Hurricane, Building Together team up for needy homeowners

HURRICANE -- Hurricane City Hall and Building Together of Charleston are taking steps to help needy Putnam County homeowners.

Ben Newhouse, Hurricane City manager, says the city partnered with the nonprofit organization about 10 months ago to provide housing rehabilitation throughout the community. So far, three families have been approved for or have received new roofing, another received a new heating flue, while another will soon have a handicapped shower lift installed along with bathroom remodeling costing roughly $11,000, the biggest project tackled thus far.

Newhouse explained that the organization operates primarily from donations and has an annual budget in the $250,000 range. All the funds needed to complete these projects are donated by the organization and require no repayment.

Previously serving only Kanawha County, Newhouse and Jay Gibson, city building inspector/code enforcement officer, approached the organization to expand their efforts into Putnam County.

"We're averaging one project every two months which is pretty amazing," Newhouse said.

Acting as investigators to find needs in the community, the city has recently submitted roughly 25 applications to the organization for review. There are some requirements to be considered for the program which include being a homeowner/occupant, a review of tax information and income considerations.

Newhouse says this organization's support is so vital to the community.

"We didn't have the resources to take on some of these projects and funding is always an issue," he said. "They seem to work with a lot of different organizations and get contributions. And, as a result, the program seems to be working very well."

Applications to be considered for the program can be picked up at City Hall on Teays Valley Road. If you have questions about the program or would like to know how to donate to the organization, call Newhouse or Gibson at 304-562-5896.