Charlottesville seeking funds applications for federal funding for housing

Charlottesville City Council adopted an Affordable Housing Plan in March 2021 and one of the recommendations was to provide more clarity on how organizations can apply for funding from a variety of opportunities. That plan made a moral commitment for Council to spend $10 million on affordability initiatives, but that is not mandated by law.

In September, the city issued what’s called a NOFO to inform anyone interested in the process. That’s an acronym for Notice of Funding Opportunity. Two available pools are for Housing Operations and Program Support (HOPS), and the Charlottesville Affordable Housing Fund. 

On Monday, the month-long application window opened for funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. An application is available on the city’s website which can be accessed here. 

The city’s notice does not say how much is available, but I reported back in September that there is $410,468 available from the Community Development Block Grant and $112,248 available through the HOME program. 

To check my reporting, I contacted the city and received a response that those amounts will be updated in the spring. 

Previous projects funded through the CDBG program include: 

• Albemarle Housing Improvement Program for their Charlottesville Critical Repair Program 
• The Charlottesville Investment Collaborative for their Microenterprise Entrepreneur program
• The Haven for an initiative called the Coordinated Entry into Homelessness System 
• Literacy Volunteers of Charlottesville / Albemarle for their Beginning Level Workforce Development program
• The Public Housing Association of Residents for Resident Centered Redevelopment 

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