<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=062d7Z_10H0MiA100" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=062d7Z_10H0MiA100" width="1600" height="1030" ><figcaption>Whitefish City Hall. Beacon file photo</figcaption></figure>The City of Whitefish has committed to three more years of funding for the Whitefish Workforce Rental Assistance Program, which launched in April 2024 as a pilot program seeking to offer a short-term solution to help with the city’s housing crisis. The program helps pay a portion of rental costs for qualifying applicants who live in the Whitefish area.The program is run by Housing Whitefish, and the nonprofit’s Executive Director Daniel Sidder told the council at its April 7 meeting that 65 households made up of 124 people are receiving rental assistance through the program, with 70% of families participating in the program saying that they were at risk of losing their housing before rental assistance due to the cost of rent and utilities.Among the criteria for qualification is that a person live in the 59937 zip code, make under 100% of the area median income and pay more than 30% of their income towards rent. People participating in the program work at 55 different businesses in the area, and Sidder described the stability afforded to people by the program as something that has helped reduce the amount of turnover for local job providers, while also giving people who remain in the community a chance to, in some cases, seek better jobs.“I think we’ve really done a good job helping keep folks here,” Sidder said. “That first goal of this program is to prevent displacement.”Acting on Sidder’s request, the council directed City Manager Dana Smith to draw up an agreement with Housing Whitefish to fund the program up to $200,000 in Fiscal Year 2026, up to $250,000 in Fiscal Year 2027, and up to $300,000 in Fiscal Year 2028.Sidder said that Housing Whitefish was committed to matching the funds the city has offered on a one-to-one basis, and explained that they would be requesting portions of funding from the city as fundraising commitments were secured.So far, Sidder says they have secured a combined $120,000 in grants and donations for Fiscal Year 2026, leaving another $80,000 in fundraising to continue pursuing. In its first year, the program received a large chunk of its funding from Explore Whitefish, which has committed up to $150,000 annually.On a functional level, the program works by paying directly to landlords a portion of rent for people who have applied and been accepted into the program.As of October 2024, the program was providing an average monthly rental assistance payment of $316 for those enrolled. Those people were paying an average of $1,657 a month for rent on an average household income of $46,523.During his remarks to the council, Sidder said that he’s seeing that some people reapply to the program and are no longer eligible because they have gotten better jobs, or have reduced their cost burden by taking on a roommate.“So we’re not seeing that everybody that is reapplying is just coming right back into the program, which we think is a success,” Sidder said.Councilors Ben Davis and Rebecca Norton were absent from the meeting, but of the remaining councilors, Giuseppe Caltabiano, Steve Qunell and Frank Sweeney all expressed appreciation for how the program has been run so far.Sweeney emphasized in particular the use of a matching fund system.“That’s one of the things that I think makes it so attractive to fund, in my view,” he said. “Is that you guys are doing as much work as we are and the citizens of Whitefish to support yourselves. So I think again that says volumes for how committed you are, and how understanding you are of the fiscal requirements that you’re asking for from the city,” Sweeney said. “So I really appreciate that.”Smith, the city manager, received support from the council for her encouragement that the city leave itself flexibility in where to draw funding from for the agreement, whether that be through the portion of the city’s resort tax dedicated to affordable housing, or from other mills that the city levies.</div></body>

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The City of Whitefish has committed to three more years of funding for the Whitefish Workforce Rental Assistance Program, which launched in April 2024 as a pilot program seeking to offer a short-term solution to help with the city’s housing crisis. The program helps pay a portion of rental costs for qualifying applicants who live in the Whitefish area.

Whitefish Council Opts to Extend Funding for Workforce Rental Assistance Program

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The City of Whitefish has committed to three more years of funding for the Whitefish Workforce Rental Assistance Program, which launched in April 2024 as a

Whitefish Council Opts to Extend Funding for Workforce Rental Assistance Program

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