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Chair urges staff to explore making group homes eligible for ramps, whole‑home generators
Summary
Commissioners raised concerns that group homes serving people with disabilities may not qualify for ramp or generator assistance under current rules; staff said ramps often route through a different program (NED) and agreed to research eligibility options and possible commercial grant uses.
The board discussed accessibility gaps for group homes and whether current grant rules unintentionally exclude facilities that house people who need refrigerated medication or other supports. The chair described outreach from operators such as Capstone and asked whether those group homes could qualify for wheelchair ramps or whole‑home generators under existing programs.
"I've had people who own group homes reach out ... and they've expressed concern that they're not eligible for the wheelchair ramp installation or the whole home generator," the chair said, urging staff to explore options. Staff said many ramp requests are handled through the NED program and that some non‑homesteaded properties in CRAs could be eligible under commercial grant provisions; staff agreed to check LHAP rules and interdepartmental funding options.
Commissioners noted ministries and churches sometimes build ramps for free and suggested better coordination between NED and CRA staff to ensure all eligible residents receive assistance. County staff committed to researching whether group homes could be explicitly included and to report back with potential funding sources and program changes.
