Photo courtesy Woodlands Development & Lending The Henry Avenue Apartments in Elkins provide a trio of three-bedroom units of in-fill workforce housing, designed to blend in with the residential neighborhood.

ELKINS — Woodlands Development and Lending has been awarded a $328,000 Maximizing Appalachian Capacity grant to offer services to Randolph and Tucker counties.

With the MAC Grant funding, Woodlands will establish locally managed Housing Investment Funds to serve the two counties, offering low-interest loans for community-driven housing development. The program will “provide a sustainable tool for local investment and help residents, banks, and community leaders work together to advance housing solutions tailored to each county’s unique needs,” a Woodlands press release states.

“We believe that communities know their own needs best. Tucker and Randolph Counties include neighboring but distinct communities, each with unique housing needs,” said Dave Clark, Executive Director of Woodlands.

The grant comes from Fahe, a regional network of more than 50 nonprofit housing organizations dedicated to building thriving communities and expanding opportunity across Appalachia.

“The Fahe MAC Grant allows us to create flexible Housing Investment Funds that respond to those local priorities and strengthen our shared region,” Clark said. “Fahe has been a great partner to Woodlands for a long time and this grant further demonstrates the value they bring to the region and to the work that we do in our communities.”

The MAC Grant will support one of nine projects led by 11 nonprofit Fahe Members, totaling $2.4 million in direct investment to strengthen local capacity for affordable housing and community development in the region. The awards will leverage $19.4 million in additional funding, build staff capacity, increase housing production, create job training and new jobs, and serve over 600 households.

“Appalachia’s future depends on strong local institutions,” said Jim King, Fahe CEO. “These awards give our Members funding to pursue the tools, talent, and infrastructure they need to accelerate housing and community development across the region.”

Fahe established the competitive grant program as part of their Housing Can’t Wait campaign to expand access to affordable housing in Appalachia by 2030. Since 1980, Fahe and its Members have invested nearly $5 billion, improving life for more than one million people through housing, advocacy, and local leadership. Learn more at www.fahe.org.  

Woodlands Development and Lending works with communities in North Central West Virginia to develop housing, revitalize downtowns, create public amenities and finance new and growing small businesses. For more information, go to www.woodlandswv.org.