Video production crews will be in town this week to highlight the success of the City of Midland's Community Development Block Grant program.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has selected the City's CDBG program to be featured on a national level for its use of national funding to benefit the Midland community. The film crew will be in town April 22-23, during National Community Development Week. Producers will interview local homeowners who have benefited from the program, and tape portions of a regularly scheduled public hearing regarding use of this year’s CDBG funds at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 22 in the City Hall Council Chamber (300 N. Loraine).
The national CDBG program, which started in 1974, provides communities with resources to address a wide range of unique community development needs. The program provides annual grants to local and state governments and is one of the longest continuously-run programs at HUD.
Nine years ago, the Midland City Council initiated a strategy of focusing a significant portion of its annual CDBG allocation on selected target areas. The idea was to concentrate CDBG funds and in a way that would achieve a lasting, visible impact on the community.
The funds allowed street paving where needed, the addition of sidewalks along high pedestrian routes, the development of a neighborhood park, and addressing of blighted conditions. The CDBG reconstruction program was beneficial for a number of homeowners in substandard housing and the development of affordable housing.
The City purchased vacant residential lots and donated them to Midland Habitat for Humanity and the Midland Community Development Corporation. Down payment and closing cost assistance was made available for home buyers. So far, 131 new homes have been constructed or are under construction, and 15 more homes will be constructed by the end of 2014.
"This kind of affordable housing development is a success story that the City hopes to replicate in the future," said Community Development Manager Sylvester Cantu.
###Media Contact: Community Development Manager Sylvester Cantu