The City of Bismarck is developing a five year Consolidated Plan (2015-2019). The Consolidated Plan identifies housing and community development needs in the City and proposes prioritizes how the City will use HUD funds. The City receives only Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds directly from HUD, so a CDBG application (or Annual Action Plan) will also be done in each of the five years. CDBG funds must be used for projects that benefit low and moderate income (LMI) persons, alleviate slum and blight, or address an urgent community need.
The following is a summary of the major goals included in the draft Consolidated Plan:
Housing Goals:
• Assist with the development & renovation of affordable rental housing & special needs housing• Support efforts to increase homeownership opportunities for LMI households
Homeless Goals:
• Support the renovation or expansion of facilities serving people who are homeless• Assist in the development of housing, including emergency shelter & transitional housing
• Provide support for service providers that promote self-sufficiency• Allocate funds for emergency assistance activities to prevent homelessness
Community Development Goals:
• Support public service activities that provide essential services to households that are LMI, homeless, or have special needs• Improve the quality of public facilities in LMI areas or that primarily serve LMI persons
• Fund infrastructure projects to improve accessibility or ease financial burdens on LMI households
The City is also developing a five year Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing. This plan identifies Fair Housing concerns in the community and proposes recommendations to address those needs.
The City is also proposing that the following activities receive CDBG funding in its 2015 Annual Action Plan:
• Aid, Inc.: $10,000 for emergency housing services in Bismarck• Burleigh County Housing Authority: $25,000 for accessibility improvements at the Bowen Row Houses
• Charles Hall Youth Services: $22,5000 for improvements at Case Home & Hall Home• City-Public Health: $5,000 for garden boxes and other nutritional activities
• City-Public Library: $3,000 for assisting LMI persons with job searching• Community Action Program: $65,000 to improve accessibility in housing (citywide)
• Lewis & Clark Regional Dev. Council: $27,000 for emergency housing repairs (citywide)• Pride, Inc.: $15,000 for roof replacement at Bozeman housing
• Salvation Army: $10,000 for homelessness prevention• West Central Service Center: $4,000 for emergency housing assistance
• Youthworks: $18,000 for window replacement at its youth facility• Dacotah Foundation: $17,000 for kitchen remodeling at Discovery House and $3,000 for improvements at Dacotah Recovery Center
• Contingencies: $25,318 may be awarded later as follows:• Cost overruns in approved activities
• Housing accessibility or emergency housing rehab as needed• Any uncommitted funding may be used to meet the needs of LMI households in the event of a disaster
• Missouri Valley Coalition for Homeless Persons for emergency services if project capacity is demonstrated• Heartview Foundation for an elevator in new facility if project capacity is demonstrated
• Administration: $56,795• Total Budget =+ $287,795 in 2015 CDBG funds and $18,818 from prior years
The public is invited to a meeting to receive more information about the above plans and to make comments as follows:
Public hearing: Send comments or requests to:
Tuesday, April 14, 2015 at 4 p.m. City of Bismarck – Community Develop. Dept.David Blackstead Room – 2nd floor PO Box 5503
City-County Building Bismarck, ND 58506-5503221 North 5th Street Fax: (701) 222-6450
Sue Redman
For accommodation/assistance: 355-1847 TDD: 711 ND relay Spanish: 800-435-8590
The draft plan will be available for reviewonline and at the above office on April 8th for a 30 day comment period. All comments on the Plan are due by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, May 8th. The City Commission will review all comments before making a final decision on the Plan at their regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, May 12, 2015. The Plan will then be submitted to HUD for review.