AGAWAM –  The city of Agawam is applying for a competitive Community Development Block Grant to support area housing and economic development projects for low-to-moderate income residents.

With assistance from the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC), the City Council is seeking $800,000 in funding from the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development to sponsor three potential projects: The Housing Rehabilitation Program, Aging in Place Housing Program and Town Hall Architectural Barrier Removal Design. While the Town Hall project is more of a planning initiative, which seeks to evaluate handicapped accessibility factors associated with the municipal building, the other two focus on improving area housing conditions.

On Feb. 5, the Council unanimously voted to approve the authorization for this application.

“Agawam, like many communities across the state, is running into a housing shortage,” said Director of Planning and Development Marc A. Strange. “It’s really difficult to find affordable housing out in this part of the way. Often times, repairs are just too costly and too expensive for homeowners, so they let them go and the problem snowballs and becomes bigger than it would’ve been if it had been taken care of initially. We have a large population of homeowners who would benefit from this grant.”

Aging in Place Housing Program: This program would allow qualified low-income Agawam seniors to apply for up to $5,000 in grant money to improve certain physical aspects of their homes – in order to live more safely. The grant will cover improvements that include the installation of grab bars, door levers, slip resistant stair treads, dead-bolts, peep holes, smoke or carbon monoxide detectors and other similar work. To be eligible, seniors must be 65 years or older and meet the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Section 8 income guidelines – for example, for a household size of one person, the annual household income can’t be greater than $44,000, and for two persons, it cant be larger than $51,200. The applicants must also have home safety needs that fall under the purview of the program. The PVPC estimates that up to 30 units could be served at an average cost of $2,500 per unit, if the grant is approved.

Housing Rehabilitation Program: This program also focuses on housing conditions, but is more comprehensive than the Aging in Place program. Agawam last obtained funding for this activity through the FY 2014 CDBG. For FY 2018, the project would provide up to $40,000 of assistance to qualified applicants of any age who need more extensive repairs. Some of the repairs would include lead paint-removal, foundation repairs, electrical and plumbing repairs, heating systems, roof repair or replacement, insulation and more. While both owner-occupied and investor-owned properties are eligible, only owner-occupied units can apply for 100 percent of the funding. Unlike Aging in Place, the Housing program structures a deferred payment loan on a depreciating scale over a fifteen year period, after which time, the loan will be forgiven. There is an active waiting list for these services, but residents are encouraged to call the PVPC to get on the list or ask for more information.  If the grant is approved, applicants on the wait-list may be selected through a lottery, depending on the seriousness of their needed-repairs. Emergency repairs will be addressed as a priority. The PVPC is aiming to fund approximately 19 or more housing rehabilitation units for qualified residents of Agawam.

Town Hall Architectural Barrier Removal Design: Because the Town Hall building is widely accessed, along with the Agawam Senior Center and Public Library, the Council chose to focus on bringing its Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility up-to-code. For this project, the town would put $60,000 toward hiring an architect or engineer to evaluate the possibilities of making it more ADA accessible. They would also allocate a $5,000 program delivery fee to the PVPC to administer the project.

The CDBG grant application is available to small cities and towns statewide, according to Principal Planner of the PVPC Christopher Dunphy. Larger cities, also called “entitlement cities,” like Springfield and Holyoke automatically receive CDBG funds from the HUD via a formula, leaving smaller cities like Agawam to apply for the funding through a competitive process.

“The key is for me to work with city officials and make sure that we’re demonstrating the need as best we can within this competitive application,” said Dunphy. “We’ll frame our argument as carefully as we can to show the state these programs can be extremely beneficial.”

Agawam and the PVPC have applied for the funding in the past, said Dunphy, but came up short.

In last year’s application, the Housing Rehabilitation grant was not approved due to a reference of “chimney cleaning” as one of the services to be provided through the funding, explained the principal planner. The state did not want to fund any sort of maintenance, he said, only physical repairs.

“We tried this grant last year and scored very well,” he said. “I think with a little minor tweaks in my writing, and some evidence from folks indicating that there’s a need and support for this type of program, I think we can get it over the top and get it funded this year.”

Dunphy said he is going to modify his approach this year to focus on real physical changes, but feels confident in the application.

The PVPC and the Council plan to submit their application for the $800,000 in CDBG funding by March. 2. The Council and the PVPC will find out the status of their application sometime around July.

To learn more about any of the three projects, Strange said individuals could reach out to him on his direct line at 726-9738 for more information.