The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WALLA WALLA—In January the Columbia County Commissioners signed a contract with Blue Mountain Action Council of Walla Walla to provide low-income homeowners with the opportunity to have small repairs made to their homes.

“There are people in Columbia County who need the help,” said Commissioner Merle Jackson about the BMAC Home Repair Program.

The commissioners are testing the waters in 2017, with an initial $20,000 investment, according to Jackson.

“That was just seed money,” he said. “We are going to see how it goes.”

“We’ve seen a big need in Columbia County for people who can’t make repairs to their homes,” said BMAC housing services director Ted Koehler, in Walla Walla.

The BMAC home repair program is funded through revolving loans, Koehler explained.

When a client is identified, a scope of the work is done, and the jobs are prioritized with the owner, he said.

BMAC will get estimates and bids from local contractors and subcontractors, and if the home owner agrees to a lien on the home, work will proceed, with BMAC supervising, Koehler said.

Upon completion of the project, the lien will be adjusted to the exact dollar amount, and repayment will be made when the home is sold, Koehler said.

The repayment will go back into the BMAC home repair program for other qualifying homeowners who need work done on their homes, said Koehler.

“There are quite a few wins with the revolving loan program,” said Koehler. “The most affordable low income housing is already out there. If we fix it up, they will stay there another 20 years.”

Koehler said the goal is to establish pride in ownership, through community wide revitalization.

Commissioner Jackson agrees. “If we help families, we will make the community a better place to live,” he said.

Two other BMAC programs available to Columbia County homeowners are the BMAC weatherization program and the BMAC Healthy Homes program. These programs are also available to in Walla Walla and Garfield Counties, Koehler said.

“Any one house typically receives funding from four to five sources,” he said.

The home weatherization program is designed to make homes more energy efficient, and the Healthy Homes program is designed to improve indoor air quality, Koehler said.

“We like to retrofit things to save energy,” said Terry Keller, the lead weatherization coordinator at BMAC.

Keller said installing insulation in attics and around pipes, and performing air seals, are some of the jobs taking place through Home Weatherization Assistance Program.

To qualify for the home weatherization program the client must be a homeowner with household income at, or below, 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.

The Healthy Homes program is another program designed to help low income homeowner in all three counties. That program is designed to reduce asthma triggers, such as dust mites, mold, toxic cleaning products, pests and ventilation.

Remediation can include; making ventilation improvements to kitchen and bathroom exhaust fans, cleaning furnaces or wood stoves, performing safety checks, replacing carpet with hard flooring, duct cleaning, gutter and downspout repair, and installation of air quality improvement products, such as dust mite covers for bedding.

To qualify for the healthy homes program household income must be at, or below, 200% of federal poverty guidelines, or 60% state median income, whichever is greater, and have an occupant who is medically diagnosed with a respiratory illness, and who is under age 20, or over 55.

For information about the BMAC home repair program contact Koehler at (509) 529-4980, ext. 110.

For information about the BMAC home weatherization program, contact weatherization coordinator Terry Keller, at (509) 529-4980, ext.116.

For information about the BMAC Healthy Homes program, contact Diana McFetridge at (509) 529-4980 ext. 134.

The Blue Mountain Action Council is located at 1520 Kelly Place, Suite 140, Walla Walla.