KWA Receives $555,800 CARES Grant
June 20, 2020
TACOMA, WA – June, 2020 – Korean Women’s Association (KWA) announced it has accepted a $555,800 grant from Pierce County Human Services CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund to support rental assistance in Pierce County for people directly impacted by COVID-19 pandemic.
These funds will allow KWA to provide $800 worth of rental assistance for 200 households over three months. Approximately $480,000 will be used to directly provide rental assistance services. The eligibility requirements include employment or income loss due to COVID-19, current income is at or below 50% AMI and all must be Pierce County Residents.
This funding will allow us to provide assistance to residents of our low-income housing properties as well as clients who wish to maintain their permanent housing during the COVID-19 pandemic. With this funding, KWA can assist individuals and families who reside in Pierce County.
KWA has a long legacy of providing affordable housing and rental assistance for low-income persons and seniors. KWA owns and manages a varied portfolio of properties – with more than 200 units of affordable housing for working, disabled, and seniors with various incomes. We currently operate two low-income housing properties, The Hotel Olympus and The Orchard Project.
The Hotel Olympus, which was originally constructed in 1909, advertised a free TV in every room and food and entertainment available in the coffee shop and the Mirror Room in Downtown Tacoma. Now, the Hotel Olympus is home to individuals who value the convenience and style of downtown living along with the comfort and dependability of a professionally managed community.
The Orchard Project includes five single-family homes in Roy, Washington, for those with low income. Developed in 2006, The Orchard Project boasts five passive solar and energy-efficient homes in a rural setting of gardens and an 8-acre apple orchard overseen by a KWA caretaker. The homes have three bedrooms, 2 baths, fireplace, covered front and back porches, fenced yard, and access to community gardens. The apple orchards annually produce fresh apples that are donated to local food banks.
Pacific Villa is a low-income senior housing development that offers comfortable, safe, and convenient units for low-income seniors, 62 or better. It is located on the grounds of KWA’s current headquarters in Tacoma, WA and broke ground on the facility in 1997. Doors opened on April 30, 1998 with 43 tenants.
KWA provides services and care to the state’s most vulnerable populations and these funds will allow the organization to address the following operational efforts. Continuing to care for people at risk of isolation, lower-income elders, housing insecure persons, communities who need culturally-specific communication and care, and much more.
Responding to the growing economic and health crisis presented by COVID-19, KWA will continue its operation until told otherwise. The communities of people who depend on KWA services, ranging from benefits enrollment, domestic violence assistance, in-home care, senior services and more, are often those who are marginalized, at heightened risk of isolation and needing services in multiple languages.
