HUD ANNOUNCES $1.8 MILLION FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN BAYONNE

NEWARK - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced that Bayonne will receive $1,798,105 to support community development and produce more affordable housing. HUD's annual funding will also help find homes for individuals and families living on the streets.

The FY2011 Continuing Resolution significantly reduced overall funding for HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) Programs compared to last year. The nation's CDBG funding was reduced by more than $600 million, or approximately 16.5 percent, while the HOME program funding was reduced by more than $200 million, or approximately 11.7 percent.

"This year's block grant funding requires tough choices that we would not have made in better circumstances," Donovan said. "As we work under the challenges of our nation's deficit, we must also understand that these programs are absolutely essential in promoting community development, producing affordable housing, helping our homeless and even supporting long-term disaster recovery."

The funding announced today includes:

• $ 1,403,747 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds; and
• $    394,358 in Emergency Shelter Grant (ESG).
  $1,798,105 TOTAL

Since 1974, HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program has provided approximately $134 billion to state and local governments to target their own community development priorities. The rehabilitation of affordable housing and the improvement of public facilities have traditionally been the largest uses of CDBG although the program is also an important catalyst for job growth and business opportunities. Annual CDBG funds are distributed to communities according to a statutory formula based on a community's population, poverty, and age of its housing stock, and extent of overcrowded housing.

Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG) provides homeless persons with basic shelter and essential supportive services. It can assist with the operational costs of the shelter facility, and for the administration of the grant. ESG also provides short-term homeless prevention assistance to persons at imminent risk of losing their own housing due to eviction, foreclosure, or utility shutoffs.

HUD is instituting several important program priorities this year. First, the Department's consolidated planning process will be enhanced. Largely unchanged since the mid-1990s, the 'Con Plan' will be simplified by integrating HUD's technology systems and eliminating the need to prepare a separate annual performance report. Second, HUD's Office of Community Planning and Development is moving rapidly to implement its unified OneCPD technical assistance process which is particularly important as many local governments continue to struggle with budgetary pressures resulting from the economic downturn. Finally, HUD is again urging grantees to consider the needs of returning veterans and their families in the design and administration of these formula programs.

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