On a bright sunny day, Age Friendly Raymond team members
traveled to Augusta for a long-awaited announcement. Meeting in the Hall of
Flags, Susan Moore, Laurie Wallace and Sheila Bourque were welcomed by State
Representative Jessica Fay and given a tour of the Capital. They were treated to a picture on the House
floor with the Representative and were given Maine State pins.
Visitors were treated to lunch and the Hall was a festive
gathering place for over 200 seniors and
guests awaiting Governor Mills
arrival. The housing bond, approved by almost 70 percent of Maine voters
in a statewide referendum, will fund construction of more than 200 new
affordable housing units for low-income seniors and the weatherization of
another 100 existing homes for low-income seniors. The bond will also trigger
more than $22.5 million in matching federal funds. According to the Maine
Affordable Housing Coalition, more than 9,000
seniors are currently waiting for safe, affordable housing.
 |
| Age Friendly Raymond steering committee visits the State House on AARP Tuesdays. Sheila Bourque, Rep.Fay, Susan Moore and Laurie Wallace |
The financial order Governor Mills signed on January 15 will
allow $500,000 to be used immediately to fund ongoing projects for home repair
and weatherization. Governor Mills also signed a letter to Maine Treasurer
Henry Beck declaring her intent to authorize the sale of the remainder of the
bond for any ready projects come June.
“While the people of Maine authorized this bond more than 1,000
days ago, today we proudly move forward in our goal of ensuring all Maine
seniors can live safely and with dignity and comfort in the homes and
communities they love,” said Governor Janet Mills. “It’s time to build more
affordable senior housing as the voters intended.”
After the press conference the team attended a meeting of the
Caucus on Aging, co-chaired by Representative Fay and were given a preview of
the many bills that legislators were working on for the coming session.
Age Friendly Raymond meets on the second Monday of the month at
2 p.m. at the Raymond Public Safety Building.
No comments:
Post a Comment