Urbana holds public hearing on 2026–27 HUD annual action plan
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Summary
City staff presented the draft 2026–27 Annual Action Plan for CDBG and HOME funds, including draft budget estimates and a public comment period through March 23; staff plans a Commission vote in March and HUD submission by May 15, subject to final allocation.
The City of Urbana Community Development Commission held a public hearing on Feb. 26, 2026, to receive input on the draft 2026–27 Annual Action Plan, the one‑year component of the city’s five‑year consolidated plan for HUD funding.
Interim grants division manager Nick Olson led a staff presentation describing how the plan translates consolidated plan goals into projects for the program year beginning July 1, 2026. Olson said the draft uses prior‑year allocations as placeholders while HUD’s official 2026–27 allocations remain pending. He said the draft currently budgets $392,195 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding and $633,154.18 in HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) funding, and that staff reserved $100,000 for tenant‑based rental assistance (TBRA) within the HOME allocation.
The nut of the plan, Olson said, is to fund activities across three priority areas identified in the consolidated plan: affordable housing (including TBRA and housing rehabilitation), community services, and community development such as infrastructure and economic development. He described eligible uses: public services, housing rehabilitation, neighborhood stabilization (including acquisition and demolition when eligible), and CHDO developer support under HOME. Olson also noted recent HUD guidance instructing jurisdictions not to include prior‑year unspent balances in new action plan budgets; prior balances remain bound to the plan that originally budgeted them and are tracked through consolidated performance reporting.
Commissioner questions focused on public engagement and accounting for rollover funds. The Chair asked whether the community needs survey and comment opportunity were open beyond qualifying census tracts; Olson said the survey is open to anyone in the HOME consortium area (Urbana, Champaign and certain unincorporated parts of Champaign County) and collects general residence information for analysis. A committee member asked whether excluding prior‑year balances from the new plan means prior projects disappear from reporting; Olson replied that staff continue projects originally budgeted with prior funds and would record them in the consolidated performance report, and that formal amendments to prior action plans are possible if circumstances change.
The draft plan is available on the city website and in physical locations (community development office, city clerk’s office, Urbana Free Library). The public comment period runs from Feb. 20 through Mar. 23, 2026, with written comments accepted by email to the grants office through 5 p.m. on March 23. Olson said the Community Development Commission will consider a formal vote at its March meeting and staff expects to take the plan to city council in April, with a target HUD submission by May 15 (45 days before the program year begins on July 1), though that timeline depends on HUD’s allocation announcement.
The public hearing concluded with no members of the public present; the commission closed the hearing and proceeded to its regular agenda.
