NW Georgia Housing Authority seeks $1.3M planning grant to target East Rome improvements | Local News

The Northwest Georgia Housing Authority plans to submit another request for a Choice Neighborhood planning grant of up to $1.3 million dollars. If the planning grant is awarded, it would put the housing authority in line for a potential implementation grant of upwards of $30 million.

The authority submitted an application in 2016 but there was a problem with the application and Camiros, the Chicago-based consulting firm that wrote last year’s grant, is rewriting the 2017 application at no additional cost to the authority.

Camiros was paid $8,000 for the 2016 application.

NWGHA Executive Director Sandra Hudson said the agency is seeking to redevelop the Maple Street-East 12th Street community in East Rome with the funds.

As part of the planning grant, the authority had to choose a small project to undertake as an example of the type of work that could be accomplished to completely turn around a community, and has chosen to do a streetscape project along East 12th. Last year, that project also considered a pedestrian bridge over Norfolk Southern railroad tracks, but that will not be included in the grant being resubmitted next week.

The city of Rome has committed $150,000 as local participation in the planning project should the authority receive the grant.

Part of the master plan for redevelopment of the East Rome community includes tax-credit financed new apartments on East 14th Street and Spring Creek Street, where the Altoview Terrace public housing apartments were demolished several years ago. Hudson said that project would involve 64 one-bedroom units, 22 two-bedroom apartments and 5 three-bedroom units.

New single family homes, also proposed for tax-credit financing, are slated for construction on eight lots along the Maple Street corridor.

The housing authority is planning to break ground soon on new duplex style apartments along East 12th Street.