Alison Hill. With federal funding, the organization has advanced an effort to build such housing on Hummel Street in Harrisburg. It’s part of an effort to add more affordable housing to the city’s housing stock. Also, a key White House adviser was invited here today to discuss whether there is more work to be done. Thank you. We’re trying. Veteran Damon Lee Taylor shows off his Swatara Street home to Tom Perez, senior advisor to the president. Taylor, who overcame homelessness, is now building a home with the help of $250,000 in federal block grant funds. This is my first time here, so I’ve been here a year and four months, and I’m really blessed. I’m really blessed. Perez’s visit to Harrisburg came just months before Democrat President Joe Biden and former Republican President Donald Trump face off again in November. I asked Perez if the election results could potentially affect future funding for affordable housing. We will continue to work on these investments that contribute to building communities, making neighborhoods safe, and, more important than ever, giving dignity to people like Taylor. But some Republicans say taxpayer money isn’t the only solution to boosting homeownership rates. Rather than starting with public investment, state Rep. Thomas Katz wants to repeal the property sales tax for first-time homebuyers. “We should start by looking at what we can do to ease the burden on homeowners and reduce their tax burden,” Perez said. Affordable housing isn’t just a Harrisburg issue, and Perez plans to visit other parts of Pennsylvania today as part of an effort to highlight where federal funding could help.
White House senior adviser visits Harrisburg to highlight investments in affordable housing
Last updated: May 28, 2024 at 7:51 PM EDT
Federal funds are being used to boost affordable housing development in Harrisburg, and on Tuesday Biden administration officials visited the city to tour a project in South Allison Hill aimed at getting more first-time homebuyers into the home market. Tom Perez, senior advisor to the president, toured homes built on Swatara and Hamel streets in the city and highlighted how hundreds of thousands of dollars from the federal government have been used to build affordable housing in the city. Both projects were made possible with the help of hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal funds allocated to Tri-County Housing Development. The city also set aside $8 million to put toward affordable housing projects. “We have to keep building. That’s what the president said a few months ago. That’s what we have to do,” Mayor Perez said after touring the Hamel Street home. Mayor Perez and Mayor Wanda Williams toured a home on Swatara Street owned by Damon Lee Taylor. Taylor is a military veteran who previously experienced homelessness, but he received support from local organizations and was eventually able to secure financing to purchase a home as a first-time buyer. Taylor said he was proud to be a homeowner and described it as a life-changing experience. “It’s a great feeling to have something you can call your own and even give away, something that has value,” he said.
Federal funding is being used to spur affordable housing development in Harrisburg, and on Tuesday a Biden administration official visited the city to outline a project in South Allison Hill aimed at bringing more first-time homebuyers into the home market.
Tom Perez, a senior adviser to the president, visited the homes being built on Swatara and Hummel streets in the city and highlighted how hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal funds have been used to open affordable housing in the city.
Both projects were made possible with the help of hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal funding allocated to the Tri-County Housing Development. The city also set aside $8 million to use for affordable housing projects.
“We have to keep building. That’s what the president said a few months ago. That’s what we have to do,” he said after visiting a home on Hamel Street.
Perez and Mayor Wanda Williams visited the home on Swatara Road owned by Damon Lee Taylor, a military veteran who had previously experienced homelessness but, with help from local organizations, was eventually able to secure financing to purchase a home as a first-time buyer.
Taylor is proud to own the home and said it has been a life-changing experience.
“Something you can call your own and even give away to somebody else, that’s a great feeling. It’s worth it,” he said.
