Re: Camelot Village Residents

[Jamezetta Bedford]

Erin,

On behalf of the Board, thank you for sharing your compassion for the residents displaced by TS Chantal and urging us to support them. Tuesday evening we will be adding an agenda item to use county social justice funds to provide some bridge dollars to help continue supporting these residents with temporary housing and to find housing.  There is a county housing staff member working for those with vouchers to find new homes. DSS is providing social workers not only for finding housing, but to apply for other benefits like federal food programs that they are now eligible for, to get in to see medical providers, gift cards, transportation tickets from Go Triangle, etc. It's individualized. Chapel Hill town council provided $100,000 of emergency housing that is running out. The community has donated to help support those impacted by Chantal and we will know more about that balance and getting that intergovernmental committee to meet soon to start disbursing those funds to the impacted residents.  I expect the BOCC to pass this bridge funding item on Tuesday. 

(I can say personally, not on behalf of the Board, that I question the wisdom of helping folks return to those particular housing first floor units that regularly flood. I'd rather see them find safe housing that is also on transit and convenient to amenities. I fear some resident or first responder is going to get seriously hurt or die. We will ask questions to learn more.)

Sincerely,

Jamezetta Bedford, Chair

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From: Erin C. Miller <erinc...@gmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, August 23, 2025 4:29 PM
To: ALL_BOCC_MANAGER_CLERK <OCB...@orangecountync.gov>
Subject: Camelot Village Residents

 

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Dear County Commissioners,

I am writing to express my concerns about the imminent homelessness of former residents of Camelot Village who have been living in a hotel since the flooding caused by Chantal. I became aware of the issue in this recent Newsline article, and it echoed the systemic issues that Brian Goldstone details in his 2025 book, There is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America, which I commend to you. As a progressive town, I urge you to take this opportunity at Camelot Village to model more just and compassionate policies toward low income residents. In particular, please do everything in your power to accommodate the tenants demands:

• Return of July rents due to the uninhabitability of the units after the storm.
• Return of security deposits to assist tenants in securing new housing.
• Cancellation of leases and August rent for tenants who want to move.
• Relocation assistance in securing permanent housing that meets their needs.
• Temporary accommodations for tenants who want to return after building repair and remediation.

I realize some of these demands are not things you control, but I ask you to do everything in your power to put pressure on the property owner to return rent and security deposits and that you find a way to facilitate a transition to permanent housing to residents who do not have extra income to use toward application fees and who are suffering from the lack of affordable housing in Chapel Hill.

I hope you will harness all your creativity, intelligence, compassion, and influence to ensure these victims of Chantal do not become homeless.

Sincerely,

Erin Miller