On Thursday, May 14, the Neighborhood Enterprise Division in partnership with local nonprofit agency, Pensacola Civitan Club, completed a 5-by-5-foot deck and a 12-foot wheelchair ramp for a county resident through the wheelchair ramp pilot program.
The wheelchair ramp pilot partnership program aims to help county residents maintain independence and improve wheelchair accessibility to their homes.
The Neighborhood Enterprise Division has completed nine wheelchair ramps this fiscal year, with the average materials cost being $808 per ramp. Nineteen ramps have been completed since the commission approved the pilot program in February 2019, with the help of community partners Pensacola Civitan Club, Council on Aging of West Florida, Pensacola Habitat for Humanity, and Ray of Hope of Northwest Florida.
Under the pilot program, the county will work with nonprofit agencies to build the ramps, with the agencies providing volunteer labor for construction and the county providing funding for materials.
These agencies are looking for handy volunteers to support their ramp building initiatives. For volunteer opportunities, please contact the agencies below:
- Pensacola Civitan Club: 850-255-9796
- Council on Aging of West Florida: 850-266-2518
- Pensacola Habitat for Humanity: 850-434-5456
- Ray of Hope of Northwest Florida: 850-995-0007
Aid will be targeted to owner occupants residing in Escambia County whose income is at or below 80 percent of area median income. Consideration may be given to non-owner occupied properties on a case-by-case basis. Assistance is provided as a grant with no payback requirements. Escambia County Neighborhood Enterprise Division will accept referrals from participating agencies and will screen applicants for eligibility.
View general program information or volunteer details here, or contact Meredith Reeves in the Neighborhood Enterprise Division at 850-595-4968.
Homeowners interested in applying for assistance may contact the Escambia County Neighborhood Enterprise Division at 850-595-0022 or ned@myescambia.com.
A wheelchair ramp recently installed by the Pensacola Civitan Club. Materials for similar ramps may be funded by Escambia County through the wheelchair ramp pilot program.