{Null_Results} Text Messages Reveal OHS Director Hand-Picked Which Families to Receive Housing
As part of Nashville’s “Non-Traditional Rapid Rehousing” aka "MRRF", Office of Homeless Services Director Calvin had the final say of who was promised "a year of free housing" and a voucher.
On Saturday morning, August 3, 2024, Nashville’s Office of Homeless Services Director April Calvin texted her staff to personally select which unhoused families would receive housing—reviewing confidential case records via text message, removing families from consideration based on their size, and coordinating placements outside the city’s federally mandated Coordinated Entry system that exists precisely to prevent this kind of ad hoc decision-making.
Recent reporting on Nashville’s Office of Homeless Services has revealed what appears to be a housing program launched with minimal public notice in summer 2024, relocating unhoused families into housing units under what’s classified in the fiscal year 2026 budget as “non-traditional rapid rehousing.” Reports are this program may also be referred to going forward as “Metro Rapid Response Funds” or “MRRF.”
The program appears to trace back to placements beginning at least in summer and fall of 2024, when no fewer than eight families were placed into housing under the direct coordination of OHS Director April Calvin and the Nashville Rescue Mission. Leases were drawn up under Metro supervision, and rent began being paid using ARPA funds that do not appear to have been obligated for such purposes.
The families were taken from the Nashville Rescue Mission and placed into housing units at two locations: 3230 Clarksville Pike and 717 Spence Lane. Families were shuttled over to the properties and told they would receive a year of paid rent and housing vouchers for participating in the program, according to two families interviewed and a case manager with an organization responsible for providing support services to these families.
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An Extraordinary Claim Requires Documentation
These are extraordinary claims: that the department in charge of a federally mandated program designed to provide equitable access to scarce housing resources (Coordinated Entry (CE)) has its director making these life-altering decisions outside of any recognized best practices.1
A claim like that is nothing I would post on my Substack without documentation. It is a claim I’m sure the Nashville Scene would never make without seeing evidence of this.
So now I would like you to be able to see what we’ve seen.
The Text Messages
Below are screenshots of a text thread conversation Director Calvin had in August of 2024, wherein she was texting with her OHS staff, sending them confidential HMIS documents with private unique identifiers visible even in the unredacted screenshots.
Evident in these messages is Director Calvin deciding which particular families will be receiving promises of a year of free housing and a housing voucher—promises that, notably, none of the families fully received. All were told that their promised year of paid rent was being withdrawn, and eventually received eviction notices as OHS stopped paying their rent. And at least two families did not receive the promised vouchers that OHS incentivized them with to leave the Rescue Mission.
On Saturday, August 3, 2024, at 7:31 AM, Calvin texted her staff:
“Ladies we are reducing our number to 8 smaller families that Ohs will house from the Mission due to the properties that are available.
“The 8 families will be housed at two different hotel conversions.
“[OHS employee name redacted] please select the families that have smaller kids or smaller family size.”
Calvin then reviewed individual HMIS records showing family details, including names, HMIS numbers, number of children, income sources (SSI/SSDI), and other personal information—all shared via text message.
After reviewing one family’s information, Calvin wrote: “I only saw one family with 3 kids Let’s remove them from the list and...”
The staff member responded that she would “do this and send out the notification and will call [case manager for Nashville Rescue Mission].” Another asked about mobility accommodations for the ground-floor units.
Later that same day, Calvin wrote: “The next referral to advocate for on the case coordination meeting,” referring to another family. A staff member noted one individual “May have trouble with stairs. That’s the only mobility problem.”
Calvin responded with approval, noting she would ensure this person received a ground-floor unit.
The staff member then messaged: “Not that I am aware of. [case manager for Nashville Rescue Mission] would have mentioned that, but I will double check.”
After another staff member asked for clarification, the response came: “Oh - sorry, yes - it is [case manager for Nashville Rescue Mission]. Can I give her your phone number?”
By the end of the exchange, Calvin had personally reviewed and approved which families would receive housing, which would be removed from consideration, and sent the final list to property management with instructions to prepare lease agreements for Monday, August 5, 2024. These families entered into contracts with a landlord, being told OHS would be paying their rent for a year. Metro chose the families, the landlords, and arranged the leases. But by April, they were reneging on their promise and eviction notices starting showing up.
Despite coordinating all aspects of this process, Metro and OHS appear nowhere on these leases.
Below you can read the text message exchange. If you do not already have access, click the image below and choose which way you’d like to gain access.
