Community Development

Community Development entails a wide range of activities, in Venango County− from street paving, sidewalk reconstruction, and handicapped-accessible building improvements to home rehabilitation grants for the county's low- and moderate-income homeowners, public infrastructure improvements, and blight removal.

These initiatives are primarily funded through State and Federal grants, such as the state-funded Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement (PHARE) Fund, and federal HUD-funded programs, such as the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME).

Community Development initiatives are administered out of the Venango County Regional Planning Commission office, on the first floor of the Venango County Courthouse, at 1168 Liberty Street, Franklin PA 16323.

To review required Environmental Review postings for these and upcoming projects, visit the environmental review posting page. 

The Venango County Housing Rehabilitation Program

The Venango County Regional Planning Commission administers the Housing Rehabilitation Program. The Program funding is grant-based (as opposed to loans, which need paid back), and is therefore 100% free of cost to eligible applicant homeowners. See below Repair/Replacement Standards for what types of work this program covers. Be advised that this Program currently operates on an approximate 3- to 5-year wait, due to the volume of applications received and the various grant funding cycle timelines.

One primary goal of this program is to ensure a safer, healthier housing stock for the County's current and future homeowners, and to avoid any deferred maintenance that can often put a home on the path to becoming a neighborhood blight. This program is a response to a Housing Market Analysis (czbLLC, 2009) which called for initiatives to stabilize the County's market, in part, by rehabilitating at-risk homes.

Eligibility is based on total household income (all household members, age 18 and up). Income-eligibility standards are based on the current year's HUD Income Limits. Eligible applicants must own and live in the home for which they are applying for rehabilitation assistance.

Some documents that will be required during the application review phase include: 

• Deed to home, 
• Most recent six (6) months bank statements, 
• Most recent three (3) months pay stubs (or other third-party payment statement, such as Social Security Benefits Statement), 
• Receipts showing local county/municipal/school taxes are paid to current, 
• Photo ID & Social Security cards (scanned copies to be held on file), 
• Homeowners insurance declaration page, and 
• Asset statements (when necessary)

To apply, click on the application document, below, relevant to where in Venango County you live. Intake applications can be emailed to joshua.sterling@venangocountypa.gov; or printed and mailed to the Venango County Regional Planning Commission, at 1168 Liberty St., PO Box 831, Franklin, Pa., 16323.

Additional Resources

• Oil City Community Development
• Franklin Community Development
• Venango County Human Services