HUD AWARDS THE BRONX $1.3 MILLION TO HELP PERSONS LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS

NEW YORK - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Deputy Secretary Roy Bernardi was joined by Rep. Jos� E.
Serrano and Ms. Lorraine Montenegro, Executive Director of United Bronx Parents, Inc. and other community leaders to announce that United Bronx Parents was awarded a grant of $1,338,999 to assist persons living with HIV/AIDS. The award is part of a nationwide announcement made earlier by Housing and Urban Development Secretary
Alphonso Jackson in which 16 programs across the country were awarded a total of $18.7 million.

This funding is part of HUD's Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) Program. Housing assistance and services funded by HOPWA are a vital part of the comprehensive system of care for those living with HIV/AIDS. A stable home environment is critical for low-income persons managing complex drug therapies and potential side
effects from their treatments.

"This funding will help United Bronx Parents provide critically needed services and permanent housing solutions for those who need it most," said Bernardi. "Staying healthy is a full time job for persons with HIV/AIDS, and these
local projects provide real housing solutions for those who might otherwise be calling the streets their home."

New York City has the highest new case rate of persons with AIDS of any metropolitan area in the United States - four times higher than that of Chicago or Los Angeles. A disproportionate share of this epidemic falls on low-income Latin and African-American communities - such as in certain areas of the South Bronx - resulting in the need for transitional supportive housing settings for active, substance abusers.

"I'm very happy that HUD's Housing Opportunities for People with AIDS program will be supporting the innovative
work being carried out by United Bronx Parents," Serrano said. "People living with HIV/AIDS deserve all the support
our communities and government can give them, so that they are able to live a full and rich lives. This grant will
help make that support a reality for many people with HIV/AIDS in the Bronx."

"The opportunity and the ability to provide a well-thought-out, culturally sensitive program to men and women
who are battling a plethora of social issues is my daily mantra," said Montenegro. "There ain't nothing you can't do
- United Bronx Parents is a living example of this."

United Bronx Parents will use its HOPWA renewal grant of $1.3 million to continue its operations at Casita Esperanza (The Little House of Hope), which provides transitional housing for homeless, substance using men and women living with HIV. Casita Esperanza is the only program of its kind in the country that uses the harm reduction philosophy to help active substance using "seropositive" individuals to reduce and stop drug use while providing intensive independence living skills and recovery readiness interventions in order to prepare clients to move into independent living.

"Deputy Secretary Bernardi's strength and leadership is vital in both recognizing and helping the most vulnerable in
our society," said Sean M. Moss, HUD Regional Director for New York and New Jersey. "To aid us in this most
important mission, we are turning to United Bronx Parents, a valuable and important partner that has a long and storied history in providing care and comfort to all New Yorkers."

The local programs awarded funding nationwide will help 545 households to find transitional supportive housing for
the next three years and will seek to move these families into more permanent arrangements with greater self-sufficiency. In addition to the $18.7 million awarded nationwide, these programs will stimulate another $23.5 million from other public and private sources so they can further assist their clients.

Ninety percent of HOPWA funds are distributed by formula to cities and states based on the number of AIDS cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HUD's formula grants are managed by 121 local and
state jurisdictions, which coordinate AIDS housing efforts with other HUD and community resources. This year, HUD
is making available a total of $282 million in HOPWA funds to help communities provide housing for this special needs population.

HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities; creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development as
well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet and espanol.hud.gov.

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