The City of Covington, Kentucky, has opened a public comment period from June 9 through July 10 to gather community input on the allocation of approximately $2 million in federal funds designated for housing and community development. These funds are expected annual allocations from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The drafts open for public comment include the one-year Annual Action Plan for the CDBG and HOME programs, as well as an update to the Five-Year Strategic Plan. Jeremy Wallace, Covington's Federal Grants Manager, stated that these plans serve as guides "to investing these federal funds to both make people’s lives better and strengthen our neighborhoods."
A public hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, June 24, prior to a City Commission meeting. Written comments can be submitted via email to Wallace at jwallace@covingtonky.gov or by calling (859) 292-2147.
The CDBG program targets low- and moderate-income areas with services such as infrastructure improvements, crime prevention initiatives, economic development projects, and early literacy programs. This year’s federal allocation for CDBG funding is $1,409,780.
For the HOME program, Covington participates in a consortium with several nearby cities including Ludlow, Newport, Bellevue, Dayton, Erlanger, Florence, and Independence. The program's budget includes $672,734.30 in federal allocations aimed at housing-related initiatives like forgivable loans for home purchases and funding for affordable housing units.