Moraine reviews 2024 CDBG and HOME spending at CAPER public hearing

City of Moraine staff presented the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report, or CAPER, on March 24, 2025, summarizing Fiscal Year 2024 expenditures of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) funds. Matt Cousinard, director of building, housing and planning for the City of Moraine, opened the public hearing and handed the presentation to Hannah Crowley, program manager for community and economic development.

Crowley said the city received entitlements of about $1,300,000 in 2024 and reported program income of just over $300,000; the city spent just over $1,000,000 during the fiscal year on low- and moderate-income activities as well as non-LMI activities and administration. "The CAPER is essentially a summary of our expenditure of CDBG and HOME funds over this past year," Cousinard said.

The presentation listed challenges staff faced, including capacity and time constraints, staff turnover and promotions, and funding obstacles on larger multi-partner projects that required coordination with contractors and other funding sources. Crowley said the presentation would summarize accomplishments and noted that a detailed list of each program's accomplishments is available in the CAPER packet. "I'm not going to get into the specifics of each accomplishment but there is a list that details the list of accomplishments for each program," Crowley said.

Among accomplishments the city reported, the CAPER lists three homes completed under an essential home repair program and one house rehabilitated through a home rehabilitation program. The city's demolition program identified eight properties as blighted and unsalvageable and removed those structures, the presentation said. Park improvements completed during the year included installation of restrooms at Central Park, General Johnny Wilson Park, Lakeview South and Oakwood Park; additional work at Pollock Park included field goalposts, fencing and parking blocks. The Longfellow skate park project held a public forum to collect design feedback.

Crowley also summarized public-service investments funded with CDBG and CDBG-CV dollars, stating a total of $125,321.71 in public-service expenditures; she did not read each project aloud but indicated the CAPER includes a detailed list. Projects still in progress, Crowley said, include a home rehabilitation loan program, a down-payment assistance program, a basement foundation program, ongoing park improvements (including Oakwood Park dugouts and Pollock Park restroom work), additional demolition activity, street improvements, a roof replacement at El Centro's wellness center and public-service programming such as the Neighborhood Alliance Extreme Weather Program.

No public questions or comments were recorded during the hearing, and staff concluded the presentation and closed the CAPER public hearing. The presentation materials and the CAPER packet contain the full, itemized lists and financial details referenced in the hearing for the public record.