The Community Development division oversees activities that are funded through the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
The City of Wichita is an Entitlement City and as such, receives funding directly from HUD according to a formula, and in amounts determined by Congressional appropriations.
Following are the fund categories which are a part of the City's Entitlement allocations:
- Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
- HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME)
- Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG)
Programs funded with these resources are provided to persons who meet income guidelines.
2024-2029 Consolidated Plan
Every five years the City of Wichita is required by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to create a new Consolidated Plan. The Consolidated Plan is a tool that is used to assess current community needs and outline high-level goals and spending priorities with respect to affordable housing and community development for three federal entitlement grants:
CDBG,
HOME and
ESG.
The City of Wichita is currently in the planning stages for our 2024-2029 Consolidated Plan and we have hired a consultant to assist with its development.
WFN Consulting is working with the Housing and Community Services Department to develop this plan. Throughout this process we will be consulting with community providers and the public on what community issues should be addressed in the next five-year Consolidated Plan.
Current Funding Cycles
The
2022-2023 & 2023-2024 CDBG, HOME and ESG RFP opened on December 27, 2021 and closed on January 21, 2022. A total of 17 applications were received. H&CS Staff proposed and City Council approved a two year funding cycle to round out the 2019-2024 Consolidated Planning period.
The City Council appointed a Grants Review Committee (GRC) to review applications and make funding recommendations for the three entitlement grant programs. The GRC met three times in the month of February 2022 to review applications and develop allocation recommendations. The three meetings are open to the public.
At GRC Meeting #1, H&CS Staff explains the GRC process and provides a high-level overview of the three entitlement grants and the applications submitted. This meeting took place on 2/9/2022 from 2:00-4:00 pm via Zoom. The meeting agenda and minutes are below.
GRC Meeting #2 is the Public Hearing. At this meeting, applicants for HOME and CDBG funding are given an opportunity to make a presentation on their proposals, which is followed by a 5-minute Q&A with H&CS staff and GRC members. ESG proposals are reviewed by a representative from the United Way's Continuum of Care (CoC). CoC funding recommendations are provided as well. This meeting took place on 2/17/2022 from 3:00-6:00 pm via Zoom. The meeting agenda and minutes are below.
At GRC Meeting #3, the committee works to develop funding recommendations for CDBG, HOME, and ESG proposals. This meeting took place on 2/23/2022 from 2:00-4:00 pm via Zoom. The meeting agenda and minutes are below.
Meetings were held virtually to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. The public was given an opportunity to weigh on the proposed applications at GRC meeting #2, the Public Hearing.
4th Year Annual Action Plan
After the meetings, staff took the recommendations from the GRC and included them in the Annual Action Plan (AAP) for Program Year (PY) 2022-23. Staff sought input from the public on the AAP during the formal public comment period which ran from March 31, 2022-May 2, 2022.
On May 3, 2022, staff brought the plan to the City Council for consideration, with contingencies outlined in the event funding allocations were higher or lower than estimated. Funding allocations were provided by the US Department of Housing & Urban Development on May 13th. Staff updated the plan according to the contingencies approved by Council and submitted the AAP to HUD for review and subsequent approval.
Current 5th Year Annual Action Plan
Since the 2022-2023 GRC & RFP process informed a two-year funding cycle, the award amount determined and subsequently allocated for 2022-2023 was recommended again for 2023-2024.
The public comment period for the 5th Year Annual Action Plan was open on March 31, 2023 and closed on May 1, 2023. A public hearing was held at the City Council Meeting on May 2, 2023. The 5th Year Annual Action Plan was submitted to HUD on May 12, 2023.
