Heartland Housing manages 1,178 units of housing in 12 neighborhoods in Chicago, Madison, and Milwaukee. We house many extremely vulnerable people, including seniors, people with chronic medical conditions and disabilities, and those with little to no income. For many of our residents, their building and community neighbors are their family and their only support system. Given the importance of these communities for our residents, Heartland Housing working to keep people physically healthy by limiting social interaction in a way that does not have a negative impact on the overall mental health and well-being of our residents.
For David James, property manager for our Town Hall Apartments, walking that fine line has not been so simple. Town Hall Apartments, as the first LGBTQ-friendly senior housing development in Chicago, serves individuals that fall under multiple high-risk populations.
“We have 79 residents at Town Hall. Each are considered high-risk for the virus, and so we must remain extra vigilant. From cleaning and social distancing, to general wellness checks, we’re working overtime.”
First and foremost, Heartland Housing has started an education campaign for all staff and residents around social distancing – providing them with the universal precautionary measures to reduce contact with the virus. With the current “shelter in place” order from Governor Pritzker, Heartland Housing has enacted a mandatory building visitor restriction, with exceptions for home health workers and caregivers.
Heartland Housing property managers have begun a rotating schedule, allowing for individuals to work from home a couple of days per week while ensuring there is always staff ready to assist residents. Janitors and Maintenance staff will be on site daily, as we have increased cleaning and disinfecting measures for all public environments within our buildings. We have currently closed public meeting spaces to ensure social distancing, and all public doors, front desk/security counters, elevator cabs, public bathrooms, and other surfaces now disinfected multiple times a day.
Most importantly, we’re continuing our relational work with residents, ensuring that their needs are being met while also taking new precautionary measures – like shifting as many interactions as possible to electronic means.
“The goal here is to make sure our residents are healthy and as happy as possible during these times. That means we work hard to do extra cleaning throughout the building, but above all we have to monitor the safety and health of the residents. We’re working with our partners to contact each resident every other day and even deliver box lunches to those who request one.”
More ways to get involved
- Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram to stay updated on the latest developments with our work.
- Share stories of our courageous participants and employees, and help us spread accurate information about how to keep vulnerable populations safe from COVID-19.
- Make a gift to help employees across the Alliance provide access to critical supportive services to those who are most vulnerable.
- Donate homemade masks to help fight COVID-19.
We are grateful for the support and care you have for the individuals we serve, and for our employees who are on the frontlines every day.
