Andrews – Southwestern North Carolina HOME Consortium awarded grants in western North Carolina in August, to help replenish the inventory of affordable housing stretched thin over the past year.
Three grants were awarded affecting North Carolina’s westernmost four counties: $45,000 to Four Square Community Action Inc., to help landlords repair and upgrade their properties, to make them become – or remain eligible – for U.S. Health and Urban Development vouchers; $125,000 to Robbinsville High School, to kickstart construction at Azalea Hill, an affordable housing project of the Graham County Rural Development Authority; and $43,000 to help residents in Macon County obtain or retain housing.
Azalea Hill
In Graham County, $125,000 was awarded to Robbinsville High School’s carpentry program for students – under faculty supervision – to build the first house in the Azalea Hill subdivision off Moose Branch Road.
Proceeds from the sale of that house will help fund construction of the next.
The carpentry program participated in a similar project off of Fort Hill in the 1970s.
The Graham County Rural Development Authority is putting the finishing touches on Azalea Hill, with lots being made available in the next couple of months.
The project was first conceived by the Town of Robbinsville, but eventually went to the Rural Development Authority.
The development has been planned since 2014 and includes 13 slabs for low- to moderate-income homes within the 11.88-acre development site. Ground was broken in October 2021. The maximum lending amount from the program is $285,000. Income limits for the direct loan program are $46,000 for families of 1-4 and $61,800 for families of 5-8.
The income limits for the program are $91,900 for families of 1-4, and $121,300 for families of 5-8.