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Community Services director details emergency-assistance, food and housing programs
Summary
Department of Community Services Director Joan Diaz summarized a year of emergency assistance, homeowner repairs, volunteer-built ramps and an expanded summer food program that delivered 7,000 meals in six weeks; she cited $300,000 for LIHEAP allocations and $81,000 used from HUD tenant-based rental funds.
Joan Diaz, director of the Department of Community Services, told the council the department is the parish—s primary safety net, handling utilities, rent and short-term shelter for residents in crisis. She highlighted the department—s LIHEAP allocation and other formula grants, saying the parish expended about $300,000 on LIHEAP seasonal support and had used $81,000 from HUD tenant-based rental assistance to help families facing eviction.
"We are the safety net services for St. Charles Parish," Diaz said, and described a wide array of programs: homeowner-occupied repair assistance, a summer food program that served about 7,000 meals over six weeks, youth enrichment at three community centers, and a volunteer-driven ramp/step program that reduced per-ramp costs. Diaz credited corporate donations and parish funding for supporting Thanksgiving baskets and other food assistance.
Council members thanked Diaz for stretching limited funds and described the department—s work as an essential component of parish services. Diaz noted several grant streams that fund different program elements (LIHEAP, CSBG, HUD home, USDA rural funding, United Way) and emphasized the parish is prioritizing homeowners for repair programs. The council did not take formal action beyond receiving the report.
