Housing authority asks county to help fund proposed development

Published 8:15 am Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

On Tuesday, the LaGrange Housing Authority (LHA) asked the Troup County Board of Commissioners to help pay for a proposed housing development off of Ragland St. near Tucker Cottages.

LHA Housing Director Rena Boykin said the proposed development would include new homes and a community center.

Boykin said plans for the development include two two-bedroom duplexes, two three-bedroom duplexes and 12 single-family homes, which would be three-bedroom houses.

The cost of the development is estimated at $7 million. Boykin said they have already received $5 million in grant funds for the project.

The housing authority has requested $1 million in funding from the City of LaGrange and has agreed to contribute about $200,000 to the project. Boykin asked the county to contribute the final $750,000 to complete the funding.

“We’re trying to make these homes affordable. We’re not charging more than 30 percent of the family’s gross annual income for rent,” Boykin said. “We currently already have two homes there on the property, which are a little bit below fair market rent.”

All of the homes would be rentals, Boykin said.

The housing authority already owns the property and infrastructure for the homes is already in place. The city has agreed to donate sidewalks for the development, Boykin said.

Commission Chairman Patrick Crews said they would consider the request.

Boykin said LHA made the proposal to the LaGrange City Council in September, but they haven’t heard back from them.