Wayne County staff outline plan and timeline for HUD CDBG‑DR disaster recovery funds; public comment period to open

County economic development staff gave the Planning & Economic Development Standing Committee a detailed status briefing on Wayne County's CDBG‑DR (Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery) grant process, explaining required steps, timing and public‑engagement plans.

DeLorean Holmes, economic vitality division director, said the county received notice from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in January that started a 90‑day clock to submit an action plan, but a series of federal executive orders and missing data on FEMA's website delayed preparation and prompted a 60‑day extension. Holmes said the county faces a June 20 deadline to submit the action plan to HUD. "We have a June 20 deadline of submitting it to HUD," Holmes told the committee.

Holmes described funding buckets in the draft action plan developed with input from local jurisdictions and limited federal data: planning, housing, infrastructure, public services and a HUD‑required mitigation set‑aside for flood control. He said HUD requires that each project meet CDBG national objectives, be an eligible activity and tie directly to the disaster impacts for which the funds were awarded. Holmes said that once HUD approves the plan the county will receive grant dates and a six‑year window for obligation and expenditure of funds.

Staff acknowledged data limitations: HUD and FEMA databases lacked some flood‑impact datasets for first‑time grantees; the county used Small Business Administration data and local municipal reports to estimate unmet needs. Holmes said the county has posted a draft action plan online for public comment, will hold one centralized public meeting as required for outreach, and will follow HUD guidance when developing selection policies and procedures. The transcript includes staff statements that the county will later return to the committee with specific policies and procedures for distributing funds once HUD approves the action plan.

Commissioners asked about the list of hardest‑hit communities, coordination with county drains and Department of Public Services (DPS) data, the number and format of public meetings, and how municipalities should submit documentation tying damage to the August 2023 flooding event. Staff said they will send commissioners a link to the posted draft action plan and will include the commission clerk in future email distributions. Ashley McAdoo, commission liaison to the executive office, said an email with the public‑comment link would be sent to commissioners that day.

Why it matters: CDBG‑DR funds are designated to address unmet disaster recovery needs after August 2023 flooding; decisions on project selection policies, eligibility and allocations will determine which communities and projects receive federal recovery dollars and how quickly repairs and mitigation proceed.

Next steps: Staff will finalize the draft action plan for HUD submission, host a centralized public meeting and return to the committee with policy and procedures for selecting projects and disbursing funds after HUD grants approval. Several procedural details (specific project lists, procurement timelines and exact policy language) were not included in the meeting transcript.