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Providers urge town to support Cortina clients as 80‑day voucher deadline nears
Summary
At the July 30 Rutland Select Board meeting, hotel staff and Brenda Siegel of End Homelessness Vermont updated the board on efforts to register vehicles, remove abandoned autos and prepare for the end of 80‑day vouchers in mid‑September; local providers urged contract changes to retain a key hotel staffer who helps clients with documentation.
Hotel staff and a statewide homelessness advocate told the Rutland Select Board on July 30 that local providers are scrambling to prepare residents at the Cortina hotel for the end of state‑funded hotel vouchers this fall.
Dhruv Kumar (identified in the public comment as Mr. Kumar) told the board he and colleagues have been working since earlier this year to identify and remove abandoned or unregistered vehicles from the hotel property, and said the previously reported figure of 24 unregistered vehicles overstated the current count. “When he came by the property, he just started taking photos and people were panicking,” Kumar said, adding that the number is closer to 12–13 and that four or five vehicles appear to belong to nonresidents and will be towed. He said the property is adding doors, alarms and exterior cameras and expected alarms to be installed within about two weeks.
Brenda Siegel, executive director of End Homelessness Vermont, described statewide work to help people register campers and cars so they qualify as legal vehicles and to find safer options than sleeping outside. Siegel said the state’s hotel/motel program grew out of the COVID response and that the network of providers is trying to move people into stable housing but faces a shortage of accessible housing and Medicaid beds. “There is almost no accessible housing in our state,” she said, and noted providers are convening with the Agency of Human Services to press for faster information and support as voucher time limits approach.
Siegel urged the town to consider amending its contract with the Cortina so a particular staff member who helps clients with documentation can remain in place. She said that staff member’s work — helping clients with applications and interacting with providers — is vital for clients with complex needs, and warned losing the position would make some clients less safe.
Board member Sharon Russell raised concerns about the safety implications of placing people with certain criminal histories in front‑desk roles; Russell cited a high recidivism figure for the offense class referenced in the transcript. Siegel rebutted with a different statistic and background checks she said she performed, telling the board that national Sentencing Project data show a much lower recidivism rate over a nine‑year period for the offense category mentioned. The exchange remained framed as competing interpretations of risk and the importance of client supports.
The board received the updates and asked staff and local providers to continue coordination with state agencies as September approaches. No formal action was taken at the meeting to change the Cortina contract; Siegel said she would update the board after the next hotel task force meeting and after further conversations with Commissioner Winters.
