Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Housing Opportunities of Warsaw is teaming up with Kosciusko County to offer assistance in repairing homes for those with low and moderate incomes.
Housing Opportunities was awarded a grant Nov. 17 for $28,301.11 from Rural Development to assist low-income homeowners in Kosciusko County with home repairs. The funds will go toward HOW's Kosciusko County Housing Rehabilitation Program.
This is the third year HOW has received funding from Rural Development.
Previous funds awarded were to assist in housing repairs in Winona Lake and Claypool.
HOW is applying today to the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority for a $225,000 grant to combine with the Rural Development funding.
It is anticipated that a minimum of 15 owner-occupied homes in rural areas of Kosciusko County will receive new roofs, furnaces, electrical upgrades, lead paint elimination and plumbing repairs, according to Pam Kennedy, HOW executive director.
HOW will not find out if it has received the grant until February or March, Kennedy said.
Meetings were held at Syracuse Town Hall and the Warsaw HOW office Tuesday night to inform residents about the grants.
Those who attended received energy-saving light bulbs and a weatherization kit. The kits include plastic for windows, door weather strips and light switch and outlet insulators. The kits were donated by REMC Operation Roundup and are intended to help residents cut down on heating costs in the winter.
Participants also filled out a Kosciusko County Housing Preservation Survey asking questions about smoke detectors in their homes and interest in the housing rehabilitation program.
To qualify for the grant, participants must be a resident of Kosciusko County, and be at an income level of 80 percent or below of the area median income in Kosciusko County, and the home must be owned and occupied by the applicant at the time of the application.
Governing members who have decision-making authority functions or responsibilities in connection with the program are not eligible for the program.
The grant will apply to home repair improvements such as energy-related improvements, improvements to increase accessibility to handicapped people and stabilization or abatement of lead-based paint.
To apply for the grant, residents must go through an application process. All applicants already on the waiting list will be received and reviewed by HOW according to the date and time they were placed on the waiting list.
On or about Dec. 1, Syracuse also plans to apply for an Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority Grant from the State Community Development Block Grant Program.
The town has not previously received Community Development Block Grant funds. Funding is estimated at $150,000.
The funds are to be used for economic development, public facilities and housing developments.
