Advocate warns Chandler faces surge in evictions, urges emergency funding for tenant legal aid

Shannon Hayes, a community legal advocate focused on housing stability, told the council on Oct. 16 that Chandler is facing ‘‘a quiet humanitarian crisis’’ as eviction filings rise and most tenants lack legal representation.

Hayes said Chandler is on track for more than 3,600 eviction filings this year and that ‘‘53% of these families never stand a chance because they don't have a lawyer.’’ She told council that about 90% of landlords in eviction cases have legal counsel while fewer than 3% of tenants do, a disparity she said leads to default judgments and avoidable displacement.

Hayes said she and a nonprofit partner applied for city funding to provide eviction‑prevention legal services and were the only eviction‑prevention applicants; she said that application was denied and that a different organization (identified in her remarks) received roughly $300,000 and declined to collaborate with her on a prevention program.

"We need emergency funding now for a right to counsel pilot program and a coordinated prevention system," Hayes said, offering to provide the council with a comprehensive report and data she compiled. City leaders asked staff to obtain her report and to evaluate current prevention services and funding mechanisms.

Why it matters: Eviction filings can cause housing instability, school disruption and economic harm for families; Hayes framed legal representation and prevention funding as a cost‑effective strategy to reduce displacement.

Provenance: Topic introduced at 00:48:28 and last related remarks at 00:51:45 in the meeting transcript.