CLEVELAND – Mayor Frank G. Jackson today extended a special invitation to all Cleveland residents and community stakeholders to participate in one of the upcoming Citizen Participation 2010 community meetings. These meetings focus on next year’s spending of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and the development of the City’s 2010-2015 Consolidated Plan.
“CDBG funds have made a significant impact on improving the lives of our citizens and the face of our neighborhoods since 1975,” said Mayor Jackson. “Participation 2010 is an important opportunity for our residents to voice their ideas and opinions on how to best utilize future CDBG funds to improve the City’s social service programming and neighborhood planning and development efforts.”
CDBG Citizens Participation meetings will take place on the following dates, times, and locations:
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Tuesday, November 10, 2009, 6-8 p.m.
Lutheran Hospital’s Learning Center, West 28th Street and Franklin Avenue
(Free Parking)
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Thursday, November 12, 2009, 6-8 p.m.
Cleveland Foodbank Community Room, 15500 South Waterloo Road
(Free Parking)
Each city receiving funds from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is required to convene a citizens’ participation meeting where the community is given an opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns on the use and expenditure of CDBG funds within their communities and neighborhoods. In addition to addressing the yearly expenditures of the CDBG funds, the City is required to undertake a comprehensive planning process to produce a document entitled the Consolidated Plan.
The Consolidated Plan contains an assessment of the community’s housing and neighborhood development needs and description of the City’s strategies for addressing needs over the next five years. Although the plan must look at a broad range of available resources, the focus is on activities that can be implemented using funds from the following four HUD grants, which Cleveland receives on an annual basis:
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Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
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HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME)
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Emergency Shelter Grant (ESG)
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Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA)
The City last produced a five-year Consolidated Plan in 2005. A new plan for the years 2010-2015 will be submitted to HUD in the spring of 2010. The process for developing the plan will include collecting and analyzing all available data, meeting with various agencies and advisory boards, and soliciting input from citizens.
Based on need, the following represents Cleveland’s 2009 CDBG annual allocation of $23.9 million by major categories or budget line item in recent years:
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Approximately $9.4 million (or 39.4 percent) is allocated to the Housing category that includes housing rehabilitation, new construction, and code inspection services.
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Approximately $4.0 million (or 16.7 percent) is allocated to Social Service programs that include services to seniors, youth, and families.
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Approximately $3.1 million (or 12.8 percent) is allocated for Commercial and Economic Development activities that include storefront renovation and CDC supported activities.
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Approximately $750,000 (or 3.1 percent) is allocated to Demolition and Board-up activities.
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Approximately $2.2 million (or 9.1 percent) is allocated to Property Maintenance activities that include Lot Clean-up and Community Gardening programs.
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The remaining $4.5 million (or 18.9 percent) is allocated for neighborhood planning activities, administrative cost for the Department of Community Development, and CDC support costs.
For more information and/or a copy of the CDBG Years 35-36 Citizens Participation Survey, please contact the Department of Community Development at 216/664-2869, or log onto the City’s Web site at www.city.cleveland.oh.us. The Department of Community Development will collect citizen input through January 31, 2010.
