Owensboro advisory panel approves 2025–29 consolidated plan, 2025–26 annual action plan

The Citizens Advisory Committee for Community Development in Owensboro approved a draft five-year consolidated plan for 2025–29 and the 2025–26 annual action plan at a public hearing on May 8.

A community development staff member, who presented the proposal, said the plan will be submitted to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for potential funding once the city’s allocation is announced. "We have not gotten our allocation from HUD as of yet, so it's still in limbo," the staff member told the committee.

The plan designates a Monarch NRSA (Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area) that staff said covers roughly 2,000 residents and is bounded roughly by Ninth Street on the south, Clay Street on the west and the municipal boundary to the north and east. Staff reported that about 60% of residents in the area qualify as low- to moderate-income and that the median household income there is $36,525 (market analysis completed in 2023). The presenter also said 34.2% of residents in the area live below the poverty level and that more than 72% of parcels in the area require some form of rehabilitation or have safety or structural issues.

Committee members discussed the range of proposed activities included in the plan. Staff described proposed initiatives including exterior rehabilitation (about 53 projects over five years), new construction of affordable rental units priced under $750 per month, single-family homes priced under $127,000, commercial façade grants (around 22 projects), septic system connection work for about a dozen homes in the NRSA, sidewalk and street-lighting improvements, and a down-payment assistance program paired with first-time homebuyer education. Staff said the draft budget anticipates $4,200,000 in public investment and about $5,000,000 in private investment, for a total of approximately $9,300,000 in public–private investment tied to the program (allocation pending HUD announcement).

Bruce Haupp moved to approve the 2025–26 annual action plan and the 2025–29 consolidated plan and to proceed with the steps described by staff. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. The committee did not record individual roll-call votes in the transcript; all members present indicated "aye." The committee had four members in attendance when it approved the plans.

Following the vote, staff said the next steps will include asking the City Commission to approve a municipal order for the consolidated plan and annual action plan and then submitting the documents to HUD once the city’s allocation is known; staff referenced a tentative submission timeframe around May 23 if the allocation is received.

The committee opened but recorded no public comments during the hearing. Staff also noted that public comment will continue to be accepted until the city formally submits the plan to HUD. The presentation and committee discussion emphasized using HUD income limits as eligibility thresholds for programs and coordinating with local partners, including Habitat for Humanity as the city’s designated Community Housing Development Organization and the utility authority (RWRA) on septic connections.

Committee members thanked staff and volunteers for their work and adjourned the meeting after approval.