it’s critical that we take care of these folks, and we are looking to accommodate that with our homeless NOIs,” he said.

He said that key Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requirements were to reach an appropriate balance between the economic development on the fort property and the needs of homeless people.

To read the full article click here.

Monmouth County hosted a successful Project Homeless Connect event on Tuesday January 29, 2008. These are photos from the event. Click on anyone to see it full size. Click here to view all of the photos. To view a slide show click here. As they become available more photos will be posted.

Project Homeless Connect events across the state enjoyed greater traffic this year as word quickly spread about the event. Many counties saw significant increases in attendance at their sites. Monmouth County saw an especially large increase with 800 individuals and families visiting one of four Project Homeless Connect sites in the county. Attendence at Project Homeless Connect Sites for the 2008 events were two times as high as last year’s attendance. The county has issued a press release discussing some of the successes of the event and the great community spirit showcased by Monmouth County residents.

To view the press release click below.
Monmouth PHC Summary Press Release