This year, the Mountainland Association of Governments received about $600,000 in community development block grant funds from the federal government. Wasatch County Councilmember Kendall Crittenden chair’s the association’s block grant committee. He said there weren’t many local government projects asking for that money.
“We only had one applicant that took about half of that. So we had just over $300,000 that wasn't applied for," he said. "So we moved that into this single family housing rehab program.”
The Single Family Home Repair Program launched last December and initially provided low-interest loans for home repairs to qualifying homeowners in rural areas of Summit, Wasatch and Utah Counties. Those loans will continue, but the new money will allow the program to also make grants which don’t have to be repaid.
The grants are available to all residents in the three counties who make less than 80% of the county’s Annual Median Income, own the home and use it as their primary residence, have current homeowner’s insurance and are up to date on their property taxes.
The money can be used for a wide variety of repairs, from fixing roofs and windows to updating electrical systems to making homes more energy efficient.
“One of the things that we have been getting a lot of applications for is adding accessibility features to homes" to make them ADA compliant, said Katie Mitchell, who administers the program for the Mountainland Association of Governments.
A few days ago, she asked various city council representatives to help get the word out about the program. She said she expected five or six applications to come in overnight. She received 27.
“It's sad to note that there's so many people out there that need these things remedied with their home, but a good feeling at the same time knowing that we can make a difference,” she said.
Money will be awarded beginning July 1.
To apply, visit magutah.org/housing-rehab. Mitchell said those who are interested in the program can also reach out to her directly at kmitchell@magutah.org or (801) 229-3847.
