The Community Development segment of this office includes the City of Oskaloosa Housing Trust Fund.

The national award winning Oskaloosa Housing Trust Fund (OHTF) was established by the City Council in November of 2000. The OHTF administers several different programs to address the various housing issues within the City of Oskaloosa. Programs of the OHTF include: down payment and closing cost assistance for home purchases; demolition of dilapidated housing structures, urgent repairs for owner occupied homes and an exterior improvement program.

The Grant and Lincoln Elementary Schools rehabilitation projects were accomplished through a partnership between the Oskaloosa Community School District, the City of Oskaloosa, Mahaska County Agency on Aging Senior Center, The Oskaloosa Housing Trust Fund and Community Housing Initiatives, Inc. This collaboration of entities created 30 new low-income elderly housing units, a new senior center, a neighborhood park and six affordable single-family homes. Please follow this link to view before and after photos of the improvements to the historic buildings. Then click on the "Grant Lincoln Terrace Apartments" icon on the right side of the page. From there you can click "slide show" or "detail" to view the photos.

The OHTF annual report offers a glimpse of accomplishments and other activity for the calendar year 2010.