Hayward council reviews CDBG consolidated plan and difficult community-agency funding recommendations

Hayward City Council on April 1 received a work-session presentation on the city's proposed five-year Consolidated Plan for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) investments and the Community Services Commission's (CSC) funding recommendations for fiscal 2025-26.

The city presented the Consolidated Plan, required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as a framework for housing and community-development priorities and for allocating future CDBG funds. Emily Huang, management analyst and project lead for the CAF process, said the plan draws on the city's 2025 strategic roadmap, a residential satisfaction survey, the housing element, the climate action plan and the homelessness strategic plan.

Commission and public commenters said the funding recommendations reflected painful trade-offs because requests far exceeded available funds. Calvin Wong, a Community Services Commissioner and member of the services review committee, described the panel's work as ''brutal'' and said the committee's deliberations produced recommendations after 16 hours of interviews and four hours of discussion. Wong said housing and homelessness was the…