The housing crisis in Dane County appears to increasing the number of evictions, at least that’s what the Dane County Tenant Resource Center is seeing.

Amy Lindley, communications director for TRC, and Mary Pfotenhauer, president of its board of directors, spoke to the Waunakee Rotary Club about the organization's work at the July 18 meeting. 

TRC will celebrate 45 years next year. It provides assistance to both tenants and landlords, and is growing. During the pandemic, TRC had fewer than 10 employees, but it now employs more than 30. They offer housing counseling, mediation and eviction diversion and defense. 

Mary said they are seeing a sky-high number of evictions as the cost of living has increased. More than half of the tenants in Dane County are cost-burdened, meaning they pay more than 30 percent of their income on rent. 

Evictions impact children the most, as nationwide 1.5 million are evicted each year. When children are evicted, they often face respiratory issues, and the evictions have an adverse effort on their education and mental health outcomes. 

Some of the services TRC offers include a housing counseling program to empower both tenants and landlords so they understand their rights and responsibilities. They also connect them with community services providers. 

Through the eviction diversion and defense partnerships, they can offer emergency rental assistance. They also contact every person facing eviction to inform them of the process and offer attorney referrals. 

Having an attorney has a huge impact on the process. They said of 608 cases with an attorney present in 2023, 599 were dismissed. 

As TRC grows, the organization needs more help – more funding and volunteers. And, they said, it appears the number of evictions is unlikely to decrease. 

Mary said so far, TRC volunteers and staff attend the initial court appearance with tenants facing eviction, and so far for 2024, that’s been 4,000.

“It’s going to be a banner year,” Mary said. 

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Other News: 

Guests: Brisa Hernandez, guest of the club; Amy Lindley and Mary Pfotenhauer, speakers. 

Visiting Rotarians: None

Birthdays: July 25, Jim Schmitz; July 26, Erick Plumb; July 28, Bob Arntz; July 29, Jim Pingel.

Anniversaries: None.

Greeters: July 25, Jean Elvekrog and Greg Garton; Aug. 1, Mark McFarland (2nd greeter needed); Aug. 8, Sally Gile and Ken Ballweg; Aug. 15, Ken Pesik and Jeff Smith; Aug. 22, 

Tony Burns and Jon Townley.

To sign up to greet or to find out if you are greeting, visit: 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054CAAAA2CA7F85-44320149-2023#/