What is the Open Doors Residence Community?
The Open Doors Residence Community is for individuals and families that have a steady and reliable source of income who are struggling to find quality, affordable housing. Many people like to think of Open Doors as low-income housing, but we are much more than that. Open Doors is a program, in which our residents are able to spend between 2-5 years working with our Program Managers to break down the barriers that hold them back from entering into home ownership or market-rate housing.
How is Open Doors different from other housing programs?
There are different types of housing programs, such as federally subsidized housing and various voucher programs. These programs are based on your household income. Here at Open Doors, we provide affordable housing with supportive services. Our program fees are set, thus, not based on individual household incomes.
A critical component of our program is the commitment to sit down with our programming staff at least once every six months, to create tailor-made plans with goals and action steps, guided by the desires and dreams of the potential resident and/or family. The intent in setting goals is to minimize and eliminate many of the barriers that have kept families from reaching their full potential as it pertains to housing stability.
When will I hear from Open Doors about the status of my application?
It is our goal that you will hear back from us by September 30th on whether you are on our waitlist or if you didn’t qualify for the program. Either way, you will hear from us! Please make sure that the contact information you put on the application is correct, as this is how we are going to contact you!
When will a unit be open for me to move into?
Open Doors has over 100 units of affordable housing. Currently, all units are filled. As units become available, we will go through our current waitlist and determine who is still in need of housing and partnership. It is our goal to have families and/or individuals move in as soon as a unit is vacated and prepared for the next family.
What does the process look like from turning in the application to moving into a unit?
Once the program staff receives notification that a unit is ready for occupancy, they will contact families and/or individuals from the waiting list and begin the process of interviewing. At this point, we will meet with the potential resident(s) and begin the process of getting to know each other and explain our program and partnership in more detail. Due to our limited capacity to house all applicants, it is imperative that a potential resident(s) understands the importance of partnering with Open Doors and committing to the process of setting goals and action steps to attain their dreams and aspirations.
What is Open Doors policy in regards to drug usage, including marijuana?
We are a drug-free community. Open Doors complies with federal law regarding marijuana use and is/will continue to be a drug free community. Possession, use, manufacture, or sale of any illegal substances, including marijuana, or any use of marijuana by the participants, residents, overnight guests, or visitors (this includes but is not limited to: the front, back, and/or side of the property) will result in immediate termination of the resident’s program agreement (lease). Per the program agreement (lease), Open Doors reserves that right to request a drug-screen if we suspect that there is drug usage.
What size units does Open Doors currently have?
We have studios, one bedroom, two bedrooms and 9 larger (3-4 bedroom) units! We try our best to fill the need of the wide variety of family sizes that are in need of housing in our community. When the programming staff meets with individuals and families, they will take a look at your income and household size to decide what will be the best fit for you and your family. Two or more bedroom units are reserved for families with children under 18 years old, who have custody at least 50% of the time.
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