Mashpee, Aquinnah tribes awarded federal housing funds

Mashpee, Aquinnah tribes awarded federal housing funds

By Jessica Hill

Posted Apr 3, 2020 

BOSTON — The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will give almost $250,000 to the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe for COVID-19 relief.

Regional Administrator David Tille announced Friday that the department would give a total of $393,246 in Indian Housing Block Grants to two Massachusetts tribes in response to the ongoing pandemic.

The Mashpee tribe will receive $248,685, and the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) will receive $144,561.

The funding, which is part of $200 million in funding being awarded to tribes across the nation, will go toward affordable housing activities, according to a statement from HUD.

The money can be used for housing development, operation and maintenance, modernization of existing housing, crime prevention and safety activities, housing management services and other activities that provide creative approaches to solving affordable housing problems in Indian Country, according to a statement.

“This funding will aid our Massachusetts tribes in their fight against COVID-19,” Tille said in the statement.

Michelle Tobey, housing director for the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, said the money would go toward helping tribal members pay rent and mortgages to avoid foreclosures.

The tribe is also in the process of securing a motel to shelter vulnerable homeless tribe members and those who need to self-isolate away from families during the virus outbreak, Tobey said.

On March 20, the tribe spoke with HUD officials, who indicated that the tribe must put together policies and procedures for using the money, Tobey said. Since that conversation, the Mashpee Wampanoag Housing Department has been forming policies and figuring out where the funds will go.

“Now that the funding has been allocated, we are ready to go,” Tobey said.

The fund set aside for rent and mortgages will help some, but not all, tribe members in need of assistance, she said.

“This is a frightening time for our tribal families and the country,” Tobey said. “Our main objective is to keep our tribal members safe during this pandemic.”