Walk down Mill Street in Danville and you see two- and three-story buildings, many from the iron age of the 1840s through the early 20th Century. Out in Mahoning, Valley, Limestone, Derry and the other townships, homes sit on ridges and sloping lots above the North Branch of the Susquehanna River. Both settings put stairs at the center of daily life.
This page walks through how Montour County homes affect the kind of stair lift that fits, and which programs may help pay for one. It covers all 10 towns, from Washingtonville and Mayberry to Anthony, Liberty and West Hemlock.
Montour County has 8,178 housing units, and 1,643 of them were built in 1939 or earlier. In the Danville Historic District, homes range from small vernacular houses to Second Empire mansions, with Italianate, Federal, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, Queen Anne and Colonial Revival styles mixed in.
Many of these homes still have their original narrow staircases. A straight stair lift often works on a narrow straight run because the rail mounts to the treads, not the wall. Stairs with a landing, a turn or a winding section usually need a curved rail built to that staircase.
Local housing includes single-family homes, row houses, townhouses, walk-up apartments and split-level homes. Row houses and townhouses tend to have one long straight flight, which is often the simplest install.
Split-level homes are different. They have several short flights, so a family may need more than one lift, or may decide which level matters most for bedrooms and bathrooms. Walk-up apartments raise a separate question: the building owner usually has to approve anything mounted on a shared stair.
The county sits in the Appalachian ridge-and-valley region. Elevation runs from about 438 ft near where Mahoning Creek meets the Susquehanna to 460 ft at the Danville borough center and up to 1,110 ft on the northwestern boundary.
That terrain means many homes have raised entries and steps up from the driveway or sidewalk. An outdoor stair lift, built to handle weather, can cover porch or entry steps. For someone who uses a wheelchair and cannot transfer to a seat, a platform lift is the option to discuss.
About 21.1% of Montour County residents are 65 or older, and 68.0% of households own their homes. Of the 8,178 housing units, 5,468 are owner-occupied. Owners can usually decide on a stair lift without asking a landlord.
Geisinger Medical Center in Danville is the region's dominant employer and a major referral center for northern Pennsylvania. Many families coming home after a hospital stay start thinking about stairs at that point.
Several programs can help, depending on age, disability and veteran status. The Community HealthChoices waiver lists stair lifts by name among home adaptations. The VA Specially Adapted Housing grant can fund a stair lift as part of an approved plan.
For residents 60 and older, the Columbia-Montour Aging Office at 26 E. Main St. in Bloomsburg is the starting point for OPTIONS and waiver enrollment. Call (570) 784-9272. Veterans can also reach the Office of Veterans Affairs at 435 East Front Street in Danville at (570) 271-3061. Details on each program are below.
A Medicaid waiver for people 21 and older with a physical disability who meet a nursing-facility level of care; environmental adaptations, including stair lifts, are covered case by case based on medical necessity. Call (866) 550-4355.
A Medicaid waiver for people 18 and older with a developmental physical disability that began before age 22; environmental adaptations are a covered category, though stair lifts are not named specifically. Call (866) 550-4355.
A state-funded in-home services program for Pennsylvania residents 60 and older, with no income requirement but a possible sliding-scale copay; it offers home modifications, though stair lifts are not named and funds depend on the county budget. Call (717) 783-1550 or the local aging office.
The single point of entry for residents 60 and older in Columbia and Montour Counties for OPTIONS, waiver enrollment and caregiver support; ask directly about current stair lift funding. Call (570) 784-9272.
A Center for Independent Living serving people with disabilities in Montour and nearby counties, offering home-modification consultation and help coordinating assistive technology; stair lift funding varies, so ask directly. Call (570) 327-9070.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 for veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities who own or will own the home; a stair lift can be funded as part of an approved home-adaptation plan. Call (800) 827-1000.
A federal grant of up to $25,350 for veterans with certain service-connected disabilities such as loss of use of both hands; stair lifts are not named on the VA page, but one can be part of an approved adaptation plan. Call (800) 827-1000.
Older adults
26 E. Main St., Bloomsburg, 17815
Veterans
435 East Front Street, Danville, 17821
Often, yes. Many homes in the Danville Historic District have original narrow staircases, and a straight lift mounts to the treads. Turns or landings call for a curved rail made for that staircase.
The Community HealthChoices waiver lists stair lifts among covered home adaptations for people 21 and older who qualify for Medicaid and need a nursing-facility level of care. Approval is case by case. Call (866) 550-4355.
The OPTIONS Program has no income requirement for residents 60 and older, though a sliding-scale copay may apply and home-modification funds are limited. Start with the Columbia-Montour Aging Office at (570) 784-9272.
No. The HISA grant does not cover stair lifts. The Specially Adapted Housing and Special Home Adaptation grants are the VA pathways when a stair lift is part of an approved plan.
The Office of Veterans Affairs is at 435 East Front Street in Danville, phone (570) 271-3061. The VA's national line is (800) 827-1000.
Raised entries are common on the county's sloping lots. An outdoor stair lift can handle entry steps, and a platform lift is an option for someone who stays in a wheelchair.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
