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| 14.878 AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT IN MAIN STREET REJUVENATION PROJECTS |
| (Main Street) |
| FEDERAL AGENCY |
| PUBLIC AND INDIAN HOUSING, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT |
| AUTHORIZATION |
| The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161, approved December 26, 2007); Section 24, U.S. Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437v), as amended; Section 402, HOPE VI Program Reauthorization and Small Community Mainstreet Rejuvenation and Housing Act of 2003, Public Law 108-186. |
| OBJECTIVES |
| To assist small communities in the rejuvenation of historic or traditional central business districts or "Main Street Areas" by replacing unused commercial space in buildings with Affordable housing units. The objectives of the program are to: (1) Redevelop Main Street Areas; (2) Preserve historic or traditional architecture or design features in Main Street Areas; (3) Enhance economic development efforts in Main Street Areas; and (4) Provide affordable housing in Main Street Areas. |
| TYPES OF ASSISTANCE |
| Project Grants. |
| USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS |
| Main Street grant funds may be used to rehabilitate or develop new affordable housing that is included in a Main Street rejuvenation effort. Main Street housing units must be maintained as affordable for the initial residents only. Each resident (or family) must have an adjusted income of 80 percent or less of the area median income. Allowable activities that may be funded by a Main Street grant include: development of new housing units; rehabilitation of non-habitable existing housing units; acquisition activities; homeownership activities; necessary management improvement costs; relocation costs for affected residents; and community and supportive services. Main Street grant funds must NOT be used to develop or replace public housing or to repair existing habitable housing. Main Street grant funded activities are limited to: affordable housing development that is part of an existing Main Street rejuvenation effort; development cost up to a maximum of HUD's Total Development Cost for public housing units; maximum fees and soft costs listed in HUD's public housing Safe Harbor Cost Controls; and a maximum of 15 percent of the grant amount to support community and supportive services activities. |
| Applicant Eligibility |
| Eligible applicants include, and are limited to, Units of Local Government ("Local Government") that are subdivisions of State governments, and other governments listed in Section 102 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974. The jurisdiction of the Local Government must contain a population of no more than 50,000. The Local Government must either have no Public Housing Agency (PHA) or a PHA that administers no more than 100 public housing units. |
| Beneficiary Eligibility |
| The beneficiaries are low-income families that occupy the newly developed affordable housing, and the local community that is benefiting from the Main Street rejuvenation project. |
| Credentials/Documentation |
| Eligibility requirements to apply for a Main Street VI grant are included in each year's Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA). This program is covered under OMB Circular No. A-87. |
| Preapplication Coordination |
| After Federal Register publication of the Main Street (NOFA), applicants are provided with guidance from HUD Headquarters and may ask questions of HUD staff while preparing their applications. This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance if the State has selected the program for review. |
| Application Procedure |
| A NOFA is published in the Federal Register announcing the availability of funds and referring applicants to application materials available from Grants.gov, at http://www.grants.gov. Applications must be submitted electronically to Grants.gov. Further information on registration into Grants.gov can be obtained at HUD's http://www.hud.gov/grants website. |
| Award Procedure |
| HUD Headquarters reviews each eligible application for threshold compliance, assigns rating points to applications that pass all thresholds, and the highest-rated applications are notified that they have been selected receive a Main Street grant. Funds are obligated when HUD and the applicant execute a form HUD-1044, "Assistance Award/Amendment." |
| Deadlines |
| The deadline for submitting an application for Main Street is published in each year's NOFA. |
| Range of Approval/Disapproval Time |
| Approximately one month from the application deadline date. |
| Appeals |
| Applicants are notified by HUD if an application is not approved. |
| Renewals |
| Not applicable. |
| Formula and Matching Requirements |
| Grantees must provide a 5 percent match from funding sources other than Section 24 of the 1937 Housing Act, (the Main Street or HOPE VI Programs). |
| Length and Time Phasing of Assistance |
| Grants have a term of 30 months. The applicant must include its program schedule in the application. |
| Reports |
| Quarterly Progress Report, Quarterly Obligation and Expenditures Report, Logic Model, and Closeout Report. |
| Audits |
| Main Street grants are audited with regular audits of the unit of local government and after grant close-out. |
| Records |
| Copies of budgets and accumulative cost records through the grant period, and other records necessary to indicate compliance with the Grant Agreement. |
| Account Identification |
| 86-0218-0-1-604. |
| Obligations |
| (Grants) FY 07 $3,000,000; FY 08 est $4,000,000; and FY 09 est $0. |
| Range and Average of Financial Assistance |
| The Main Street Grants have a statutory maximum of $1 million per grant and a total Annual amount of at most 5 percent of that year's HOPE VI appropriation. |
| PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
| Approximately half of the Main Street grants funded the development of housing units in small, single building projects. The other half of the grants added to the mixed-finance funding of larger developments of up to seventy-five units. |
| REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE |
| No regulations have been published, although authorizing legislation at Section 24 of the 1937 Housing Act is extremely detailed. Although not specifically applicable, Main Street housing development is processed using HUD's Office of Public and Indian Housing Mixed-finance regulations at 24 CFR 941.606, or HOPE VI homeownership under Section 24 of the 1937 Act. Each grant is subject to the terms of its NOFA and Grant Agreement, which is the contract signed by the Grantee and HUD. HUD posts guidance to its Main Street website at http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/ph/hope6/grants/mainstreet/ with links to Main Street's most recent NOFA, program summaries, general guidance materials, mixed-finance guidance materials, and relevant statutes, regulations and notices. This web site provides Grantees with information on timelines, budgets, financial instructions, and other program guidance. |
| Regional or Local Office |
| All Main Street grants are administered at Headquarters by the Office of Public Housing Investments (OPHI). The level of field office involvement in the administration of Main Street grants is limited to issuance of the required environmental review (24 CFR Part 50), and construction inspections. Grantees should contact OPHI at (202) 401-8812, until a HUD Grant Manager is assigned. Grantees should also contact the HUD Field Office Public Housing Division that has jurisdiction for their area. Local Public Housing Divisions are listed on the internet at http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/about/focontacts.cfm. |
| Headquarters Office |
| Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Housing Investments, Office of Urban Revitalization, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20410. Telephone: (202) 401-8812. |
| Web Site Address |
| http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/ph/hope6/grants/mainstreet/ |
| RELATED PROGRAMS |
| 14.866, Demolition and Revitalization of Severely Distressed Public Housing; 14.872, Public Housing Capital Fund. |
| EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS |
| Not applicable. |
| CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS |
| As published in each NOFA. |
|
General Services Administration Office of Chief Acquisition Officer Regulatory and Federal Assistance Division (VIR) |
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