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Outline
Available FundsThrough an annual allocation of funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), approximately $50 million in CDBG funds are available each year. New York State intends to allocate these funds to eligible non-entitlement grant recipients according to the following approximate allocations: annual round competition involving the funding categories of Housing, Public Facilities and Microenterprise (60%), open round Economic Development (35%), Imminent Threat (2%), Administration (2%), and Technical Assistance (1%). Actual allocation percentages are dependent upon the number of applications received in any given year. Eligible ApplicantsCities, towns, and villages located in non-entitlement areas with a population under 50,000 and counties with an unincorporated population of 200,000 are eligible to apply for CDBG funding through the Office of Community Renewal. Eligible applicants must be in substantial compliance with all applicable State and Federal laws, regulations, and Executive Orders that pertain to the CDBG Program. Types of ApplicationsNew York State's CDBG Small Cities Program is divided into three separate components: the Annual Competitive Round, which includes Comprehensive Grants; the Open Round for Economic Development Grants; and the Strategic Planning Technical Assistance Grants, available once a year. Applicants applying for a competitive round grant must address and resolve specific community development needs within the following three areas: (a) Housing, (b) Public Facilities, or (c) MicroEnterprise. Competitive round applications may consist of more than one activity under one of two conditions. First, if the additional activity is incidental to the primary activity, and second, if the activity involves two or more related activities to be carried out in a coordination manner to address a substantial community development need within a defined area or areas (comprehensive application). Applications for economic development activities, unless they are part of a Comprehensive application, are accepted by the Office of Community Renewal in a non-competitive, open-round format. Strategic Planning Technical Assistance applications are also accepted in a competitive format, but the competitive period generally runs in the fall of each year, and applications are accepted specifically for the preparation of Strategic Plans and related activities. Eligible applicants may apply individually or jointly once per Program Year for an annual competitive round grant. However, any eligible applicant may apply for a general economic development grant, in the Open Round and a Strategic Planning Technical Assistance grant in addition to submitting an annual round application. In addition to the above, the Office of Community Renewal will entertain additional inquiries for Imminent Threat / Contingency Applications that may result from the occurrence of certain federal or state declared disasters. If an Imminent Threat or Contingency Application is being considered, Applicants must first contact the Office of Community Renewal to determine eligibility and potential application requirements. Joint and County ApplicationsUnder New York State's CDBG Program, two or more eligible applicants facing a common problem may submit a joint application. In order to qualify, local governments must not only share a common problem, but must also be able to demonstrate that a joint effort is required to solve the problem. With the exception of housing applications, joint applications submitted only for administrative convenience are not accepted. Counties may apply on behalf of units of general local government located within their jurisdiction when the unit of general local government has authorized the county to apply. The unit of general local government will be considered the applicant for determining grant limits, and its statistics will be used for purpose of the selection factors. Housing and Public Facilities Grants: Towns, Cities or Villages: $400,000 Microenterprise Grants:
$400,000 Economic Development Grants: $750,000 (Economic Development applications must meet the minimum threshold of $100,000. Projects are generally expected to result in the creation or retention of at least one full-time equivalent job per $7,500 of CDBG funds provided.) Eligible ActivitiesThe activities eligible under the CDBG Program are identified in Section 105(a) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended and 24 CFR 570.482, as amended. Primary and National ObjectivesAll CDBG projects are required to meet the two program goals - the primary and national objectives. The primary objective of the CDBG program is to develop viable communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment by expanding economic opportunities, principally for persons of low and moderate income. To achieve this primary objective, applicants must ensure that at least 70 percent of its grant funds are used for activities that benefit low- and moderate-income families. In addition to meeting the primary objective, applicants must also meet one of the three National Objectives: benefit low- and moderate-income persons, prevent or eliminate slums and blight, or address an urgent community development need. All applicants must maintain data to demonstrate that the project is meeting one of the above listed objectives. Types of GrantsHousing 1. Housing Rehabilitation Many of New York State's communities are concerned with high rates of substandard housing that are difficult to reduce because of homeowners' inability to address costly repairs. In order to make an application competitive, a community should conduct two types of surveys: a housing conditions survey to determine the location and severity of the substandard conditions of housing, and an income survey to identify applicants who are income eligible and willing to participate. When conducting the housing conditions survey, Applicants should adhere to the Office of Community Renewal's definition of substandard housing as stated in the Annual Competitive Round Application Packet. The CDBG program is a highly flexible, allowing for communities to develop an approach to rehabilitation that best suits their needs. The following are examples of program designs:
