Coalition Awarded FHLB Project

Charleston, WV - The Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh recently announced affordable housing projects in Charleston, Fairmont, Martinsburg, Wayne, Wheeling, and White Sulphur Springs have been awarded more than $1.4 million in Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grants.
The Greater Wheeling Coalition was awarded $209,319 through a highly competitive grant application process for AHP funding. The award will be used to rehabilitate the Gertrude Flats Apartments in East Wheeling which will house 18 homeless individuals with disabilities. This community-based project targets the hard-to-house chronically homeless and provides a shelter alternative for clients who cannot take part in transitional housing due to long-term disability.
Focused on individuals with incomes of less than 30 percent Average Median Income, services will be provided to clients in a century-old three-story property originally designed for multi-family use, making the site ideally suited for a rehabilitation project. In addition to housing, the Coalition also provides individual counseling, employability training and educational services for homeless clients.
AHP is one of the largest private sources of grant funds for affordable housing in the United States. Twelve Federal Home Loan Banks across the country, created by Congress during the Great Depression, serve a wide range of neighborhood needs. All AHP recipients must have incomes at or below 80 percent of the area median income. Nationally, the FHLBanks have awarded more than $4 billion in funding to date.
These awards bring the total commitment of program funding in West Virginia to approximately $11.8 million, which has resulted in the development of approximately 1,500 affordable housing units. The AHP is administered by FHLBank with the assistance of local member financial institutions that help sponsors with their grant applications and disburse funding. West Virginia banks assisting these seven project recipients are Pendleton Community Bank, PNC Bank, United Bank, and WesBanco Bank.
A brief presentation ceremony was conducted at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Charleston to commemorate the funding. Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito (R-2nd District CHECK), the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit of the House Financial Services Committee, was the keynote speaker at the ceremony. These grants will help create 141 new or rehabilitated units of affordable housing to serve a variety of individuals and families including seniors, the homeless, and those recovering from substance dependency.
“The need for affordable housing, especially special needs and rental housing, has never been greater,” said Congresswoman Capito. “I am pleased to again stand alongside FHLBank Pittsburgh and West Virginia financial institutions as we work together to increase the supply of affordable housing across our state.”
Also speaking at today’s event was Kelley Goes, State Director for U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Peter Knight, Director of Government Relations at FHLBank Pittsburgh.
“AHP’s success results from identifying local needs and working with local partners to deliver resources that make life better for the less fortunate,” said Knight. “We commend all of the project sponsors for their dedication and hard work and the four member banks who are helping to bring these projects on line.”
FHLBank is privately funded and capitalized and uses no taxpayer dollars. At September 30, 2011, the Bank had 300 financial institution members in its cooperative and approximately $47 billion in assets.
For a complete list of the projects awarded by FHLB, please visit http://www.fhlb-pgh.com/housing-and-community/programs/ahp_recipients_11.html