In less than a month, we’ve gone from celebrating how affordable housing investments are moving North Carolina forward to a virtual worldwide standstill brought on by COVID-19 (coronavirus). Like all of you, we are doing our best to keep up with our ever-changing new reality to ensure we continue to meet our mission of creating affordable housing opportunities for North Carolinians. Even a pandemic doesn’t change that mission—in fact, it makes that mission even more crucial as thousands across the state lose their jobs and find themselves more at risk for homelessness.
COVID-19 has forced all of us to modify our schedules and refocus our priorities. In this time of uncertainty, our Agency is managing a strategy of preparedness, action and partnership. The tough decisions governments are being forced to make to protect public health and safety are having an unquestioned impact on many businesses. Since the beginning, we’ve taken steps to lessen risks to our employees, customers and partners and to mitigate the impact that COVID-19 might have on our operations.
Most of our staff have been working off-site since March 11 and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. We are following the guidance of the CDC and OSHA and have implemented a number of infection prevention measures within our office to reduce the risk of exposure at the Agency, including canceling all travel, trainings and inspections through the end of April. We are committed to working closely with our partners to adjust programs and processes as needed and provide support to help our partners like you to serve your communities while protecting yourselves, your employees and your clients.
Thanks for your ongoing support and patience in these unprecedented times. We will continue to monitor the pandemic’s impacts on our operations, employees, partners and customers and provide updates as the situation continues to evolve. At the end of the day, no matter our roles, we are all in this together. And together, we will get through this.
