Grants available for home repairs
June 11, 2009
ECO Staff – Laure Cioffi, senior journalist
ELLWOOD CITY – In need of some home repairs?
Homeowners in certain communities in Ellwood City, Franklin and Wayne townships who fall into income guidelines could tap into a $419,000 grant the state to get the work done.
The grant is targeted to homes in Chewton, Park Gate and Burnstown in Wayne Township, Pittsburgh Circle in Ellwood City and Frisco in Franklin Township.
Meetings are scheduled for June 24 in each of the communities to go over guidelines and take applications. Wayne Township residents are to meet from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at the Wayne Township building, Pittsburgh Circle residents can meet from 11 to 12:30 p.m. at the Ellwood City Municipal Building and Frisco residents at the Franklin Township building from 1 to 2:30 p.m.
Residents must bring proof of income for all individuals in the home over age 18, a copy of your deed, proof of property taxes paid and proof of insurance.
A disbursement committee will determine which houses are part of the program and they will be done in groups of three with one home in each community from the group to insure the money is distributed equitably, said Mourice Waltz, zoning and development consultant for the project.
Each project could cover up to $24,000 to address code-violation issues such as doors and windows, lead abatement, electrical wiring and roofing needs.
Waltz said if there aren’t enough homes in the targeted areas, they will expand the project to other neighborhoods in Ellwood City, Franklin and Wayne townships.
Dom Viccari, Ellwood City borough manager, said they were told the intergovernmental cooperation was the reason they received such a large grant.
He noted the work in Pittsburgh Circle is part of the ongoing Pittsburgh Circle Heritage Project. The project is an effort to revitalize the area.
Viccari said the borough may also be eligible for more state grant money for the Pittsburgh Circle area through the Elm Street Program because it is located within a half mile of the borough’s business district. An entire revitalization plan was presented by Waltz Consultants last winter that includes work to the Circle Playground and placing history markers in the neighborhood highlighting how it was once a course for bicycle races in the early 1900s.
Income guidelines for the housing rehabilitation program for homeowner occupied housing follows:
1 resident at or below $30, 150
2 residents at or below $34,500
3 residents at or below $38,800
4 residents at or below $43,100
5 residents at or below $46,550
6 residents at or below $50,000
7 residents at or below $53,450
8 or more residents at or below $56,900
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