Durham council approves amendments to consolidated plan, coalition urges HOPWA funding be routed to community partners

Durham City Council held a public hearing and unanimously approved substantial amendments to the city’s 2020–2025 consolidated plan and multiple annual action plans to reallocate Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOPWA funding and to add eligible HOPWA activities.

Nut graf: Community speakers and clinical providers asked the council to prioritize “housing first” strategies and to route more HOPWA funds to community-based organizations with demonstrated experience serving people with HIV — arguing that stable housing reduces mortality and transmission. Staff said a competitive request for proposals (RFP) is open for HOPWA-funded activities and that the city will release an additional competitive RFP for resource-identification and strategic planning across the five-county EMSA (eligible metropolitan statistical area).

What the amendment does: According to staff, the proposed amendment (publicly noticed and published) had four elements: 1) reallocate funding to ensure timely expenditure and to cover a FY2023-24 Section 108 loan defeasance payment; 2) add eligible HOPWA activities and correct associated goal-outcome indicators (GOIs) in the consolidated plan; 3) correct the project description and GOIs for a Durham County Department of Social Services HOPWA project sponsor; and 4) add/reallocate funding in FY2022–25 for the HOPWA sponsor resource-identification activity.

Public testimony: Several speakers urged changes to how the city administers HOPWA funds. - Tiffany (Grace Inc.), who works on low-income housing tax credit and HIV-related housing projects, said Durham ranked fourth in North Carolina for HIV rates and urged a “housing first” approach. “People with stable housing are far, far more likely to manage effectively,” she said, and she urged council to partner with local housing and clinical experts. - Carolyn Hinton, executive director of Healing With Care, said the local coalition of more than 40 organizations should be included in planning and oversight; she noted that unused HOPWA allocations in past years had been returned to HUD. - Crystal Graves, a Cornwallis community vice president and long-time resident, described rapid evictions and a need for on-site therapy, counseling and services in housing authority or subsidized properties. - Dr. Haley Cunningham, an infectious-disease physician, warned that current budgets in the amendment would not fund the administrative capacity needed to operate program components: “Effectively administering each component of HOPWA will require at least one full-time employee, yet only $25,000–$50,000 is allocated yearly for each component,” she said.

Staff response: Maggie Carnegie (community development) said an RFP issued April 10 is open through May 21 and allocates roughly $1.3 million in competitively available HOPWA funding for activities including TBRA (tenant-based rental assistance), supportive services, permanent housing placement and short-term rent, mortgage and utility assistance. Carnegie also told council that a forthcoming RFP focused on “resource identification” will fund a consultant to complete a needs assessment and strategic plan across the five-county EMSA (Durham, Granville, Person, Chatham and Orange counties) and to convene stakeholders; that work could identify capacity-building needs.

Council response and vote: Council members acknowledged concerns about reimbursement-based funding models and the administrative burden on small nonprofit providers. Council directed staff to engage the local coalition during RFP work and strategic planning. After discussion the council voted unanimously to approve the consolidated-plan amendments as printed.

What happens next: Staff will incorporate public comments into the final document and proceed with the competitive procurement processes described at the hearing. Community advocates and providers pressed council to consider upfront funding or capacity-building support so small organizations can bid for and administer HOPWA-funded services.