Funding will forge a plan to transform Coopersdale and Oakhurst neighborhoods
Johnstown neighborhoods also will be connected to jobs, community services, healthy foods, bikeshare, and accessible laundry
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) secured a $500,000 neighborhood planning grant to transform two isolated and distressed housing complexes in Johnstown. This federal funding will enable the Johnstown Housing Authority to begin plans to revitalize 121 units in the city’s Coopersdale neighborhood and the surrounding area, connecting residents to jobs, community services, healthy food, and additional amenities. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is awarding the funding through the Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants Program and will support Johnstown’s broader vision to reduce longstanding challenges with poverty and unemployment in the community.
“Johnstown residents deserve to live in safe and affordable communities within vibrant neighborhoods,” said Senator Casey. “This award marks a critical step for the City to develop improved housing options for residents and families to call home. When we invest in safe, affordable housing that connects people to jobs and opportunities, we lift up entire communities.”
HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants Program funds locally driven improvements to public housing and the surrounding neighborhoods. Thanks to this funding, Johnstown Housing Authority and Cambria County Planning Commission can develop revitalization plans for a 121 units in a 65-year-old public housing complex in the Coopersdale neighborhood. The planning resources will enable Johnstown to forge a neighborhood transformation plan to create new, higher-quality affordable housing that is better connected to job hubs and community amenities including bikeshare, accessible laundry facilities, and healthy food.
Senator Casey las long called for Johnstown to receive Choice Neighborhood Planning Grants from HUD. In June 2023, he highlighted how many Johnstown affordable housing units were decades too old and urged HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge to support planning funding for community revitalization. This grant provides Johnstown with the critical opportunity to address poverty in the region by reimagining existing structures and community design, considering social determinants of health, and leveraging broader investments in economic revitalization.
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