With tenant rents expected to decrease in the next year, Mercer County Housing Authority hopes to generate a little more revenue by getting apartments rented more quickly.

The goal of reducing the turnaround time from 30 days to fewer than 20 was established Wednesday when the board adopted the Agency Plan.

The plan, updated annually, is five binders thick and made up of authority policies, financial resources and a statement of housing needs as formulated in local, county and state plans.

The decrease in rents is tied to falling incomes of authority residents, said authority Director DeWitt Boosel. Getting residents moved in faster means more rent can be collected.

Once an apartment is vacant, it must be inspected, cleaned and repaired before a tenant can be signed up, Boosel said.

Sometimes, the delay is exacerbated by things beyond the authority's control, such as someone not wanting to move into a specific community or there being no one on the waiting list for a three-bedroom apartment.

"We are looking internally to try to do some things to speed that up," Boosel said. "It translates into additional revenue for the authority."

It also translates into a better score on the authority's annual report card from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, he said.

Money also is an issue in other areas. With the federal government ending the drug-elimination program, the authority has a year to find money to keep programs that were started with drug-elimination grants, such as the urban 4-H program, hiring a resident services coordinator and police foot patrols.

"I think it's vital to the health of some of our communities," Boosel said of maintaining programs started with drug-elimination funds. "We've seen a major difference in our communities where these services are."

The authority also wants resident groups to take over their own funding and make the Pennsylvania Business Impact Center, a business incubator, and Community Homebuyers Inc., a housing rehabilitation and home-ownership program, more self-sufficient.

For seniors, the authority wants to apply for a grant to hire another service coordinator, who would concentrate on residents of Lavigne and McDowell manors in Farrell and Sharon, respectively.

A coordinator already serves Fornelli and Vermeire manors in Sharon.

The plans list several proposals to encourage homeownership, including starting a home-ownership club for members to take classes on buying and operating a home, and staging a home-ownership fair.

The plan goes to HUD for review.

jpinchot@sharon-herald.com