HUD CLOSES TAMPA AND ORLANDO FIELD OFFICES

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced that it is closing its Tampa and Orlando offices on Friday, as part of a realignment first announced last year. The closings are part of a Departmental effort to realign staff in order to better support program delivery. Additionally, the agency expects to realize significant operational savings by closing a number of small offices.

The sixteen total existing employees in the Tampa and Orlando offices have been offered buyouts, early retirement or relocation to other HUD offices. The agency plans to retain at least one office in each state. Florida will retain HUD offices in Jacksonville and Miami. Those offices and the Regional office in Atlanta will continue to deliver HUD programs to the Tampa and Orlando service areas.

"We have had to make some extremely tough decisions in this difficult fiscal environment and this is one of them" said Ed Jennings, HUD SE Regional Administrator. "Still, we know we can implement this realignment while continuing to meet the needs of the Tampa, Orlando and the Central Florida region. This decision will not impact the delivery of HUD programs to these communities."

Last year, HUD closed field offices in Syracuse, Camden, Springfield, Flint, Grand Rapids, Cincinnati, Shreveport, Dallas, Lubbock, and Spokane.

###

HUD's mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all. HUD is working to strengthen the housing market to bolster the economy and protect consumers; meet the need for quality affordable rental homes: utilize housing as a platform for improving quality of life; build inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination; and transform the way HUD does business. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and espanol.hud.gov. You can also follow HUD on twitter @HUDnews, on facebook at www.facebook.com/HUD, or sign up for news alerts on HUD's News Listserv.