All of the above are examples of the ways in which a community can address their substandard housing conditions. Programs designed to conduct housing rehabilitation activities that provide safe and habitable housing primarily for low-and moderate-income households at standards of quality meeting New York State building codes and federal and local regulations are strongly encouraged. 2. Homeownership In addition to housing rehabilitation needs, communities may have homeownership needs that could be addressed through a homeownership assistance program. Such a program would provide financial assistance to low- and moderate-income first-time homebuyers for the purchase of homes for sale. As with the Rehabilitation activities, the program is designed to be flexible so communities can determine the appropriate means of assistance. Activities that are commonly found in homeownership programs include the following:
A successful homeownership application will include: information on the manner in which the program will be marketed to potential applicants; a list of potential eligible applicants to document the market and need; real estate data including average cost of homes and number of homes available within the price range; and evidence that the amount available for assistance will be sufficient to purchase the available homes. 3. Construction of new affordable housing New construction of affordable housing units can be an eligible project as long as the federal requirements are followed. Specifically, new construction activities are only eligible under the following circumstances:
Due to the very restrictive Federal Regulations, few applications of this type are submitted. Prospective applicants must consult with the Office of Community Renewalbefore proceeding with an application. 4. Private Water/Wastewater System Assistance Providing safe drinking water and wastewater systems to individual property owners falls under the category of housing, as these types of assistance provide a direct benefit to those receiving funding. Direct assistance activities can include drilling of private wells, construction or rehabilitation of septic systems, and installation of lateral connections to low- and moderate-income household from the public water/sewer mains. Applications for funding of lateral connections can be stand-alone projects or can be part of a larger public facilities project. However, in order for a community to construct the laterals out of CDBG funds, the homeowners must be low- and moderate-income. Successful applications for private water/wastewater systems will include evidence that property owners are eligible and willing to participate in the program, information as to how the program will be marketed, and information on the level of subsidy and type of subsidy (loan or grant). Communities throughout New York are faced with a variety of issues that affect public health, safety, and welfare. Through the CDBG public facilities grants, many of these issues can be addressed. At least 51% of the persons benefiting from these activities must qualify as low- and moderate-income, as determined by the U.S Census or an income survey. In general, public facilities projects fall into two categories: public infrastructure and public service facilities. Under the public infrastructure category, projects may include: water source development, storage, and distribution; sanitary sewage collection and treatment; flood control and storm water drainage; public works such as sidewalks, streets, parking, open space, and publicly owned utilities. Eligible programs can include the repair or replacement of existing systems, construction of new systems, or expansion of existing systems into previously unserved areas. Projects that provide assistance for lateral connections for water and sewer projects are considered under the housing category. Through the public service facilities category, applicants can seek funding for structures to house or serve special-needs populations; senior services; child care centers; removal of architectural barriers for the disabled (lifts, automatic doors, ramps, etc.); and multi- purpose buildings housing several qualifying activities for low- and moderate-income persons. CDBG funds can be used for construction or renovation of facilities, but cannot be used to cover the day-to-day operational costs, nor can funds be used for buildings that are primarily for the general conduct of government business (i.e. town halls). If a proposed project requires funding above that available from the Office of Community Renewal, the applicant must find additional sources of funding and provide evidence that that funding is committed to the project. For additional information on other sources of information, applicants may contact the New York Co-Funding Initiative. Microenterprise The Office of Community Renewal recognizes that small