Before and after photos of a housing rehab in Latonia that the City helped fund with federal grant money.
Draft CDBG/HOME plans invest in housing, neighborhoods
COVINGTON, Ky. – The public has three ways to weigh in on a draft proposal that outlines how to invest almost $1.5 million in Covington neighborhoods, plus a little more than $700,000 on affordable housing in Covington and seven surrounding cities.
The money represents the anticipated annual allocation from the federal CDBG and HOME grant programs. The three ways to give feedback:
- A public hearing on the draft Annual Action Plan will be held at 6 p.m. June 11 in the Commission chambers at 20 West Pike St.
- Written comments on the plan will be accepted until June 21 and should be sent to Federal Grants Manager Jeremy Wallace at jwallace@covingtonky.gov or by mail at the City of Covington, 20 W. Pike St., Covington, KY 41011.
- Comments and questions about the plan can also be submitted verbally by calling (859) 292-2147.
See the draft of the CDBG/home Annual Action Plan on the City’s website for details of the proposed spending. Or you can stop by City Hall to see a printed copy during normal business hours, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
(If you are a person with a disability, need information in an alternative format, or speak limited English and require special services to attend the public hearing, please notify Jeremy Wallace by June 4 so that arrangements for those services can be made. Puede prestarse asistencia a aquellos con capacidades limitadas de habla inglesa o personas con impedimentos de audición o visión.)
The three basic goals for the programs are to provide decent housing, to provide a suitable living environment, and to expand economic opportunities.
“The Annual Action Plan shows how the City intends to directly invest these funds in projects and programs that improve our neighborhoods and create housing opportunities for people without a lot of income,” Wallace said. “We really want these funds to improve the quality of life of our residents.”
The Community Development Block Grant program is earmarked for a wide variety of services and programs – primarily in low- and moderate-income areas – such as street and streetscape infrastructure, park improvements, crime prevention, parks and recreation, code enforcement, economic development, literacy, and housing rehab.
The City expects to get $1,461,212 in new funds for the coming year. Additional funds will be carried over from previous years. Some of the carryover money is already allocated to ongoing projects and some will be allocated to new projects.
To spend money in the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, Covington is part of a consortium that also includes the cities of Ludlow, Erlanger, Independence, Florence, Newport, Bellevue, and Dayton.
The HOME budget includes $702,234 in new funds, plus additional carried-over funds.
In Covington, the HOME program typically funds homeownership programs, including down payment assistance to help people buy homes and housing development to create new homeownership opportunities with the help of outside partners.
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