Seaford rolls out a new program to encourage more workforce housing in the city.
The new plan would give certain new homeowners money to help with their purchase, according to Trisha Newcomer, the city’s Director of Economic Development and Community Relations.
“This would be an incentive that would provide $2,500 in closing costs to those individuals that would be buying a home located here within the corporate limits of Seaford," she said.
The incentive program would be limited to workers in certain sectors, including health care, logistics, government employees, active-duty military and law enforcement. City of Seaford employees and members of its fire department would be eligible for an additional $2,500.
Newcomer said the new measure would provide a lot of intangible benefits for the city.
“It's more than assistance," she said. "It's an investment in creating a strong, lasting community and building long-term neighbors.”
While Newcomer did not give specifics on the cost of the “Live Local” program, she suggested council eliminate a roughly fifteen year old program that waived some water and sewer impact fees for new developments.
“This did a great job for incentivizing development when we needed development. But now we need for our residents to be able to afford homes, and these incentives are not getting to those individuals in need," she told council members.
Council members approved the proposal unanimously. It is slated to go into effect July 1.
