Detroit to seek use of $346 million HUD disaster-recovery award; 30-day public comment to open

Nicole Wise, chief operating officer for the Detroit Housing and Revitalization Department, told the City Council’s Third District evening meeting that the city has been awarded approximately $346,000,000 in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“The goal of my presentation today is to prepare you all for the 30 day comment period that’s gonna open as early as next week,” Wise said, adding that the award is “probably one of the largest awards that we have received from HUD.” She said the city must submit an action plan to HUD before the funds can be released.

Wise described basic rules and constraints that will shape any proposed spending. The funds must relate to the presidentially declared disaster for severe storms, tornadoes and flooding in August 2023 and must meet a HUD “national objective,” which generally requires serving households at or below 80% of area median income. She repeated HUD’s restriction that local uses cannot duplicate benefits already paid by other sources: “we cannot duplicate benefits. That means that at the household level, if you received homeowners insurance for the flood to replace your furnace, we can't use CDBG‑DR funds to also replace your furnace.”

City staff said likely eligible activities include housing repair and elevation, rebuilding or rehabilitation of housing, green storm‑water and flood‑protection infrastructure, and economic revitalization projects for businesses affected by the floods. As an example of prior disaster work, staff pointed to a private sewer repair program used in the 2021 award that repaired household sewer laterals to help prevent future flooding.

Wise outlined a proposed timeline: HUD published application instructions in January; the city is completing an unmet‑needs assessment; a 30‑day public comment period on a draft action plan will open “as early as next week”; the city will submit an action plan to HUD; and, once approved by HUD, the council will receive a grant agreement to accept and appropriate funds. Wise said outreach materials and draft documents will be posted on the city’s disaster‑recovery website and will be available in Spanish, Arabic and Bengali, with community meetings and staff presentations planned during the comment period.

Why it matters: the award is meant to restore housing, infrastructure and economic conditions to pre‑disaster levels and is restricted to recovery work tied to the August 2023 storms. Council members and residents will be able to submit formal comments during the 30‑day period before the action plan is filed with HUD.

What’s next: city staff will publish the draft action plan and schedule community meetings. After HUD approves the action plan, the City Council will receive a grant agreement to accept and appropriate the award.