A newspaper photograph of the Gratz Park Terrace, Gratz, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, taken in summer 1985 at about the time of the dedication of the 30-unit building. The photo appeared in the Pottsville Republican on August 2, 1985. with the following caption:
The new Gratz Park Terrace will provide housing for the elderly and handicapped. The building was dedicated Monday and residential applications are being taken by the Housing Authority of the County of Dauphin. Applicants must be at least 62 years of age or meet federal handicapped guidelines. Income levels must also meet federal standards.
From the first proposals for this project, some long-time Gratz residents fought its implementation, and after it was built and occupied, continued to speak ill of the “type” of person who was ling there. Specifically, they were opposed to the non-discrimination requirements in regard to race, but instead referred to the “element” living there and that the occupants were “outsiders” who had illegally obtained food assistance and lost-cost housing all at the expense of the “hard working, law-abiding” people of Gratz.
An article describing the dedication of the facility appeared in the Pottsville Republican, July 17, 1985:
HOUSING DEDICATION SCHEDULED
GRATZ — A ceremony to dedicate the Gratz Park Terrace, a 30-unit housing complex for the elderly and handicapped located at the West and South Fourth Streets, will be held at 1:30 p.m. Monday, July 29 [1985].
The building, whose total cost is estimated at $1,293,269, is a wood frame structure with 30 fully equipped apartments, said the Housing Authority of the County of Dauphin in a news release.
The authority said energy saving features, such as solar hot water heating, will be used in the building.
Federal funds allocated to the authority through the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Low Rent Public Housing Program were used to construct the building, the authorities said.
The Dauphin County Housing Authority will manage and maintain Gratz Park Terrace Applications for admission are now being accepted at the authority headquarters in the Latsha Towers, 501 Mohn St., Steelton, of at the Rattling Creek Apartment, Second and Arlington Streets, Lykens.
Admission is restricted to people who are at least 62 years of age, or handicapped individuals who meet federal Social Security regulations.
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News articles from Newspapers.com.
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