American Legion Beyond Help of Non-Profit

After a to not move forward with seeking a Rebuilding Together Bergen County grant application for repairs to the building, Community Outreach Coordinator Lynn Buckingham met with the River Edge governing body on Monday evening to discuss what the group could do for the town.

"The American Legion is beyond what help we could offer, but we could help local homeowners," Buckingham said.

Rebuilding Together Bergen County preserves affordable housing and revitalizes communities by providing critical home repairs at no cost to those in need by offering a Community Building Application for non-profit and community buildings that are in need of repair so that it could better serve low-income seniors, veterans, or families with children.

"We are funded by local community organizations, faith-based groups and individual donors," Buckingham said. "We repair between 10 to 20 homes a year with the help of volunteers including licensed plumbers and electricians. We'd be happy to work in River Edge, the hardest part is getting our name known in a given town and helping seniors see that we are a legitimate free source of help."

According to Buckingham, since the creation of Rebuilding Together, the group has rebuilt over 200 homes in 45 towns. To be chosed as a project home, homeowners submit an application between May 1 and November 1, then an evaluator is sent to the residence to determine what work needs to be done. Homeowners can request specific work as well. After the November 1 deadline, Rebuilding Together will choose 10 home projects for the coming year. 

"We did a fairly significant project a few years ago in Bergenfield on a two-bedroom Cape Cod," Buckingham said. "The family had three children, one who was autistic and was deemed ready to return home after living in a residential facility. The adults were sleeping in the living room and the two other children each had one of the bedrooms. The family wanted a separate bedroom for the third child so we converted the basement into two additional bedrooms, a play area and cordoned off the laundry room. That was one of our larger projects because we also had to include egress windows."

Annual projects that are chosen are also based following the HUD guidelines on income ranging from a single person residence making $47,000 to a five person home with an annual income of $73,000. The majority of homeowners though are senior citizens who are living off of social security or disability.

"We are planning work for a home in Hackensack with a family of five," Buckinham said. "There are three children, the mother was recently laid off and while the father is working, he's not in his chosen field. Projects are based on low-income, not poverty."

The  which is slated for demolition, is currently waiting to to determine if there is any asbestos, underground storage tanks or lead paint on site. The borough is expected to seek a request for proposals from professionals to determine if there are any environmental concerns relating to the detoriating building.

The Dutch Colonial-style building is approximately between 80 to 90 years old but is  along with not being ADA compliant. An estimate by architect Peter Pulice showed that repairing the building could cost the borough between $300,000 to $1.3 million. Along with mold remediation and bringing the building into ADA compliance, the duct work is exposed on the exterior, there is a need for new windows and roof, proper building insulation, repairs to the foundation, and electrical work. The American Legion also does not meet current borough codes as well for fire safety or ventilation.