Affordable housing continues to be a problem for many counties in our region…
Our Zac Kaye was in Clearfield County Today for a public meeting on the matter.
The Redevelopment Authority here in Clearfield County heard from members of the public Wednesday about the lack of affordable housing in the area.
Lisa Kovalick is the Director of the Redevelopment Authority of Clearfield County and says that for every 100 people in need of housing, there are only 51 affordable options in Clearfield County.
“We have worked endlessly to pull developers into Clearfield County if they can’t make money on the deal, they’re not coming in, and how they make money is by putting more units into the building. I think one time they told me they needed 30+ units, where are we going to get the funding to put 30 units in? ”
During the meeting on Wednesday, some residents said they would prefer to age in place. Kovalick says they already have a blight prevention program in place to repair homes.
She says these repairs are only getting more expensive, and the program is significantly underfunded when compared to how many people are seeking assistance.
“We have over 200 people on our waiting list, we receive $200,000-400,000 from Clearfield County, now we’re reaching out to other municipalities to hone in on different ones, so if I can $500,000 from one municipality and $500,000 from another and $400,000 for the county non-entitlements, that would be better than just $400,000.”
The meeting featured a proposed plan to repair the Dimeling Hotel in Clearfield, and also build affordable housing units for those 55 and over right next to it.
Clearfield County Commissioners John Sobel and Tim Winters say a lot of their population is older and living on fixed incomes.
They say the Mature Resources Area Agency has programs in place to help people modify their homes as they get older, but sometimes that isn’t enough.
“As they age, they’re not able to take care of their homes and they can sell their homes to younger buyers, and at the same token have places to go, apartments that are affordable but also maintain some quality of life for them.”
“We do have a unique set of challenges and as of now, I would say there is certainly not enough affordable housing for people who want to age in place throughout Clearfield County. We do have resources but this will be a constant challenge.”
The Redevelopment Authority says they want to hear more from the public, and will try to host more public meetings in the future.
