Pasco planning commission backs Tri-Cities 2025–29 consolidated plan and 2025 action plan

The Pasco Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council approve the 2025–2029 Tri‑Cities consolidated plan and the 2025 annual action plan, which guide distribution of federal HUD funds, including Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnership Program dollars.

The consolidated plan — developed in collaboration with the cities of Kennewick and Richland and with assistance from the consultant Cloudburst Group — lays out multi‑year priorities for affordable housing, homelessness response, economic opportunity and public infrastructure for low‑ and moderate‑income residents. A staff presenter said the plan is scheduled for a City Council workshop on Feb. 24 and formal council approval on March 3 before submission to HUD.

Why it matters: the consolidated plan sets the city’s priorities that determine which projects receive CDBG and HOME funding over the next five years, and it frames local applications for those federal dollars. City staff stressed the plan itself is a strategic guide, not a guarantee of funding: “Of course, this is just a plan. It is not a commitment for any kind of funding as we never know what funding we will receive until later in the year,” the staff presenter told commissioners.

Details and funding: the presenter told the commission that the consolidated plan and annual action plan include funding targets the city expects to pursue. For the next five years the packet listed about $1,600,000 for affordable housing and about $1,600,000 for community, neighborhood and economic development; for 2025 the packet showed no awards for public service activities. Staff said those figures reflect priorities in the draft action plan and are subject to change based on final HUD allocations.

Eligibility and monitoring: staff answered commissioner questions about rental rehabilitation rules tied to HOME funds. The presenter said rental rehab projects funded through HOME require that at least 51% of units be occupied by low‑income tenants; projects are monitored (staff said monitoring occurs every six months and an annual check also verifies tenant income), and code enforcement will respond to health or safety problems discovered after work is done.

Staff also noted recent federal changes: ‘‘At the end of 2024, HUD made some changes to the HOME program that allow us to do more rehabs with those dollars,’’ the presenter said.

Action: Commissioner Lairman moved that the Planning Commission recommend council approval of the 2025–2029 Tri‑Cities consolidated plan and the 2025 annual action plan; Commissioner Jones seconded. The motion passed unanimously.

Next steps: if the City Council adopts the plan it will be submitted to HUD for final authorization and staff will begin implementing activities and updating the fair housing plan to align with the new priorities.