Ten low-income residents in two small Wisconsin towns are getting a holiday gift from the U.S. Department of Agriculture: home repairs courtesy of the Housing Preservation Grant program.
The grants of $29,000 each are meant to help people who live in towns with populations under 20,000. They don’t go directly to the homeowners, but rather to third-party nonprofit groups that coordinate the work, which can include weatherization.
In the last five years, the USDA has granted $773,858 to Wisconsin agencies through the program, which has helped nearly 100 homeowners in the state.
Stay informed on the latest news
Sign up for WPR’s email newsletter.
Stan Gruszynski, the USDA’s rural development director in Wisconsin, said the dollar amounts don’t sound like much.
“But if you’re living in rural Wisconsin and you don’t have weatherization and it costs you an extra 100 dollars, 150 dollars a month and you’re an elderly person living on a fixed income, that’s a lot of money,” said Gruszynski.
The two new grants will help five low -income homeowners in Prairie du Chien, and another five in Independence.
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2024, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
