The Consolidated Plan is designed to help states and local jurisdictions to assess their affordable housing and community development needs and market conditions, and to make data-driven, place-based investment decisions. The consolidated planning process serves as the framework for a community-wide dialogue to identify housing and community development priorities… Read more…
…that align and focus funding from the four CPD formula block grant programs: the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), the HOME Investment Partnership (HOME), the Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) program, and the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program. Key components of the Consolidated Plan include:
Consultation and Citizen Participation. Through the Consolidated Plan (often called the “Con Plan”), grantee jurisdictions engage the community, both in the process of developing and reviewing the proposed plan, and as partners and stakeholders in the implementation of CPD programs. By consulting and collaborating with other public and private entities, grantees can align and coordinate community development programs with a range of other plans, programs and resources to achieve greater impact.
The Consolidated Plan. The 3- to 5-year Consolidated Plan describes the jurisdiction’s community development priorities and multiyear goals based on an assessment of housing and community development needs, an analysis of housing and economic market conditions and available resources.
The Annual Action Plan. The Consolidated Plan is carried out through Annual Action Plans, which provide a concise summary of the actions, activities, and the specific federal and non-federal resources that will be used each year to address the priority needs and specific goals identified by the Consolidated Plan.
Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER). In the CAPER, grantees report on accomplishments and progress toward Consolidated Plan goals in the prior year.
The eCon Planning Suite
New Consolidated Planning Tools! In May 2012, HUD’s Office of Community Planning and Development (CPD) introduced the eCon Planning Suite, including the Consolidated Plan template in IDIS OnLine and the CPD Maps website. By creating a more cohesive planning and grants management framework and providing better data and a tool for analysis, the eCon Planning Suite supports grantees and the public to assess their needs and make strategic investment decisions.
The Consolidated Plan template in IDIS facilitates the planning process by making critical data on housing and community development needs readily accessible to grantees in the format required by HUD. By providing detailed and timely demographic, housing affordability and economic data, the template frees up time formerly spent searching out and compiling data to allow grantees to focus on understanding the data, further boosting the process beyond simple compliance with reporting and budgeting requirements. Moreover, by providing a standard format for all the required Consolidated Plan elements, HUD is providing clear guidance on when requirements will be met... Read more…
With the incorporation of the Consolidated Plan and Annual Action Plans into IDIS OnLine, the key reporting elements of the grants management cycle are integrated into a single system. This will help ensure cohesiveness among:
the goals described in the Consolidated Plan and Action Plan,
the activities and accomplishments tracked in IDIS, and
the outcomes reported in the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER)
This integrated system makes the Consolidated Plan a more useful planning and management tool.
CPD Maps is an online data mapping tool for place-based planning. Grantees and the public can use CPD Maps to analyze and compare housing and economic conditions across their jurisdictions. The CPD Maps tool is publicly available, giving all community stakeholders access to the same data. The Consolidated Plan template allows grantees to insert maps and data tables from CPD Maps with ease, throughout their plan.