Housing Assistance Celebrates Opening of

Housing Assistance is now serving residents on the Lower Cape and Outer Cape in a more accessible way with a new satellite office at 78 Route 6A, Orleans.

The office is staffed with a full-time intake coordinator who can assess clients’ needs and connect them with the appropriate department, as well as with other housing and community resources around the region. Eligible clients can also schedule in-person meetings with Housing Assistance’s special-service coordinator, and individuals experiencing homelessness can meet inperson with a homeless-outreach coordinator.

The Orleans office also allows Housing Assistance to strengthen its working relationships with the Lower Cape Outreach Council, the Homeless Prevention Council and Outer Cape Health Services.

Intake coordinator Jennifer Ross said the office is already filling a need. “We’ve had quite a few elderly people come in who are either homeless or in danger of becoming homeless,” she said. “We’ve also seen a number of women in their sixties or older who just want to rent, but they're having difficulty finding any rentals that are doable.”

The site is averaging about 10 walk-ins a week.

“People see the big sign out front and they get all excited,” Ross said. “A lot of people are very happy because they need to drop off paperwork, and it’s a hike to get to the Hyannis office, so they’ll drop it off here ”

About 50 people attended an open house at the new office in December to celebrate its opening and learn more about the services Housing Assistance offers.

The office, which is next to the former Governor Prence Inn, is open 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. The staff welcomes walk-ins, appointments and phone calls To contact the Housing Assistance Orleans office, call 508-771-5400, ext. 384.