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Jamie Welch, DeLeon Assistant City
Secretary, recently announced that contractors on the HOME grant
project met with grant recipients, April 6, to sign contracts and
“kick off” the building project.
According to the Texas Department of
Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) web site, the HOME Investment
Partnerships Program (HOME) provides grants and loans to help local
governments, nonprofit agencies, for-profit entities, and public
housing agencies provide safe, decent, affordable housing to extremely
low-, very low- and low-income families.
HOME allocates funds through four basic
activities: Homebuyer Assistance, Rental Housing Development,
Tenant-Based Rental Assistance and Owner-Occupied Housing Assistance.
The homes being constructed in DeLeon fall under the Owner-Occupied
designation.
“We went through two rounds of
applications here,” Welch said, “because people didn’t believe it was
true, that this would be their homes. But it is true, these will be
totally their homes.”
According to Welch, the four homes
constructed here will be 888 square feet.
“They will have a slab foundation,” Welch said, “and recipients will
get to choose the color of the brick, color of trim and carpet. They
may also choose a bathtub/shower combination or a 3x5 shower, with a
seat at each end. There will be ceiling fans in the living area and
master bedroom. A stove, refrigerator and central heat and air are
included as well.”
Welch said she’s excited for the people
who were selected to participate. “And it really makes a difference in
the community,” she added.
According to Welch, the next step is for
the participants to move out of their current homes.
“They’ll put their utilities on vacation
so that we may begin the demolition process,” she said.
She noted that one home originally selected for participation, on
Reynosa Street, has been deemed historically significant by the state
and cannot be torn down.
The home-owners that were selected are:
John Holland, 416 S. Coke; Jesse Grumbles, 400 E. Ross; Lawrence
Farley, 224 N. Austin and Catarina Leal, 700 N. Moreland. |
