HUD BOOSTS ITS OPERATIONS IN HOUSTON
New staffing will create a 'full service' presence in the Bayou City

HOUSTON - The Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced it is increasing its field office operations in the Bayou City, providing a more robust level of service, particularly in the area of community planning and development.

HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson made the announcement today while Assistant Secretary Pam Patenaude along
with Assistant Deputy Secretary A. Jo Baylor visited the Houston Office to discuss the new service capabilities with staff. While the Houston Office has long been an important part of the community, one of HUD's major program
areas, the Office of Community Planning and Development (CPD), has been administered from Fort Worth.

"Today begins a new era in HUD's presence in Houston," said Jackson. "This will mean better service for the people and places in the City that need our assistance the most. We felt that with all that Houston has done to help find homes for displaced families in the Gulf Region, it was time that HUD become a more forceful presence in the City as well."

HUD's Houston field office will now be able to offer communities in the Houston metropolitan area the full spectrum
of the Department's program expertise. CPD will join HUD's Multifamily, Single Family, Public Housing, and Fair Housing as program areas directly monitored by Houston staff. Ms. Sandra Warren, who was previously with the New Orleans HUD Office, has been named the new Director of CPD for the Houston area.

CPD activities include many different programs that provide assistance to a wide variety of grantees. One program, the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, provides annual grants on a formula basis to entitled
cities, urban counties and states. Funds are used to develop viable urban communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment, and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for low- and moderate-
income persons. CDBG Disaster Recovery Assistance provides flexible grants to help cities, counties, and States recover from Presidentially declared disasters, especially in low-income areas.

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. For more information about FHA products, please visit www.fha.gov.

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