Citrus County housing director details grants, vouchers and new grant applications

Michelle Alford, Citrus County housing services director, told the Board of County Commissioners on Feb. 20 that Housing Services is entirely grant-funded and spent roughly $4.5 million in grants during fiscal year 2024 to support county residents.

The presentation summarized multiple programs the division administers, how they are funded and what the county has recently awarded or applied for. "We are a fully grant funded division," Alford said, and described the department’s State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) funding, which the county receives from the Florida Housing Finance Corporation and which is paid for from documentary stamp taxes on real‑estate transactions.

Alford said SHIP strategies include emergency home repair (roofs, HVAC, failed wells or septic), home rehabilitation and rental development support, including local match funding for affordable housing tax‑credit projects. She said the county recently awarded Habitat for Humanity of Citrus County $600,000 to assist about 30 low‑income families through a first‑time homebuyers program. Alford said the Bridal Oaks project in Homosassa is expected to break ground soon and will provide 160 affordable units.

The director gave quantitative program details: Citrus County has 18 affordable‑housing developments, 12 of which provide USDA subsidies; last year SHIP disbursed roughly $1.3 million; the county’s LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program) helped 922 families with $727,000 in fiscal year 2024; the Housing Choice Voucher program has 153 active voucher holders and 231 people on the waiting list; and about 75% of current voucher holders are disabled.

Alford also discussed veteran‑specific VASH vouchers (Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing), saying the county administers 97 vouchers and recently received 10 additional VASH vouchers. She described the county’s disaster assistance and a rental strategy that includes a special‑needs component and local match assistance so affordable developments can qualify for federal tax credits.

Alford outlined state and federal grant opportunities. She said the county’s septic incentive/upgrade grant from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection currently totals $3,900,000 and will assist approximately 511 Citrus County residents in priority springs focus areas. Citrus County received a $750,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) award to support low‑ and moderate‑income home rehabilitation, and Alford said staff expects that award to help “at least a dozen” households with larger items, such as hurricane‑impact windows and doors.

Alford said she will seek Board approval on March 25 to apply for a housing stability grant aimed at families with school‑age children experiencing homelessness; that program would provide up to 24 months of time‑limited rental assistance with required case management and would require memorandums of understanding with the school district and a nonprofit to provide referrals and ongoing case management. She said it was her understanding only three communities statewide would receive the grant this year and that the county had spoken with the school district about referrals for the program.

On flood and mitigation assistance, Alford said Elevate Florida (the federal/state disaster assistance effort) is working with families and that the county expects to continue assisting residents through flood mitigation programs. She also noted efforts to coordinate with the Tampa VA on VASH voucher case management for veterans.

Commissioners asked when Elevate Florida awards would be notified; Alford said families already working with case managers were being asked for documents and that notifications could come within about a month after application in many cases. She also said SHIP strategy limits include per‑household caps (emergency repair up to $25,000; rehabilitation up to $35,000 under the local housing assistance plan) and provided the numerical program totals above.

Alford closed by reiterating program scale: "Last fiscal year 2024 housing services expended a total of $4,500,000 in grant funding that directly assisted our citizens of Citrus County," she said.

The board did not take formal action on grants during the presentation, but Alford said she would return March 25 to request authorization to apply for the housing‑stability grant if the Board wants staff to pursue it.