ARPA Funding Overview
Many manufactured housing communities (also known as mobile home parks) in Vermont struggle to provide clean and adequate drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, and drainage systems. The Healthy Homes Initiative Manufactured Housing Communities Program has over $10 million in ARPA funding to provide technical and financial assistance to remedy those challenges and support safe, affordable housing. This funding will improve living conditions for people in manufactured housing communities and help residents follow Vermont's environmental regulations. The funding can be used to complete a needs assessment, receive technical assistance, and cover construction costs necessary to implement water infrastructure solutions.
The program is currently accepting applications for funding from registered manufactured housing communities (MHCs) who have water infrastructure problems. The application period will be open Thursday, August 31, 2023 – Tuesday, October 17, 2023.
Eligibility
For-profit (private), non-profit, and cooperatively owned manufactured housing communities registered with the State of Vermont’s Mobile Home Park Registry can apply for funding through a competitive application. Funding can be used to determine what water infrastructure projects need to be completed, receive technical and permitting assistance, or cover construction costs necessary to fix existing infrastructure issues. The program has limited funding, and it is unlikely that all applicants will receive funding. Selection criteria are described in the application materials.
How to Apply
The application is posted on the Vermont Bid System:
The application materials in the link above include two files for applicants:
- Application Information and Instructions: This file includes essential information on the program and how to apply.
- Application Packet: There are three versions of the application packet, and each is specific to an MHC ownership type (resident owned cooperative, non-profit owned, and privately owned MHCs). If an MHC is interested in applying for funding, they should fill out and submit the application packet that matches the ownership type of their community. Each packet includes a checklist of all required forms that must be submitted with the application.
If you have questions, view the Q&A document.
Examples of eligible projects
- Needs assessments of manufactured housing communities for future drinking water / wastewater / stormwater / drainage projects
- Obtaining technical assistance / engineering designs for drinking water / wastewater / stormwater / drainage construction projects
- Water source redevelopment / installations
- Connections to municipal water / sewer projects
- Installation / repair of on-site water or wastewater (septic) systems
- Stormwater retrofits, installations, and developments
- Improvements to site drainage including moving sites out of floodplains / river corridors
- Water supply distribution system installations / repairs
- Wastewater collection system installations / repairs
- Other drinking water, wastewater (septic/sewer), stormwater, or drainage projects may also be eligible in registered Manufactured Housing Communities. To ask whether a project is eligible, contact: ANR.HealthyHomes@vermont.gov or 802-828-0141 or 877-344-0354 (toll-free).
Equity Considerations
The Healthy Homes Manufactured Housing Communities Program is providing water infrastructure funding to manufactured housing communities to invest in healthy, reliable infrastructure to address drinking water, wastewater, stormwater and drainage issues, resulting in healthier, more resilient living spaces for residents in manufactured housing communities, a historically underserved group in Vermont.
Manufactured housing communities are disproportionately impacted by environmental justice issues in Vermont. According to the Vermont Rural Environmental Justice Opportunities Informed by Community Expertise (REJOICE), during Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, 40% of those impacted by Irene were manufactured housing community residents, even though these residents only make up 8% of the state’s population.
Research has shown that Vermonters, particularly low-income Vermonters, have disproportionately experienced increased impacts from COVID-19 compared to the general population of Vermont and the US. Additionally, manufactured housing communities typically represent a number of low-income Vermonters.
By focusing efforts on manufactured housing communities through technical assistance, needs assessments, and construction funding programs, Vermont is providing direct relief and technical and financial assistance to a demographic of Vermont’s population that have historically been underserved, under-represented, and overburdened.
Learn More
If you have any questions, you can reach out by email or phone at ANR.HealthyHomes@vermont.gov or 802-828-0141 or 877-344-0354 (toll-free).
The ANR ARPA Healthy Homes team hosted a virtual information session on September 13, 2023.
The first round of applications for funding through the ARPA Healthy Homes MHC program was open in summer 2022. This press release includes a preliminary list of awardees from that application period.
Other complementary funding sources include the USDA. More information on existing funding and technical assistance for water infrastructure projects.