Piedmont Housing Alliance set to open Financial Opportunity Center

In collaboration with a broad range of vital partners, Piedmont Housing Alliance is excited to announce the grand opening of the Charlottesville region’s first Financial Opportunity Center (FOC) + Housing Hub. The grand opening will take place on Wednesday, October 13, 2021 from 10am-11am at 806 East High Street (the former United Way building) in downtown Charlottesville. The event will commemorate the grand opening with a ceremonial ribbon cutting.

Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), a national community development organization, has helped to establish over 100 Financial Opportunity Centers across the country. The FOC framework established by LISC will serve as a central point of entry for Charlottesville residents to access a holistic array of resources under four primary pillars — employment assistance, financial counseling/coaching, income supports, and housing navigation. The overarching goal is to dramatically improve ease of access to financial and housing stability resources for lower-income residents of our region, and to foster greater system and resource coordination with a racial justice lens.

“This collaborative effort is a long time coming. For years, many of us have heard a call for more coordinated services as a way to more effectively support our most financially vulnerable neighbors. My hope is that this is just the beginning of a more collaborative and holistic approach to enhancing financial and housing opportunities for local residents” says Sunshine Mathon, Executive Director of Piedmont Housing Alliance

Partnering with Piedmont Housing Alliance in the Charlottesville FOC + Housing Hub are Network2Work at Piedmont Virginia Community College, United Way of Greater Charlottesville, Charlottesville Redevelopment and Housing Authority, Monticello Area Community Action Agency, the International Rescue Committee, Legal Aid Justice Center and numerous other community organizations.