Commission approves Amendment 1 to 2023 HUD action plan to reallocate CDBG funds

The Wayne County Commission voted to approve Amendment 1 to the 2023 annual action plan for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on a motion by Commissioner Kinloch with support from Commissioner Baker McCormick. The amendment reallocates unused Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to projects in Romulus, Garden City and other participating municipalities and grants the chief executive officer authority to execute the awards.

Betsy Palazzola, the countycommunity development director, told commissioners that the reallocated dollars come from projects that were completed and returned unused funds after final draws and inspections. "A lot of times they submit to us an estimate. They overestimate. If bids come in lower or contractors do not use contingency, those funds roll back into the pot to be reallocated," Palazzola said.

Commissioners asked whether affected communities had been notified and whether the county had verified project completion. Palazzola said staff had performed final inspections, accepted photos from communities to demonstrate work, and closed out contracts before moving funds. She also said funds from 2016 and 2017 had been fully expended and that the current amendment covers allocations from later years.

Palazzola explained the county prioritizes projects that are ready to spend and may advance projects from later years into the current spending period to meet HUD deadlines. She said, in other cases, municipalities request that the county move funds between projects within the same community when one project no longer needs its allocation.

The commission voted to approve the amendment by tablet; no roll-call tally was read into the record.