Saint Paul Bridge Fund for Families applications are now closed.

Program Overview
Provide temporary housing assistance for the most vulnerable, and hardest hit families experiencing losses due to COVID-19.

Program Goal
Prevent displacement of households impacted by COVID-19 job loss by providing immediate temporary housing assistance to complement state and federal aid, and address the urgent needs of families prior to deployment of such aid.

Grant Structure
Direct housing assistance in the form of a one-time, $1,000 payment for qualified households. Grants are dependent on program guidelines and availability of funding and assistance is limited to one payment per household.

Saint Paul is making grants available from the Bridge Fund in connection with a qualified disaster declaration in response to COVID-19. The grant application will not ask about immigration or documentation status, and immigration or documentation status will have no impact on eligibility.

If you have questions regarding the application or guidelines, or want help applying please call (651) 266-6565. Staff are available to help who speak English, Hmong, Spanish, Somali, Oromo and Karen.

Eligibility
To be eligible for the Bridge Fund for Families grant, a household must be able to demonstrate all of the following criteria:

  1. Be a renter or homeowner in the City of Saint Paul
  2. Have a minor child (under 18 as of April 19, 2020) present in the household
  3. Have experienced a significant loss of income due to COVID-19.
  4. Are not currently receiving ongoing housing assistance such as Section 8 or public housing assistance.
  5. Have a gross household income at or below 40% of Area Median Income, adjusted for household size, as established by HUD, prior to change in employment due to COVID-19
    • $32,000 for a family of two
    • $36,000 for a family of three
    • $40,000 for a family of four
    • $43,200 for a family of five
    • $46,400 for a family of six
    • $49,600 for a family of seven
    • $52,800 for a family of eight

Application Process
Applications will be accepted  April 8, through April 19 at 5:00 pm.

  1. Apply online.
  2. Receive an email to provide eligibility verification documentation through a secure link/email.
  3. Applications will require the following information which applicants will provide through a secure link/email received following initial application:
    1. Proof of employment hardship due to COVID-19
    2. Proof of income for each household member over 18.
    3. Proof of minor child (under 18 as of April 19, 2020)
      1. Proof only needs to be provided for one minor child (under 18 as of April 19, 2020) in the household, even if multiple minor children are present in the household.
    4. Proof of residency in Saint Paul

Bridge Fund for Families Required Documentation

Funding Process
Saint Paul is accepting applications online April 8 through April 19 at 5:00 p.m.

City staff will review materials to determine eligibility on a rolling basis. Final approval of program eligibility will be made by the Executive Director of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority or their designee.

A randomized selection system will occur after the application deadline to select 1,000 applications for grant award. If not all of the families in the first 1,000 applications are eligible for a grant, we will award grants to eligible families next in the random selection order.

Payments will be mailed beginning the week of April 20th through early May.

Last Edited: February 8, 2021