Frustration grows over Jump-start rental assistance delays

Many businesses that returned to the flood-affected areas of Cedar Rapids expecting to get six months free rent from the JumpStart program are struggling to meet rent after nearly three months of delay in getting checks to applicants.

Stephanie Irvin of Bliss salon was delighted by the prospect of six months free rent from JumpStart when she met with landlord about opening the new salon in Czech Village. She expected her first rental assistance check from JumpStart in July.

But the check didn't come through in July because of delays getting the money from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to the Iowa Department of Economic Development. After that money finally “dropped” in August, JumpStart administrator Theresa Bornbach had hoped to have checks flowing to businesses in late August.

Late August passed with no checks. Irvin and her husband, who'd paid their $1,100 monthly rent in July and August from personal accounts, had to tell their landlord that they'd be late on rent.

“Our landlord, Baron Stark, is working with us,” Irvin said.

The situation affects more than just Irvin. Her salon rents space to four stylists who also were expecting JumpStart rental assistance. They're having trouble meeting their own monthly chair rent, so Irvin is letting them pay on a per-day basis for only the days that they work. It's reduced Irvin's overall income.

“I'll do whatever I have to do to keep this business going, but it's a burden,” Irvin said.

Bornbach said Thursday that she now hopes that JumpStart rent checks will all be out by the end of the month. She reluctant to commit to any date, because so many unexpected obstacles have appeared.

The latest problem has been with unanticipated program requirements intended to avoid “duplication of benefits,” Bornbach said. In essence, the program rules require administrators to screen out any JumpStart rental assistance for expenses that have already been reimbursed by other disaster assistance the applicants received, such as SBA loans or the initial JumpStart business assistance program.

The vast majority of the 325 rental assistance applicants have already received some other form of assistance. Bornbach's company, Transitions Made Made Better, is wherever possible making adjustments in the administrative paperwork so that the applicants expenditures are categorized in ways that won't interfere with them receiving the rental assistance.

The time-consuming process will prevent applicants from being denied benefits they could legally receive, and avoid disappointments such as receiving a rent check that would list the Small Business Administration as co-recipient.

“The complexity of doing it with multiple different programs for the same recipient is the fly in the ointment,” Bornbach said. Better communication with state officials earlier in the process might have reduced the complications, Bornbach said, acknowledging that the delays have been “awful.”

At least one positive has come from the situation. Databases used to process the applications are being changed so that duplication of benefits information is quickly available for the next round of disaster assistance. That should make processing applications for heating transition assistance to downtown steam customers go more quickly.