Mobile City staff outline $3.5 million housing push, recommend CDBG, ESG and HOME funding allocations

At a Mobile City Council meeting, Neighborhood Development staff presented an update on a new Housing Improvement Program and recommended allocations of federal housing and homelessness grants, saying the city hopes to move quickly to secure dollars and launch targeted projects.

Jamie Robert, Neighborhood Development staff, told the council the department has added a Housing Improvement Program (HIP), hired a project manager and has an initial $1 million investment in hand. Robert said a resolution will be introduced to put an additional $2.5 million from District 2 into the HIP fund and that the mayor has proposed another $1 million; none of those transfers had been voted on during the meeting.

The presentation summarized ongoing work across several programs the department administers: single-family new construction (16 completed since 2020, with about 50 underway), multifamily developments (Maryville Place opened; Live Oak and others under construction), critical repair grants, down-payment assistance and tenant-advocate services. Robert said the HIP will focus on targeted lots in a selected neighborhood (referred to in the presentation as the Campground target area), including property identification, title clearance and design/build on individual lots.

The department said it has engaged an architect and surveyor for the first HIP site; Robert said the first house site has been surveyed and design work was imminent. He described an expected pipeline in the “mid teens” of units in the target area once some narrow lots are combined to permit construction.

On timing and funding, Robert said the city has not yet executed a HUD grant agreement that will govern some of the work and that federal timing could delay program launches. Concerning the department’s critical repair grant program, staff said they are still processing applications from the prior cycle and that new applications will likely not be released until HUD and the city finalize the current year grant agreement; staff estimated an earliest target of July 1 for reopening applications but said the date depends on HUD.

Staff also reviewed the city’s recommended Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) allocations for 2025. Highlights included a proposed $450,000 total for three food pantry programs (handled as $15,000 per district within a $45,000-per-district framing during discussion), a continued allocation for down-payment assistance and a recommendation to keep other program levels largely unchanged from the prior year. Robert said the city is working to finalize CDBG contracts and urged prompt approval so funds are not lost or delayed.

For ESG (Emergency Solutions Grant) funding, staff reported one provider swap in the recommended awards: Salvation Army did not apply this year, and Franklin Primary did. Robert said the services funded will differ in focus but that the swap was essentially a reallocation of the same category of dollars.

On HOME and local lending, Robert said the city provided $2 million to a local lending partner (Commonwealth) to support housing lending and that about a quarter of that money has been deployed; staff said that loan pool must be used under current federal spending deadlines and that the city is coordinating with Commonwealth to use the funds both for individual loans and to support developer-style construction lending where feasible.

Council members raised questions about program rules and use of existing local ordinances for vacant properties and blight removal. Councilman Ramos pointed to state House Bill 104 (HB 104), which staff said is expected to be signed and could allow municipal enforcement to address debris on private property more directly; staff said a local ordinance adopting the state changes would follow.

Council members also discussed the YES internship program and whether CDBG or other funds could be used to expand internships for youth. Robert said HUD rules and income-eligibility requirements complicate direct placement of youth on HUD-funded payrolls and that nonprofits and HUD eligibility rules have limited past efforts; council members suggested the council could reallocate local line items if it chose to prioritize youth internships.

No formal vote on the HIP funding transfers or any grant allocations was recorded during the meeting. Staff said a resolution to move $2.5 million into the HIP fund will be introduced in the coming week and that the department will return with contract and grant-agreement steps required to accept HUD funding.

The presentation included references to the department’s municipal enforcement and blight removal work, small business support programs (microenterprise loans, Contractor’s College), and coordination with nonprofits providing homelessness services. Robert asked council members to provide specifics if they believe the city is not using existing ordinances that could speed enforcement; staff offered to follow up on legislative and ordinance details.

The council discussion closed with direction to staff to bring recommended allocations and any needed resolutions forward for formal action at the Council agenda in the coming weeks.