Erie Housing Authority pairs social services with places to live for people in city

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The Housing Authority of the City of Erie provides people with more than a place to live.

"Our mission is to provide safe, quality and affordable housing," Executive Director Michael Fraley said.

But he added that the housing authority also works with local partners to provide residents with social services including health, family, educational, food, internship, scholarship and other programs.

"It's about people," Fraley said. "We care about the people we serve."

Dating back to 1938, Erie's Housing Authority has a board appointed by the city's mayor and a diverse staff of 78 full-time employees, Fraley said. About 15% of them started out as authority residents, he said.

The organization is funded about equally by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and local tenant rents, which total more than $5 million a year, Fraley said.

"We provide housing to 2,064 families in our public housing developments," he said. Nearly 1,100 more receive vouchers to rent from private landlords, meaning the Erie Housing Authority assists more than 3,100 families and more than 8,000 people in the city, Fraley said. The authority is a top provider of housing for people of low income, the elderly, people with disabilities, and immigrants, refugees and New Americans, he said.

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Housing options include single-family homes, multi-family units, apartment complexes and high-rise buildings.

According to its website, the authority offers rental housing at:

● Harbor Homes — Buffalo Road and Downing Avenue, 224 one- to three-bedroom apartments.

● Harbor Homes Annex — East 18th and Thompson streets, 121 apartments including efficiencies and one, three, four or five bedrooms.

● Lake City Dwellings — East 16th and German streets, 40 one- to four-bedroom apartments.

● Eastbrook — East 19th Street and Whitley Avenue, 50 two- to six-bedroom apartments.

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● John E. Horan Garden Apartments — Franklin Avenue and Tacoma Road, 436 one- to three-bedroom apartments.

● Bird Drive — Bird Drive and Pearl Street, 50 two- to four-bedroom apartments.

● Pineview — West Grandview Boulevard and Schaper Avenue, 68 two- to four- bedroom apartments.

● Agnes G. Priscaro Apartments — West 24th Street and Baur Lane, 53 two- to six- bedroom apartments.

● Schmid Towers — East 6th and Holland Streets, 193 one-bedroom apartments.

● Friendship Apartments — East 11th and French streets, 200 one-bedroom apartments.

● Ostrow Apartments — 4220 Davison Avenue, 80 one-bedroom apartments.

● Citywide scattered sites — Various locations within the city, 343 houses with two to five bedrooms.

● Curry/Schell Apartments — 3909 Schaper Ave., 63 one- and two-bedroom apartments.

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● Erie Heights — West 38th Street and Garden Avenue, 210 one- to three-bedroom apartments.

● Better Housing — Between East 16th and East 17th and Holland and German streets, 52 one- to three-bedroom apartments.

● C. Ted Dombrowski Apartments — East 15th and Wallace Streets, 33 one- and two-bedroom apartments.

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"We have a waiting list in every one of our bedroom sizes," Fraley said.

The wait for two or three bedrooms — the most popular sizes — could be a year, he said.

Eligibility for housing and rent amount are income based and the authority checks the criminal and financial backgrounds of prospective tenants, Fraley said.

Erie's Housing Authority has a Community Oriented Police and Probation Services program with six officers. Fraley said they know residents and can help de-escalate situations. He said Erie Housing Authority neighborhoods are safer than 30 years ago although there are still problems. Domestic violence is the No. 1 crime in public housing, he said. He said the social services provided by the authority help make the people happier, which leads them to take better care of the housing.

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The authority also has caseworkers to help participants in its Family Self-Sufficiency Program address issues such as debt, improving employment, obtaining health insurance, saving money and even buying a home.

Meet Your Neighbor Days, bingo, holiday dinners and parties, flower and vegetable garden contests, youth mentoring and a family picnic are among the other events offered by the Housing Authority of the City of Erie.

Dana Massing can be reached at dmassing@timesnews.com. Follow her on Twitter @ETNmassing.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie Housing Authority provides place to live, social services to help