Bridge House’s collaborative housing program proving a ‘smashing success’

Originally published at Boulder Daily Camera on December 23, 2019.

Jeri Burnham was a high-functioning opioid addict for 40 years. She had her own apartment for 12 years, until she suddenly lost her job and got evicted soon after.

In 2020, Burnham will celebrate two years clean and sober. Since March of this year, she’s lived with other graduates of Bridge House’s Ready to Work program in a collaborative housing partnership with Boulder’s Congregation Har HaShem that, since August 2018, has sought to offer another way to help those who have experienced homelessness. Burnham credits the program for getting her back on her feet.

“It really does take a village,” Burnham said. “If they can fix me, they can fix you, they can fix anybody, and that’s the honest-to-god truth.”

Bridge House CEO Isabel McDevitt considers the partnership “a smashing success” and wants more property owners, faith-based or not, to join.

“We need a menu of options to address homelessness,” McDevitt said. “This is an important part, and it’s not for everybody, but we can use our resources to leverage multiple solutions.”

Instead of waiting for new buildings, which can take years to construct, the initiative works with existing housing stock. Congregation Har HaShem rents its two three-bedroom houses to Ready to Work graduates through Boulder Property Management.

Bridge House acts as a rent guarantor for the property owner and subsidizes the market-rate rent so that residents, who are all graduates of their Ready to Work program, can afford it.

Har HaShem used to rent the rooms to local college students, which generally worked out well. But the congregation has a pattern of helping the homeless population and felt the switch would make a much-needed impact.

“It doesn’t meet all the needs of the homeless population, but it’s a step in the right direction,” said Roxanne Bailin, social justice committee chair for Har HaShem and a lead organizer for the collaboration.

Widd Medford, Ready to Work program director, says that many of the program’s graduates are eligible and interested, but there just aren’t enough property owners involved yet to fill all the need. Bridge House has already added a private property owner’s three-bedroom house to the partnership. But that still means there are only nine bedrooms available for a program that graduates dozens a year.

Bridging the gap between past and future

Many Ready to Work participants are ready and able to move toward permanent housing again. But obstacles like a criminal conviction, addiction history or previous evictions can make housing difficult, even after graduating the program and landing a stable job.

Enter the housing collaboration. When a new room opens up, Bridge House screens Ready to Work graduates to make sure they will fit with the other residents and they have not been convicted of a violent felony. The selected applicant then signs a lease with Boulder Property Management, though Har HaShem owns the houses and sets rules like no substance use. But unlike the transitional dormitory-style housing where Ready to Work participants live, there is no curfew or house manager.

This gives the resident an opportunity to establish an independent relationship with a leasing company and build rapport as a responsible tenant. The houses are classified as permanent residence instead of temporary, though the rooms are only subsidized for roughly the first year of a lease.

“This can form a bridge between someone’s old life and their efforts to go out of that,” Bailin said.

When a resident eventually moves out, they leave with a positive reference to give to future landlords. Someone theoretically could get evicted if they violate their lease or house rules, but that hasn’t happened. Both Bridge House and Har HaShem noted that the 10 residents, both previous and current, have been responsible and effective tenants.

“Organizations that want to do this may feel like they’re taking a risk, but based on our experience, that really isn’t true,” Bailin said.

The cherry on top: camaraderie and support

Bridge House provides case management for all Ready to Work graduates, helping with situations ranging from understanding job paperwork to managing mental health and addiction recovery. But Medford, the program director, noted that living in one of the collaborative houses means that fellow residents can encourage someone to seek help quicker than they might if they were living on their own. That way, a case manager can intervene before a situation becomes a crisis.

It hasn’t been an easy journey for Burnham, but she says the continuum of support — from Bridge House’s intake all the way through to the housing program and case management — is invaluable. Even living with others who have gone through similar circumstances, and who are now on a similar path, makes a difference. A new resident moved in recently and he connected almost instantly with Burnham and the other roommates.

“Once you’ve gone through the Ready to Work program you have this camaraderie,” Burnham said. “Even though we didn’t actually know him, it’s like we did.”

If she hadn’t been able to prioritize recovery and live with others who are doing the same, Burnham isn’t sure where she would be right now. She gets scared even thinking about it.

“I’m a grandmother,” Burnham said. “This is it for me. If I don’t do it this time, then I’m never going to do it. Failure is not an option for me anymore.”