This article is part of an occasional series of interviews with NAHRO member agencies who volunteered to share their COVID-19 processes. If you are interested in being interviewed for one of these articles, please contact ccampbell@nahro.org. 

Craig Maraschky, Executive Director of the Housing Authority of the City of Aurora, Colorado, shared with NAHRO how his agency is dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. Aurora Housing manages roughly 850 Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) units in the suburb located east of Denver, along with roughly 2,000 Housing Choice Vouchers (HCV). The agency has an operating budget of roughly $50 million and heavily serves people of color, as well as senior citizens and people with disabilities.  

Before the COVID-19 crisis, Aurora Housing’s greatest challenge was keeping up with explosive population growth in the Greater Denver area, which has made competition fiercer for affordable housing project grants. However, the agency’s collaboration with a landlord recruiter has helped bring in new Section 8 units and keep waitlists from growing. Maraschky also mentioned increased competition for employees in recent years, particularly maintenance technicians – younger technicians typically prefer to work in the private sector, which pays similar wages but offers cash bonuses.  

Aurora Housing developed a pandemic response plan weeks before stay-at-home orders took effect in March, which Maraschky credits with a relatively smooth transition to a remote work environment. The agency has used its CARES Act funding to pay for technology such as laptops, phone routers and upgrades to its database, as well as cleaning supplies and protective equipment for on-site workers. Residents are also able to access the agency’s services electronically, including document signing, although there have been relatively few income recertifications since the COVID-19 crisis began.  

The City of Aurora has contributed to housing from its general fund and CARES Act funding, particularly for homeless outreach services, and the state has released $3 million for rental and mortgage assistance. According to Maraschky, raising public awareness is key to making sure residents can access these additional resources.  

The agency has reduced its in-person services, including maintenance and inspection regimens, according to public health guidelines and has instead focused on filling emergency work orders. Maraschky added that the agency was performing Remote Video Inspections (RVI) on vacant units, but is holding off on biannual inspections of occupied units and expects a backlog once the HUD-issued inspection waivers expire. Senior complexes have also eliminated most social programing, but have reopened community gardens and continued their commodity distribution programs.  

Reopening plans are still tentative and will depend on how well staff can maintain public health during operations. The agency expects most non-essential personnel to continue working from home in the coming months, although clerical, accounting, and social workers may have limited access to the office to work with paper documents as needed.  

Maraschky added that he hopes to continue learning from other housing officials and values the professional support and liaison with elected officials that inter-agency collaborations can bring. 

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