Stonington — Eight months after the town launched a housing rehabilitation loan program, one project is underway and two more are in the pipeline.

The Housing Rehabilitation Loan Program, launched in May, is intended to help low- and moderate-income households make home improvements that they otherwise may not be able to afford and enhance access to quality housing. The program is funded with $150,000 in federal American Rescue Plan money.

The first project is addressing safety issues with porches and exterior stairways.

“The goal is to keep the homeowner and her tenant in the home, and so work is moving as quick as we can, but it’s too soon to say when it will be complete,” First Selectman Danielle Chesebrough said.

Two other applications have preliminary approval. One involves a roof repair and the second will be for a new boiler and other changes that allow a homeowner to live primarily on the first floor of their home.

The next steps in both projects are to get approvals from the building department for plans and bid out the work before signing agreements with the homeowners.

“The housing loan program is near and dear to my heart,” Chesebrough said. “It’s a really heavy lift — much harder than I ever thought anything could possibly be — but hopefully it’s something that will help.”

Chesebrough initially proposed the town use $500,000 from its $5.2 million in ARPA funds, but the Board of Finance cut that request to $150,000 to fund the pilot program.

She said she initially received some push back on the program, with people suggesting the funding was so small and the types of projects it would be paying for were so costly that the program would only be able to help a handful of people.

“Those are five people that will be able to stay in their houses, and there’s nowhere else for them to go because we don’t have any housing stock,” she said.

In exchange for a loan to make specific home improvements, the town will hold a mortgage on the properties and have an affordable housing deed restriction — meaning the property would have to remain affordable — for the length of the loan. The deed restriction will also allow the properties to count towards the town’s supply of affordable housing.

Housing is designated affordable when it is sold or rented at or below prices for which a household pays 30% or less of their income. In Stonington, the median family household income is $79,250.

Those who obtain loans can repay them through a payment plan, or when the property is sold, refinanced or transferred.

“It’s something we fought really hard for,” Chesebrough said, adding, she was grateful for the money to start the pilot program.

No-interest deferred loans are available to owner-occupied households earning 80% or less of median household income for the Norwich-New London Metropolitan Statistical Area, or $78,500 for a family of four, according to a housing market study that was conducted for the town's most recent affordable housing plan.

Low-interest loans are available to investor-owners whose tenants meet income criteria and agree to specific affordable rent requirements. The interest rate is 3%, payable monthly over a five-year term.

Information about the program, including how to apply, are available on the town website, stonington-ct.gov. Anyone interested in learning more can contact the Human Services Department at (860) 535-5015.