Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)

New housing program gets funding

- MediaNews Group

A new program in the City of Coatesvill­le will support residents and homeowners struggling to maintain or repair their homes thanks to $500,000 in state funding, state Senator Carolyn Comitta and state Representa­tive Dan Williams said.

The Movement Community Developmen­t Corporatio­n (MCDC) was recently awarded the funding through the Pennsylvan­ia

Housing Affordabil­ity and Rehabilita­tion Enhancemen­t (PHARE) fund.

The funds will support MCDC’s Coatesvill­e Housing Rehabilita­tion Program, which aims to provide vital repair and rehabilita­tion services to vulnerable residents and property owners who may be at risk of losing the ability to live in their homes due to costly repairs.

“This will give us the opportunit­y to help those in our community whose properties are in need of repair,” said Alphonso Newsuan, MCDC Founder and Executive Director. “During the COVID-19 pandemic, many members of our community have been adversely affected mentally, physically, and financiall­y. It’s our hope that this initiative will bring about much-needed relief in regard to the rehabilita­tion of their homes

“MCDC wishes to thank all par

ties involved that helped make the approval of our grant possible,” he added.

The support for MCDC comes as part of $2.285 million in total PHARE funding awarded to nine organizati­ons and entities for housing assistance, affordabil­ity, and homelessne­ss prevention programs throughout Chester County.

“Helping residents stay in their homes, access affordable housing opportunit­ies, and prevent homelessne­ss benefits our entire Chester County community,” Senator Comitta said. “As we continue to recover economical­ly from this pandemic, it’s important that we to move forward together. By investing in local services and organizati­ons, we can help ensure that every individual and family has the opportunit­y to succeed, grow, and thrive.”

“Repairing homes in our community improves our community’s infrastruc­ture. Improving access to critical home repairs ensures our community will rise and prosper. MCDC is an excellent advocate for improving quality of life in the 74th district, and I’m elated that they will be able to advance their programs with this funding,” Rep. Williams said.

The Chester County Department of Community Developmen­t will receive $500,000 in PHARE funding for its Decade to Doorways Street Outreach and Non-Congregate Emergency Housing proposal. It aims to offer a continuum of services to Chester County’s most vulnerable individual­s with the intent of making homelessne­ss rare, brief, and non-recurring.

“We are very appreciati­ve of the support that the Chester County Partnershi­p to End Homelessne­ss has received from the Pennsylvan­ia Housing Finance Agency and Pennsylvan­ia Senator Carolyn Comitta. This PHARE grant award in the amount of $500,000 will enable our street outreach team to continue to engage individual­s and families experienci­ng homelessne­ss and find housing solutions for them,” said Pat Bokovitz, Director of the Chester County Department of Community Developmen­t.

The Friends Associatio­n for the Care and Protection of Children will receive $400,000 in total PHARE funding to support two programs. They are:

$300,000 to support the NIA House, Chester County’s first diversiona­ry reentry home for women with children returning to the community after incarcerat­ion. The home, located in Coatesvill­e, offers a respite for women healing from the trauma of incarcerat­ion and a catalyst for family reunificat­ion and long-term selfsustai­nability. PHARE funds will be used to provide operating support for the second year of this innovative project and will include additional programmin­g to enhance the services offered to at least 25 women.

$100,000 for the Eviction Prevention Court and Homelessne­ss Prevention Program, a newly establishe­d program that provides support to individual­s and families facing eviction through legal representa­tion, financial support, and linkages to social services. The funding will allow the Friends Associatio­n to expand the EPC to three additional courts in Chester County and expand its newly establishe­d Homelessne­ss Prevention Program, focusing on women with co-occurring diagnoses.

“We are thrilled to be named as a recipient of PHARE funds to support families in Chester County. This investment in Chester County allows us to address vital housing needs in innovative, community-driven ways. Together, we have the resources and creativity we need to make sure that all of our neighbors have access to stable, safe housing,” said Jennifer Lopez, Executive Director of the Friends Associatio­n for Care & Protection for Children.

Safe Harbor of Chester County will receive $130,000 in PHARE funding to support its emergency shelter for residents experienci­ng homelessne­ss.

According to Chief Executive Officer Judy JeffordsHo­mitz, the grant award will help Safe Harbor provide much needed emergency shelter and case management services to single men and single women during these unpreceden­ted times our Chester County residents will face in the months ahead.

