Community action council replaces homes
Courtesy photoA mobile home was demolished earlier this month for replacement on Dodson Road in Ephrata.
COLUMBIA BASIN - One woman said she felt like a lottery winner after a mobile home she and her husband shared was replaced.
North Columbia Community Action Council is replacing three dilapidated homes in the Columbia Basin through a state department of Community, Trade and Economic Development pilot program.
Eligible candidates owned their own property or had a year-long lease at a mobile home park, said Energy & Weatherization Home Services Program Director Carolyn Schell. The homes were in too poor of condition for weatherization services.
"They have no decent heating systems, no cooling system, the floors are falling through, those kinds of things," Schell said.
One mobile home in Reardon and two mobile homes in rural Ephrata were demolished and replaced.
Department Lead Specialist Frances Sabedra said homeowners agreed to a 15-year deferred loan. As long as they stay in the home for 15 years, the payments are deferred.
Value of delivery and setup for the three-bedroom, two-bathroom homes was approximately $44,000, Schell said.
Homes received features such as an Energy Star package, dishwasher and refrigerator.
The first home replaced was located off Dodson Road in Ephrata. It is shared by an older husband and wife.
"The homeowner did say she felt like she had won the lottery," Sabedra said. "She cried."
One of the daughters said she could barely visit because their old home was so cold.
"They doubled their clothes and their socks just to keep warm," she said.
Schell noted the home replacement is a quick process.
"From the time they delivered it, it took them three days to connect everything," added Auditor Inspector Santos Medina Jr.
The home now needs just skirting and front-porch rails, he said. A second Ephrata home needs rails on the porches.
The third home was demolished and awaiting replacement, Schell said. She said employees hope the new home arrives next week.
Schell said North Columbia Community Action Council does not know if the pilot program will continue next year. The current program ends in December.