The federal government has announced that it will provide the province with an additional $1.9 million in funding to the Provincial Home Repair Program (PHRP) which addresses households with the greatest home repair needs. The minister responsible for housing, Honourable Lloyd Matthews, and Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation (NLHC) were informed earlier today that the federal government has committed $50 million nationally to housing repair programs.
Commenting on the federal announcement, Minister Matthews said: “This is good news indeed. The demand for housing repair assistance in the province is substantial. This extra funding will allow us to assist approximately 250 individuals, depending on the type of repairs required. This will be in addition to the 800 families that we will be able to help under this year’s Provincial Home Repair Program (PHRP). It is very encouraging to know that the federal government is still committed to supporting housing programs where possible”, Mr. Matthews added.
To date, a total of $6 million dollars has been committed under the PHRP with approximately 800 households having been or are in the process of being served.
Minister Matthews used the opportunity to announce that an accelerated review of the current waiting list for the PHRP will be undertaken to ensure that the province is dealing with only those individuals with homes which are still actively in need of repairs. The program will continue to serve individuals from the current list on a “first-come, first-served” basis, while striving to address those who are most in need. Urgent cases with special needs will also continue to be addressed on an exceptional basis. The current waiting list already demonstrates an adequate demand for additional funding. The new money will further aid those on the current waiting list who are in need of home repairs.
As in the past, NLHC will accept referrals from the Departments of Health and Community Services, Human Resources and Employment (DHRE), any MHAs or other interested groups. Approval of the referrals will be based on an assessment which will be completed by NLHC officials.
With the signing of the Social Housing Agreement, responsibility for housing programs has been assumed by the provincial government, and consequently NLHC has been able to redirect federal funding from the former Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program (RRAP) into the new PHRP. This program contained modifications to the existing RRAP guidelines that allowed the corporation to be more responsive and flexible in meeting the housing needs of the people of this province.
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For further information, contact:
Jenny Bowring, Corporate Communications, NLHC
Telephone: (709) 724-3055
E-mail: releases@nlhc.nf.ca
Following an invitation for proposals earlier this summer, Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation (NLHC) recently awarded Agra Earth and Environmental Ltd. a contract to proceed with a Sediment Investigation Program and a Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment of Noel’s Pond and environs. In conjunction with the contract, NLHC will be holding a public information meeting to update and inform the public regarding activities at the site and future works. The announcement was made today by the Honourable Kevin Aylward, minister of Forest Resources and Agrifoods and MHA for St. George’s-Stephenville, representing the Honourable Art Reid, minister responsible for housing.
“As part of the ongoing environmental clean-up of the provincial portion of the former Harmon properties, the housing corporation will spend approximately $200,000 on this phase of the project,” Mr. Aylward said.
The objective of the Phase 1 Site assessment for the Noel’s Pond area is to determine if there is any contamination present on these lands, provide an accurate assessment of how the site complies with current environmental regulations and to formulate a remedial action plan, if required. Other ongoing work includes a contract which allows for the decommissioning (draining and de-gassing) of fuel lines on the Harmon base property. This contract was initiated in conjunction with Transport Canada and addressed the abandoned fuel lines which run through much of the Harmon area and intersects airport property. A second contract was awarded to Pardy’s Waste Management Ltd. for approximately $84,000 to decommission the above-ground storage fuel tank system on the southeast section of the Harmon Base. Both contracts are scheduled for completion early in the new year.
Further work is still planned for the coming months which include a Phase 3 Environmental Site Assessment and remediation plan for the removal of a number of underground fuel storage tanks, and appropriate remediation options for the Noel’s Pond water treatment plant site based on the Phase 3 report.
All interested parties are invited to attend the public information session to be held:
7:00 pm, Thursday, December 3, 1998
Council Chambers
Town Council Office
125 Carolina Avenue
Stephenville, NF
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For further information, contact:
Jenny Bowring, Corporate Communications, NLHC
Telephone: (709) 724-3055
E-mail: releases@nlhc.nf.ca