RUMFORD – Rumford Group Homes has been awarded a $280,000 grant that will go toward construction of a home for homeless youth with disabilities.
The funding comes from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Continuum of Care program and is part of an overall package to the state of $8.5 million.
Dan Simpson, manager of public information for the Maine State Housing Authority, said a four-unit home is being planned for construction in Norway. It will house nine young men and women, ages 18-24, in four apartments, made up of a one-bedroom unit, a two-bedroom unit and two three-bedroom units.
He said the total cost for the supportive-housing project is expected to be about $500,000. He said the state housing authority, the administering agency for half of the federal funds, will likely assist Rumford Group Homes in finding either state or federal dollars to make up the difference between the HUD grant and the amount needed for the project.
Nick Waugh, president of Rumford Group Homes’ board of directors, declined to comment specifically on receiving the grant, saying he had not been officially notified that the organization had received it.
“We are happy to get any help we can in these tough funding times,” he said, however.
The time frame for the new construction project is not known at this time. The director of Rumford Group Homes, Al Monier, was not available for comment.
Although Rumford Group Homes is based in Rumford, it has offices, group homes or other facilities throughout Oxford and Androscoggin counties. It serves about 400 abused, neglected, homeless or mentally ill young people and employs nearly 100 full- and part-time people with an annual $5 million budget. It is accredited by the Council on Accreditation for Youth and Family Services. The agency was commended last summer by Gov. John Baldacci and the state Legislature for its 30 years of work with youth.
Comments are no longer available on this story