Naperville will divide up $535,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant money between nearly a dozen organizations to fund such things as housing for homeless people, at-risk families and residents with special needs.
The Naperville City Council signed off this week on how it will spend its annual funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to address critical and unmet community needs, including housing rehabilitation, public facilities, infrastructure, economic development and public services.
To distribute the money, the city asked community organizations to submit applications, receiving 17 requests for nearly $1.1 million.
The projects were evaluated and scored by a multidisciplinary team, including staff from the Community Services Department, commissioners from the Human Rights & Fair Housing Commission and the Advisory Commission on Disabilities, and members of the Accessible Community Task Force and the Senior Task Force.
Funding was awarded to these groups:
$43,934 for the Illinois Independent Living Center to fix the parking lot at the Katharine Manor Apartments, 1141 Iroquois Ave., which provides affordable and accessible housing to low- and moderate-income, disabled homeowners and renters;
$30,000 for Naperville Elderly Homes to replace parking lot lighting at the Martin Avenue Apartments, 310 W. Martin Ave., which provides affordable rental housing for low- and moderate-income seniors;
$110,000 for Bridge Communities Inc. to rehabilitate three units at 432 E. Bailey Road to provide affordable, transitional housing for homeless and at-risk families;
$50,708 for 360 Youth Services to assist in the facility development of a Youth Affordable Housing Center to provide temporary shelter, meals, case management and supportive services to homeless youth;
$32,500 for Little Friends to rehabilitate a group home on Midland Drive;
$74,077 for Ray Graham Association to rehabilitate a group home on Swift Lane;
$7,650 for United Cerebral Palsy Seguin to rehabilitate a group home on Sara Lane;
$46,131 for Turning Pointe Autism Foundation to assist in the replacement of two boilers at 1500 W. Ogden Ave.;
$65,000 for the Loaves & Fishes CARES program, which provides emergency rent/mortgage and utility assistance, as well as to provide counseling to prevent recipients from becoming homeless;
$75,000 for the DuPagePads Olympus Place Housing Program, which provides supportive services to formerly homeless people with chronic disabilities and for the salary and costs to administer the program.
The city may have to adjust the amounts provided once it’s known exactly how much Congress allocates to Naperville.
If the final grant amount is more than $535,000, Loaves & Fishes CARES and DuPagePads Olympus Place will be the first to receive additional money, officials said.
After that, priority will be given to fair housing activities and then to infrastructure improvement and housing rehabilitation projects.
Should the city receive less than $535,000, funding will be reduced proportionally on each project to match the actual allocation amount, officials said.
