Emergency Rental Assistance Programs At St. Louis County Library

Press release from the St. Louis County Library:

June 16, 2021

St. Louis County residents can sign up to receive emergency rental assistance at five St. Louis County Library branches this summer. Representatives from St. Louis County Government Emergency Rental Assistance Program, the Salvation Army and St. Patrick’s Center will maintain regular scheduled hours at several local libraries starting Friday, June 18.

Residents can obtain other forms of assistance during these events such as help with landlord negotiations, utility assistance, translation services and housing information.

Additional information and an online application for rental assistance can be found at https://stlouisco.onlinepha.com/. Please contact the ERAP Call Center with application questions at 314-806-0910.

Participating Libraries:

Bridgeton Trails Branch
3455 McKelvey Rd. Bridgeton, MO. 63044
Fridays: 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

Florissant Valley Branch
195 New Florissant Road, S. Florissant, MO 63031
Fridays: 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.

Lewis & Clark Branch–Beginning June 29
9909 Lewis-Clark Blvd. St. Louis, MO 63135
Tuesdays: 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.

Natural Bridge Branch
7606 Natural Bridge Rd. St. Louis, MO. 63121
Tuesdays: 9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.

Weber Road Branch
4444 Weber Road St. Louis, MO 63123
Mondays: 1:00– 4:00 p.m.

The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 signed into law on December 27, 2020, established the Emergency Rental Assistance ("ERA") program, which makes available $25 billion to assist households that are unable to pay, or have difficulty making timely payment of, rent and utilities due to the COVID-19 pandemic. St. Louis County has been awarded $29.7 million of these funds.

Applicants may be eligible for up to a maximum of twelve (12) months of emergency rental assistance to help pay for back rent and future rent to the extent that funds are available.

Households that have received assistance through previous programs but have not yet received the maximum twelve (12) months of emergency rental assistance can apply for this funding.

Financial assistance for future rent will be disbursed three (3) months at a time. Persons applying must meet all applicable ERAP income and eligibility requirements. You must be eighteen (18) years of age or older to apply or be an emancipated minor. Only one (1) application per household will be accepted. Applications will be accepted until enough applications have been received to ensure distribution of all available ERAP funds.

Households must meet the following eligibility criteria to qualify for assistance:

• Qualify for unemployment or have experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced a financial hardship due, to the COVID-19 pandemic;
• Demonstrate a risk of experiencing homelessness or housing instability;
• Have a household income at or below 80 percent of the area median income (please see income limits below); and
• Be a St. Louis County resident.
• The program will only pay for back rent owed after March 13, 2020. Property managers or owners of a residential dwelling may apply for assistance on behalf of a tenant. The landlord must:
  • Obtain the signature of the tenant on the application, which may be documented electronically; and
  • Must provide documentation of the application to the tenant to notify the tenant that the application has been submitted.

Please contact the ERAP Call Center with application questions at 314-806-0910. Media inquiries should be directed to Peter Glickert, MA, Public Information Manager, St. Louis County Department of Human Services at PGlickert@stlouiscountymo.gov or cell: 314-280-8479 office: 314-665-4140 or Jennifer McBride, Communications Manager, St. Louis County Library at jmcbride@slcl.org or 314-994-3300 ext 2250.

This press release was produced by the St. Louis County Library. The views expressed here are the author’s own.