More rehabilitation of houses and fewer properties that go on to be possibly deemed blighted and increasing home ownership in the City of Williamsport — that’s the premise behind a new housing initiative with STEP Inc. that City Council recently approved.

It is a home development agreement with the organization that focuses on rehabilitation of salvageable Williamsport properties.

Council approved a resolution authorizing agreement between the city and STEP Inc., for HOME-funded owner/developer homeownership project.

It is going to “help to implement our homeowner rehabilitation program,” said Austin Daily, housing programs manager with the city Department of Community and Economic Development and Planning.

Under the agreement, the city officials and those at STEP will work in tandem to acquire homes on the open market and rehabilitate them, he explained.

“To get them into hands of prospective homeowners throughout the city at an affordable rate,” Daily said.

The city is a participating jurisdiction under the HOME Investment Partnership program.

The agreement provides HOME funding in the amount not to exceed $317,218.43.

“This is a program that we have not run before but through a consultation with our consultants, we were able to get great feedback from other third class cities that run similar programs,” Daily said.

This program will address two key issues:.

A program to help a city looking to remediate blight by getting these properties before they have to go through the city blighted properties review board and the redevelopment authority.

It is expected to help to “increase homeownership” and “allows those in the program to be more particular in the neighborhoods that are targeted for rehab.

“We will be purchasing vacant homes in need of what I’d say are moderate amounts of repairs,” Daily told the Sun-Gazette.

Most of the homes will see $45,000-$70,000 of repairs and rehabilitation, based on his estimation.

“Ideally we address the potential big ticket issues that a low to moderate income homebuyer would struggle with if it went wrong shortly after purchase (roof, furnace, water heater) or modernizing things like plumbing, electric, windows.”

“I think the target is for most of the homes to then fall into the $125,000 to $150,000 range,” he said, adding “this will allow them to remain affordable for folks who fall into the allowable HUD income ranges.”

Explaining more was Rachelle A. Abbott, President and CEO, STEP Inc., who said the organization is really excited to be in with the city on this project.

She noted that for over the last 20 years, STEP has done a lot of work with rehab in boroughs and townships in the county and Clinton County.

This particular program looks at trying to move houses back to habitability.

It focuses on homeownership and affordable homeownership for people to be able to purchase their homes.

Abbott said STEP has been doing a lot of the work with all of the boroughs and the City of Lock Haven so it will be great to be able to work within the community that STEP is a major employer in.

This takes a certain amount of legwork out of the city but it also enables individuals to be able to work with expertise that STEP can provide, Councilwoman Liz Miele observed.

“It’s great to see up partnering with the organizations that are located in the city that are specialists at this kind of stuff,” Council President Eric Beiter said.