Council hires MSA to write IHDA home-repair grant application, approves $6,500 contract

The Freeport City Council voted 6-2 on March 3 to hire MSA Professional Services to prepare an application for the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) Home Repair and Accessibility (HREP) grant program, approving a $6,500 contract to write and submit the proposal.

MSA’s Community Development Administrator Tara Walters told the council the HREP round opening now includes $16 million statewide and that applications for Freeport are due March 14. “My recommendation for how many homes I believe the City would be able to, you know, feasibly get done in 2 years would be 17 homes,” Walters said during the presentation.

The grant program provides funding for health-and-safety repairs and accessibility improvements for owner-occupied, low- and very-low-income homes. Under the program a single full-rehab award can cover up to $50,000 in construction costs plus project delivery (capped at 15 percent) and is structured as a five-year forgivable loan; a roof-only option covers up to $25,000 and is structured as a three-year forgivable loan. Walters and staff recommended the city…