businesses are a vital part of New York State's economy, and through its microenterprise program, it aims to assist small communities in promoting the development of small, locally-owned businesses. A microenterprise is defined as a for-profit business with five or fewer employees, at least one of whom is an owner. Such programs promote entrepreneurship as a vehicle for business development and economic growth within the community. Projects supported and encouraged by the Office of Community Renewal include those involving businesses that are owned by low- and moderate-income persons or businesses that will create, permanent jobs, principally for low- and moderate-income persons. The more successful programs focus on business development, either in specific geographic areas or specific industry types. Towns, villages, cities, and counties can use microenterprise programs to promote Main Street revitalization, develop strategic industries, promote self-employment, and develop a variety of specific community development initiatives. The majority of microenterprise activities include technical training to potential businesses and existing business owners and revolving loan funds to provide capital for creation and expansion of microenterprise businesses. Through grants for technical training, existing and potential business owners are given the opportunity to attend informal or formal training in business management and other related topics. Typically, these training programs are coordinated through a local community college, Chamber of Commerce, Small Business Administration, or other service providers. In many cases, funding for technical assistance is an ancillary activity to revolving loan funds used to finance business development and expansion. Through a revolving loan fund, a community can allocate grants to local businesses to assist with business financing needs. As the loan funds are repaid to the community, the program income can be used to issue loans to additional businesses. Because business assistance and development is a specialized field of community development, a successful application must demonstrate the community's capacity to manage the program. Comprehensive In some cases, communities may have more than one interrelated need within a defined area. Communities may opt to address all of these needs in a coordinated manner through an application for a comprehensive project. Projects that address a substantial portion of the community development needs of a defined area. Coordinated activities in the area of housing, public facilities, and/or economic development having clear linkages, intended to resolve serious conditions within a reasonable period of time. Communities seeking funding for a comprehensive project should first contact the Office of Community Renewal for guidance and eligibility questions. Economic Development The Office of Community Renewal recognizes that New York's smaller communities must have an economy that encourages business development and promotes jobs for low- and moderate-income persons. Through the Economic Development Program, the Office of Community Renewal provides grants from $100,000 to $750,000 to communities that wish to sponsor economic development activities that create or retain jobs for low- and moderate-income persons. Such activities may include providing financial assistance to for-profit businesses or constructing publicly-owned facilities or infrastructure necessary for the creation, expansion, or retention of businesses. If a loan program is established, the community can retain the repayment funds for future economic development activities. In order for a community to be eligible to receive CDBG funding, those funds generally cannot exceed 40% of the total project cost, and for every $7,500 requested, at least one job must be created or retained Economic development funds are flexible and can be used for most legitimate business purposes. The goal of the program is to fund projects that result in high quality, full-time jobs that are well paying and provide benefits and training to low- and moderate-income persons. For additional information on the Economic Development Program, see the Economic Development Application Page or contact us. Section 108 Section 108 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, authorizes the Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program as an extension of the CDBG program to provide communities with a source of financing for community and economic development projects that are frequently too large for financing by annual grants. Under the Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program, HUD guarantees notes issued by entitlement and nonentitlement communities assisted by States that administer the CDBG Program. Interested eligible applicants should contact the Office of Community Renewal at (518) 474-2057 for further information concerning this program. Back To TopApplying for FundingEarly each year, the Office of Community Renewal publishes a Notice of Funding Availability announcing the availability of funds, the application deadline, and the workshop schedule. Annual Competitive Round applications are accepted in the spring, and applications for Economic Development grants are accepted continuously throughout the year, as long as funds remain available. Eligible applicants seeking to apply for funding should check our website, www.nysocr.org, for a Notice of Funding Availability in the fall or winter of each year, or contact our office at 518-474-2057. Hampton Plaza |
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