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Community Action presents sharp rise in housing and food needs; calls for local partnerships
Summary
Community Action Services & Food Bank told Payson City Council that housing costs, rising interest rates and higher rents are driving homelessness and food insecurity across Utah County, and outlined local programs and partnership opportunities.
Jessica Miller, chief impact officer at Community Action Services & Food Bank, told the Payson City Council on June 3 that the nonprofit’s three-year community needs assessment identified housing insecurity, a widening income gap and food insecurity as the organization’s top priorities.
“Our 1st is housing insecurity and the lack of affordable housing,” Miller said. She cited a 2021 average home price of $459,138 and noted rising mortgage payments driven by higher interest rates. Miller said Utah County saw a 34% year-over-year increase in people identified as experiencing homelessness between 2024 and 2025 and that foreclosures have risen 17% since December 2024.
Miller also described income and food challenges. She said the average wage in the county in 2022 was about $26.63 an hour while a local living wage was calculated at roughly $40.48 an hour. On food need, Miller told the council that more than 87,000 county residents — about 12.8% of the population — face food insecurity, and children experienced that at an even higher rate (15.1%). "In 2022 we served 12,487 unduplicated individuals; this last year we served 22,607," she said of the food-pantry network.
The presentation reviewed local services the agency operates: the regional food bank in Provo (near the Frontrunner station on Freedom Boulevard), four food pantries, school "kid packs," senior bag deliveries, emergency motel vouchers and a winter warming center, as well as case management, transitional supportive housing and financial-literacy programs. Miller said 34% of those served in 2025 were Payson residents and that 97% of clients who received food also used other agency programs.
Councilors asked about coordination with other providers and funding. Miller said Community Action seeks a broader mix of support as federal funding has become less certain and described a fall fundraiser the agency hopes cities will help promote. The council thanked Miller and encouraged staff-to-staff connections for job-training and garden partnerships.