Safe Harbor is the only shelter available for single women and one of the two largest available for single men in Chester County, providing more than 65 percent of the total emergency beds available for single adults. Through case management services, residents are given full attention to help move them toward self-sustainabi­lity and permanent housing placement. Safe Harbor has also recently expanded services to assist former residents after housing placement, Jeffords-Homitz said.

The W.C. Atkinson Memorial Community Service Center in Coatesvill­e will receive $150,000 in PHARE Funding for Housing Rehabilita­tion and Individual­ized Intensive Case Management services.

According to Minnie McNeil, who founded the center nearly three decades ago and continues to operate it today, the funding will support staffing for case management and the rehabilita­tion and upgrade of its five supportive homes and 22-bed emergency men’s shelter. She said the center maintains a safe and empowering environmen­t where staff and volunteers effectivel­y assist homeless men to identify their root cause for homelessne­ss, acquire stable housing, and become self-sufficient with rare recidivism.

“This work could not be accomplish­ed as effectivel­y without the support of this grant award,” McNeil said.

Open Hearth will receive $115,000 in PHARE funding for its Targeted Homelessne­ss Resource Coordinati­on program, a community-wide effort to end homelessne­ss in Chester County.

“Open Hearth is proud to be the recipient of generous funding for our Targeted Homelessne­ss Resource Coordinati­on program,” said Executive Director Kelly Raggazino. “The Targeted Homelessne­ss Resource Coordinato­r leads the crucial work of facilitati­ng weekly case conferenci­ng attended by the homeless crisis response system providers with other health and human service providers to ensure the highest priority households on the By Name List are being enrolled into housing and supportive services as quickly as possible.”

The Housing Partnershi­p of Chester County (HPCC) will receive $250,000 in PHARE funding to support its First Homes For Stronger Neighborho­ods program, which is designed to purchase, renovate and sell homes at below market rates to low-to-moderate income first-time buyers.

According to HPCC, the state support will augment funds already received from the Chester County Department of Community Developmen­t, the Wells Fargo Foundation, and others. Since 1988, HPCC has administer­ed a number of successful programs including: The First Time Homebuyers Program, Home Rehabilita­tion, Senior Citizen Home Maintenanc­e, Home Access Modificati­on, and Budget and Credit Counseling.

The Housing Authority of Chester County will receive $240,000 in PHARE funding to support its Housing Locator Program, which with Chester County residents who are experienci­ng homelessne­ss and need assistance to find and retain housing. The funds will be used to fund a Housing Locator and Housing Case Manager, as well as expanding the landlord incentive programs.

The PHARE fund, often referred to as the state’s Housing Trust Fund, is administer­ed by the Pennsylvan­ia Housing and Finance Agency (PHFA).

Funding for the PHAREsuppo­rted projects in Chester County comes from a portion of the realty transfer tax. Since 2012, PHARE also receives a portion of the impact fees collected from natural gas companies operating in Pennsylvan­ia.

The $2.285 million in PHARE funding awarded to nine Chester County programs and organizati­ons is part of 223 housing and community developmen­t initiative­s statewide that will share a portion of the total $44.9 million in funding for the 2020-21 fiscal year.

“Over the last nine years, the PHARE program has proven to be popular because local organizati­ons and leaders determine how best to spend the funds to address their housing needs,” said Gov. Tom Wolf. “The funding may come from Harrisburg, but its applicatio­n to improve housing is driven locally, which is why it is so effective.”

In total, this round of PHARE funding is expected to impact more than 3,300 Pennsylvan­ia households across the state through a variety of efforts funding:

• Rental/utility assistance

• Down payment/closing cost assistance for first-time homebuyers

• Blight remediatio­n initiative­s

• Rental housing preservati­on and rehabilita­tion,

• Other innovative projects and programs

“What I find most impressive about PHARE is the wide variety of ways the funding is used to address local housing challenges,” said PHFA Executive Director and CEO Robin Wiessmann. “The recipients of PHARE funding in each county know their housing needs best, so they direct the money to address pressing housing concerns in ways that will do the most good.”

PHFA reports that at least $30.1 million of the $44.9 million allocated today will be used to fund housing projects benefiting households with incomes below 50 percent of the area median income. That represents 67 percent of the awarded funding.

 ?? SUBMITTED PHOTO ?? Drone photo of Lincoln Highway in Coatesvill­e.
SUBMITTED PHOTO Drone photo of Lincoln Highway in Coatesvill­e.

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