Euclid officials held the first of two public hearings on the city's five-year Consolidated Plan and the 2025 Annual Action Plan, outlining how the city will use federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for housing, neighborhood improvements, public services and economic development. Community Development Manager Ed Chenock opened the meeting and said the session was the first public hearing on the five-year plan and the annual action plan.

The Consolidated Plan sets local priorities required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and describes how Euclid will serve low- and moderate-income households. Rick Cica, project principal with HP Group, summarized HUD definitions and program history, saying, "The program's just over 50 years old," and described how the Cuyahoga Housing Consortium lets suburban jurisdictions pool HUD funds.

Why it matters: the Consolidated Plan and Annual Action Plan determine which neighborhoods and services receive federal support and how Euclid spends its yearly CDBG allocation. Chenock said the city received $998,865 from HUD for FY2025 and has prior-year CDBG funds available; those totals will fund housing rehabilitation, sidewalk and park projects, public services for seniors and youth, and small-business assistance.

Presenters reviewed recent accomplishments from the 2020–2024 consolidated-plan period, including 70 homes painted, 21 houses resided or sided, three vacant pool demolitions, 10 businesses assisted through a storefront renovation program, sidewalk and crosswalk work on 14 neighborhood streets, nine roofs replaced, five furnaces replaced, eight wheelchair ramps installed, 2,847 senior trips or congregate meals supported, 309 trees planted, one basketball court built adjacent to Bluestone Elementary School and four playground replacements. Cica said HUD classifies eligible CDBG activities by national objectives: benefit to low- and moderate-income households, low- and moderate-income areas, low- and moderate-income clientele (public services), low- and moderate-income jobs (economic development), and slum/blight remediation.

Programs proposed for 2025: Chenock described continuing and new programs that will use CDBG funds, including (a) a low-interest home repair loan program administered by the Euclid Development Corporation (Edcorp); (b) an exterior paint program for wood and aluminum siding (vinyl siding is ineligible for painting); (c) a furnace safety and replacement program; (d) a roof replacement matching grant (fully funded for lowest-income households; moderate-income households would provide up to a 25% match); and (e) a new home accessibility and rehabilitation matching grant capped at $7,500 for essential repairs and accessibility work. The city will continue to identify and replace sidewalks and pedestrian trails, including a pedestrian trail on East 200th and 15th Streets near Pinnacle Academy, streetscape work on North Lakeland Boulevard, and playground replacements at Russell Avenue Park and Sims Park, plus phase 2 of Heritage Park improvements.

Chenock and Cica emphasized eligible and ineligible uses under HUD rules. Eligible examples include housing rehabilitation, storefront renovation, public services (subject to a 15% cap on the annual allocation), parks and playground improvements, and job-creation activities. Ineligible activities include general government operating expenses (for example, construction of a new city hall), routine maintenance (pothole filling, street-light bulb replacement, tree trimming, snow plowing), direct income payments such as food giveaways, purchase of personal vehicles or furniture, entertainment (concerts, movie nights), and political activities.

Budget overview and public process: Chenock said Euclid received $998,865 in FY2025 CDBG formula funds and listed $1,174,916.84 in prior-year grant funds available. He presented line items for FY2025 that include $149,000 for general administration; public-services allocations of approximately $447,120.45 in new funds plus $762,918.76 in prior-year funds; and economic opportunity line items of $125,000 in new funds plus $280,986 in prior-year funds. A figure mentioned for prior-year funds to revitalize residential neighborhoods appears in the transcript as $9,797,534.10 but is inconsistent with the total prior-year funds reported earlier; that number could not be verified in the hearing and is not reported here as a confirmed budget figure.

Public participation and next steps: Chenock said the city will post a short summary (a "teaser") on the city website on June 2 and make the complete plan available on June 5 for a 30-day public comment period. He announced a second public hearing scheduled for June 12, 2025, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., and said the public comment period will close in early July (comments accepted through July 5, 2025, as stated during the hearing). Chenock invited residents to submit ideas year-round and provided contact information and Edcorp staff contact Jim Fialco as additional project staff resources.

Public questions: One resident who identified herself as Lori (resident) asked whether snow removal is funded through the CDBG program and about application procedures for home repair vouchers and loans. Chenock clarified that street maintenance and snow removal are handled by the city's service department and are ineligible CDBG activities. He said the application, income eligibility levels and required documentation for grants and loans (including Edcorp low-interest loans, which will include income verification and a credit check) are posted under Planning and Development on the City of Euclid website.

No formal votes or policy adoptions occurred at the hearing; staff opened the record for written comments and set the schedule for the public comment period and the follow-up hearing.