OBAMA ADMINISTRATION AWARDS ALMOST $1.6 MILLION TO ST. VINCENT DE PAUL FOR HOUSING FOR LOW-INCOME PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES IN COEUR D'ALENE
Award Expected to Generate Up to 28 Construction & Service Jobs

BOISE - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today competitively awarded $1,570,400 to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho to produce accessible housing, provide rental assistance, and facilitate supportive services for very low-income persons with disabilities.

St. Vincent de Paul will uses its grant - $1,428,500 in capital advance funds and $141,900 in rent subsidies - to construct and operate a 14-bed facility for the chronically mentally-ill in Coeur d'Alene. The grant to St. Vincent de Paul was among 92 grants HUD awarded today under the Section 811, Supportive Housing for Very Low-Income Persons with Disabilities program. Every $1 million in Section 811 awards is estimated to generate 20 construction
and service jobs and this award is expected to generate up to 28 jobs.

"The Obama Administration is committed to helping our senior citizens and persons with disabilities find a decent, affordable place to live that is close to needed healthcare services and transportation," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "Recent bipartisan changes to these two supportive housing programs will allow us to better serve some of our more vulnerable populations who would otherwise be struggling to find a safe and decent home of their own."

"In any time, but certainly in these times there is a pressing need in communities large and small across the country for accessible and affordable housing that helps some of our most vulnerable citizens live full and independent lives," said HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Mary McBride. "Our Section 811 program provides critical resources to our non-profit sector to expand the supportive housing stock and, thanks to recent legislative changes, to expand the numbers of people we can help to remain active members of the communities they call home."

Enacted earlier this year with strong bipartisan support, the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act provided needed enhancements and reforms in HUD's Section 811 program. Nonprofit grant recipients will now receive federal assistance that is better leveraged and better connected to state and local health care investments, allowing greater numbers of vulnerable elderly and disabled individuals to access the housing they need even more quickly.

As a result of today's awards, Section 811 Capital Advances will provide $137 million nationwide to assist very low-income persons with disabilities through 92 projects in 35 states. An additional $12.6 million will be available for project rental assistance contracts. Most of the housing supported through the Section 811 Program will be newly constructed, typically small apartment buildings, group homes for three to four persons, or condominium units that
are integrated into the larger community. Residents will pay 30 percent of their adjusted income for rent and the federal government will pay the rest.

The program provides housing for households with one or more very low-income individuals with a disability. At least one person must be 18 years or older and have a physical or developmental disability or chronic mental illness. The program provides persons with disabilities the opportunity to live independently in their communities by increasing the supply of rental housing with the availability of supportive services.

Under the Section 811 program, HUD provides these funds to non-profit organizations in two forms:

• Capital Advances. This is funding that covers the cost of developing, acquiring, or rehabilitating the development. Repayment is not required as long as the housing remains available for occupancy by very low-income elderly persons for at least 40 years for (under Section 202) or very low-income persons with disabilities (under Section 811).
  
  
• Project Rental Assistance Contracts. This is funding that goes to each development to cover the difference between the residents' contributions toward rent and the cost of operating the project.

Residents must be "very low income" with household incomes less than 50 percent of their median for that area. However, most households that receive Section 811 or Section 202 assistance earn less than 30 percent of the median for their area. Generally, this means that a one-person household will have an annual income of about $13,500.

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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 http://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.