REHAB: GRANT MAY RENOVATE 60 HOMES

If the attendance at Monday's public meeting is an indicator, Cape Girardeau's latest low-income housing rehabilitation program should prove successful.

About 65 property owners from south-central Cape Girardeau attended the meeting at City Hall to learn about the city's latest Community Development Block Grant program. The program could renovate 60 homes in the neighborhood of College and Jefferson streets during the next two years.

The College/Jefferson Neighborhood Restoration Project involves a four-block area bordered by College Street to the south, Jefferson to the north, Pacific to the east and West End Boulevard to the west.

The state of Missouri in June approved the city's grant application for $800,000 over the next two years to rehabilitate homes in the neighborhood.

At Monday's meeting, Steve Williams, Cape Girardeau's housing assistance coordinator, said eligible property owners will be able to receive up to $12,000 to rehabilitate their homes.

"We take care of wiring, update the plumbing, we can take care of the roof and the outside of the house," Williams said. "We can paint, we can work on your foundation. If there's a problem with your kitchen, we can work on kitchens and bathrooms.

"But different houses are different sizes and have different problems. We'll be dealing with each unit on an individual case-by-case basis."

The city was awarded $340,000 for the first year and $460,000 for the second year of the program. Williams said the city also will contribute about $280,000 in cash, labor and materials during the two-year program.

Some of the city funds will be allocated to correct two sewer problems in the area. A private Park Avenue sewer line will be replaced with a public line, and the city also will begin work to separate south-side combination storm and sanitary sewers.

The combination sewers are subject to flooding and the city is studying ways to correct the pro~blem.

Of the grant, $230,000 has been earmarked for sewer work, with the remaining $570,000 allocated for home improvements.

Eligibility for the program is based on the home-owner's income. A previous requirement that residents must own the property for at least two years before they can become eligible for the renovation grants has been dropped, Williams said.

"If you meet the income guidelines, we only require that you own the property previous to applying for the grant," he said. "There's no two-year waiting list anymore."

The program also includes rental properties. Williams said that if a tenant meets the guidelines but the landlord doesn't, the property owner would be required to provide a 50-percent funding match for the rehabilitation.

Homeowners also are required to sign a grant agreement stating that should the house be sold within four years of the rehabilitation, they would have to refund pro-rated portions of the grant, he said.

Williams said the city will coordinate the grant funds with the East Missouri Action Agency's weatherization program, which would allow eligible property owners to receive up to $2,500 for work to make their homes more energy efficient.

Williams said owner-occupied units make up about 70 percent of the homes in the neighborhood and would be given priority in the program.

The city will start taking applications for the program Aug. 5, and those eligible will be awarded the grants on a first come, first served basis.

Williams said actual construction on the approved homes could start as early as September and would continue through the winter.

"We will install medium-priced, serviceable items," he said. "We don't put in central air. We don't build carports and that sort of thing.

"But we want to make sure that when we leave there, you can come up with enough money to replace a floor covering if you want to, or paint a room.

"Sometimes that's hard to do for a low to moderate income family when you have to do a high-cost item like put on a new roof."

Williams said that the program will allow property owners to increase the values of their homes and better the neighborhood.