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Surviving the Waiting Game for Housing Aid

For families with housing vouchers in St. Louis, even the threat of budget cuts means dramatic consequences. For people on the waitlist, it’s even worse.
An alley in Dutchtown, a southeast St. Louis neighborhood with one of the highest concentrations of housing vouchers in the city.
An alley in Dutchtown, a southeast St. Louis neighborhood with one of the highest concentrations of housing vouchers in the city.Paul Sableman/Flickr
By
Caitlin Lee and Clark Randall

Adeena Crape may be one of the last people in St. Louis to receive a housing voucher—at least for a while.

In summer 2014, Crape applied for housing assistance through the St. Louis Housing Authority. The Housing Choice Voucher program, formerly known as Section 8, would subsidize her rent with federal funds. Crape had not planned on applying, but her participation in an outpatient program for people with depression and anxiety required her to register. “Honestly,” Crape says, “I was under the impression that it was only for people with children.”