Housing Secretary William Rodríguez Rodríguez
By THE STAR STAFF
Housing Secretary William Rodríguez Rodríguez announced Sunday that the period has begun for proposals for the development of new projects using Community Development Block Grant Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) program funds for social interest housing.
The CDBG-MIT Program for Social Interest Housing, with a budget of $100 million, is available to organizations that have proven to have experience with populations such as the homeless, elderly, victims of domestic violence, people with physical or intellectual diversity, or development, people living with HIV/AIDS, people recovering from addiction and people with other functional or access needs.
“The socially vulnerable populations are almost always the most affected and it takes longer for them to recover from natural shocks,” Rodríguez said. “After the events that have followed the passage of hurricanes Irma and Maria, we have proposed leverage mitigation funds to expand the window of opportunity among low- to moderate-income populations who need to live under a safe roof.”
The objective of the program is to address mitigation needs through project financing that offers high-quality and modern housing solutions.
Interested organizations can submit their proposals until March 20 of 2023 at https://cdbg-dr-pr.gov, where the guidelines that govern the operation of the program can also be downloaded.
Disaster Recovery Deputy Secretary Maretzie Díaz Sánchez said “CDBG-DR’s recovery plan for social housing focuses on addressing unmet needs following hurricanes Irma and Maria.”
“This program instead addresses the need for housing due to multiple risks, not just hurricanes,” she said.
The program will award up to $2.5 million to nongovernmental organizations, nonprofits, community-based organizations, and private nonprofit organizations that present the best projects.
The Housing Department expects that, with financing through the new program, the entities selected will develop construction or substantial rehabilitation projects for multifamily unit buildings serving vulnerable socially diverse populations.
Comments