The City of Miami is working on a plan to help residents and small businesses recover from the financial impacts of the coronavirus pandemic with rent and utility assistance programs.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez held a Friday morning virtual press conference to discuss details of the program.
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Suarez said the city is creating a website to take applications for the program starting May 4.
Residents at 60 percent of the area median income or below can apply for assistance, Suarez said. Up to $1,500 in rent or utility assistance would be paid directly to a landlord or utility company.
Suarez said the program hopes to disburse funds by the middle of May, and said he believes the program may be the first of its kind in the country.
"This is the first of its kind, potentially in the United States," Suarez said. "Obviously people are suffering tremendously at this particular moment."
Miami has been the hardest hit city in the state by COVID-19, with more than 6,400 confirmed cases as of Friday.
