Brewer receives $300,000 housing grant
Thursday, May 26, 2011
City officials heard last week that $300,000 in Community
Development Block Grant funds will be heading to town in August to
help low- to moderate-income residents improve their homes.
“Brewer was one of only six communities statewide to get the
funds,” Ron Harriman, a consultant for the grant program, said on
Thursday.
The city applied for the CDBG funds through the state’s
Department of Economic and Community Development, which gets the
funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The
Department of Economic and Community Development originally set
aside $2.3 million for the housing improvement program this year but
that figure was reduced to just $1.8 million, making the application
process even more competitive, Harriman said.
“It was a big cut,” he said. “Brewer had a strong application.”
The grant funds are available to homeowners and landlords who
rent their buildings to low- to moderate-income tenants and can be
used for improving the efficiency of heating systems; fixing
electrical or plumbing problems; repairing a roof; installing
replacement windows, doors or siding; adding a wheelchair ramp; or
other projects, James Smith, assistant Brewer city manager, has
said.
A single homeowner in Brewer can make up to $34,550 and still
qualify for the housing improvement program, and a family of four
can make up to $49,350.
“It’s open to anyone interested in applying,” Harriman said.
The CDBG applications are available at City Hall and soon will be
posted on the city’s website,
brewerme.org. Those who filled out a pre-application, designed
to gather information about need, are being encouraged to apply,
Harriman said.
“The application process is easy” and will be reviewed privately
by a selection committee, he said.
Landlords interested in applying must rent more than half of
their units to low- or moderate-income tenants in order to qualify
and are required to match any funds used to improve their
properties, Smith said. Homeowners must provide “work equity” as a
contribution, he said.
Landlords cannot increase rents and homeowners must agree not to
sell the home for five years. If they do sell, they must pay back
the CDBG account for the repairs based on a sliding scale so it can
be used to help others make home improvements, Smith said.
Brewer’s first round of CDBG funding, issued in 2004, helped a
total of 121 Brewer residents through 22 single-family home projects
and renovations at 16 apartment buildings, Harriman said. The second
grant was issued in 2008 and assisted a similar number of residents,
he said.
“It really does do a lot of good things,” Harriman has said of
the grant program.
As with the last round of CDBG funding, Brewer city leaders will
partner with a number of local agencies to stretch the money, Smith
said.
Those interested in more information, can call Smith at 989-7500
or the Community Development Office at 947-8595.
A copyright story from the
Bangor Daily News, Thursday, May 26, 2011, by Nok-Noi Ricker.
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