Public hearing on HUD 2025–26 annual action plan draws appeals for eviction prevention, urgent home repairs and affordable housing funding

The Syracuse Common Council held a public hearing on the city's application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for its 2025'26 Annual Action Plan, which lists Community Development Block Grant funding of $4,920,269, HOME Investment Partnerships funding of $1,378,112 and Emergency Solutions Grant funding of $431,217.

Speakers representing local nonprofits and community groups urged the council to adopt the plan as written and to direct more of the HUD funds to programs they said reduce homelessness and support low-income homeowners and renters. "Our mission is to provide access to justice by engaging the legal community and volunteer service to those in need," said Salle Kuran of the Volunteer Lawyers Project. Kuran asked the council to support the plan so the project can continue using ESG funds for eviction prevention, noting "there were nearly 3,000 eviction cases filed last year." She also described a new CDBG-funded program to provide estate planning for low-income homeowners and said VLP achieves housing-stability results: "the vast majority of the cases that we serve, over 70%."

Dexter Green, a career service coordinator with OnPoint for College, asked the council to maintain support for youth workforce programming, saying the group's summer program aims to place "35 to 40 students in paid internships this summer" and provides interview and job-prep services that participants otherwise lack.

Kerry Quaglia, founder and CEO of Home Headquarters, pressed for additional funds for the agency's urgent repair program and the SHARP program, saying the organization experienced "about a 6% cut" and that "there's about $1,290,000, which will help about a hundred people." Quaglia described the urgent care program as the city's safety net for emergencies such as leaking roofs, backed-up sewers and furnace failures, and said SHARP grants provide up to $3,000 to stop small problems from becoming larger ones.

Sharon Sherman, speaking for the Greater Syracuse Tenants Network, said her group has seen funding reductions and asked council members to consider modest direct support, asking that council members "think of putting $500 towards the Greater Syracuse Tenants Network" to help tenant outreach and a proposed "Finding Your Forever Home" program aimed at seniors.

Desiree Dixie urged more support for new affordable single-family construction on Syracuse's Southwest Side, saying her organization has built more than 100 new homes over 39 years and currently has a waiting list of 22 households for new construction.

Carolyn Brown of Peace Incorporated thanked the council and Neighborhood and Business Development for supporting a summer youth program, and described a new weatherization initiative that will remove lead, asbestos and unsafe wiring so homes can be made energy-efficient and safe.

Bob Czakowski of Empire Housing and Development described his organization's 30-year partnership with the city to rehab and build roughly 600 affordable homes and said Empire is "on track" to complete about 20 homes this year, but that the group faces a "$7,000 cut" in its CDBG-funded services.

Speakers repeatedly asked the council to preserve or increase funding for eviction-prevention legal services, urgent home repairs and housing development programs. Several speakers referenced specific program cuts and dollar amounts discussed above; none reported a final council vote during the hearing.

The public hearing was closed at the end of the speakers' remarks; no formal vote on the Annual Action Plan was taken during the hearing.