OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — An Oshkosh nonprofit dedicated to building, enhancing and sustaining local neighborhoods has turned $143,000 in grant reimbursements into over $709,000 in homeowner investments through its Good Neighbor Grant program.
The Good Neighbor Grant program, run by Oshkosh Healthy Neighborhoods, started in 2020. It is a curb appeal reimbursement program totaling up to $1,000. If a homeowner puts down $250, they are eligible for an additional $750 in grants to help improve their home.
To date, over 250 grants have been approved, with 60 this year alone. And demand is only rising.
Liz Last, executive director of Oshkosh Healthy Neighborhoods, said the grants have had a major return on investment.
“In the 1st 5 years of the program, we have invested over $143,000 in grant reimbursement, which has equaled over $709,000 in homeowner investments in their property,” Last said.
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Oshkosh grant program sparks over $709,000 in neighborhood investment
Carmen Leal, an Oshkosh resident and grant recipient, said the program helps improve the look of the city and helps keep existing housing intact. She used grant money to help finance a roofing project for her porch, which was at risk of caving in.
“The first year we focused on landscaping. The whole project ended up being about $2,200, which is really a boost for Oshkosh if you can get a resident to do that kind of work on your house,” Leal said. “It’s more than just beauty. We want to preserve these homes. We don’t want to see it falling upon itself.”
Grant money comes from the city, fundraising and, soon, rent payments from a new property being built by Oshkosh Healthy Neighborhoods.
I visited the property being built to learn more about the organization’s development plans.
“One of the pillars of our organization is property development and investing in property within neighborhood associations. So the two bedroom units will rent each for approximately $1,100 per month, and they are potentially subsidized based on what the tenants can afford,” Last said.
The property was initially bought from the city for just $1. The current timeline for the new neighborhood affordable housing to be complete is around this coming January.
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