PIKE COUNTY, Mo — NECAC is seeking homeowners for a program that provides free materials with participants doing the labor

The agency has been awarded a two-year, $379,335 grant by USDA Rural Development to administer the Self-Help Housing program in Lincoln, Marion, Monroe, Montgomery, Pike, Ralls, Shelby and Warren counties.

Participants must meet income guidelines. They will work with NECAC Construction Supervisor Howard Sommer, who will provide one-on-one instruction on the skills they need to do projects. Supplies and tools will be purchased by the program, but the labor will be contributed by the families and volunteers.

“This is a great opportunity to learn new skills and be a part of making your home more energy efficient,” said NECAC Deputy Director for Housing Development Programs Carla Potts. “Upgrading the housing stock will also benefit communities.”

NECAC has been involved with Self-Help Housing since 1999. Under the original program, participants worked as a team to build each other’s homes. Forty-eight houses were constructed over about 10 years in Shelby, Monroe, Randolph and Montgomery counties.

In 2017, NECAC was awarded a $159,000 USDA grant to begin Self-Help renovations at 26 owner-occupied homes in Marion, Monroe, Pike and Ralls counties. Two years later, the agency was awarded a $365,700 USDA grant to expand the program to 56 homes in Lincoln, Montgomery, Shelby and Warren counties.

Income guidelines are available upon request. For more information, call NECAC at 573-324-6622.

 

CUTLINE FOR PHOTO:

NECAC Self-Help Housing Supervisor Howard Sommer measures a board to be trimmed on a project in New London. The agency has been awarded a two-year, $379,335 grant from USDA Rural Development to continue the program in eight Missouri counties.