GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. (WGHP) -- As a part of the Trump administration’s restructuring of federal agencies, the Department of Housing and Urban Development could be next on the list of cuts and funding freezes. Piedmont Triad communities receive millions of dollars each year through HUD for affo rdable housing and homelessness services.   In Guilford County, that includes the Servant Center, Greensboro Urban Ministry and Open Door Ministries. Each year, Guilford County receives about $2.5 million from HUD to help to keep people off the streets. “It is just as plain as that, and if these dollars don’t come through, then this community is going to have a serious problem,” Board Chair of the Guilford County Continuum of Care Erin Stratford Owens said. “It is mind-boggling. I can’t think of worse time for something like this to happen when housing prices, rental prices are just through the roof,” Stratford Owens said. In January, HUD funds were frozen for a few days, and that was a wakeup call. “Please do imagine what our community would look like if we did not have these services,” Stratford Owens said. The biggest portion of funds in Guilford County goes toward rapid rehousing and supportive housing. “The problem of homelessness is only growing,” Stratford Owens said. The need is not going anywhere, but if the federal funding disappears, they need a backup plan. “We are putting folks on notice ... Letting people know we are going to come to you to ask for help, so be ready,” Stratford Owens said. Those warnings are the same in Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem. “I am very hopeful. We really do need this funding. We rely on this funding,” said Samuel Hunter, the assistant director of neighborhood services in Winston-Salem. The City of Winston-Salem receives about $4 million each year from HUD. “We can use those for neighborhood revitalization, economic development incentives, affordable housing development incentives and other community programs ... It would make a significant impact. You wouldn’t see it immediately, but it would make a longer lasting impact,” Hunter said. Millions of dollars are in limbo, but leaders are certain that there is no time to waste while they wait for answers. “To take that amount of money and ask the community to provide that ... is a big ask. We do have to do something,” Stratford Owens said. Right now, local agencies still have access to HUD funding, and they anxiously await updates from the federal level. ...read more read less