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Stockton approves FY 2024–25 Annual Action Plan for CDBG/HOME/ESG funding and adopts slum‑blight map
Summary
The council approved the draft annual action plan for CDBG, HOME and ESG funds, including an estimated $2.2 million pairing of CDBG and HOME for acquisition, adoption of a slum/blight area map to streamline certain CDBG activities, and staff authority to adjust allocations when federal numbers are finalized; council also discussed fair‑housing service gaps and the imminent closure of the men's side of the Gospel Rescue Mission.
The Stockton City Council voted April 16 to approve the FY 2024–25 Annual Action Plan, which lays out estimated uses of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) funds. Staff recommended adoption of the plan and an accompanying slum/blight area map developed pursuant to CDBG regulations.
“HUD allows us to use last year’s amounts as estimates when the federal budget is delayed,” Carrie Wright, director of economic development, told the council during the public hearing. Wright outlined core program goals — housing and supportive services for people experiencing homelessness, preservation and expansion of affordable housing, and economic development — and explained staff’s proposal to braid funds for maximum impact. Wright identified an example allocation of $2,200,000 in CDBG paired with $2,200,000 in HOME to support affordable‑housing acquisition.
Wright also said one required fair‑housing applicant did not meet the NOFA minimum scoring threshold; staff recommended issuing an RFP to procure fair‑housing services rather than awarding funds to an applicant that failed the competitive criteria. Wright warned that reallocating funds contrary to HUD scoring would introduce risk flagged by HUD’s review process.
Several nonprofit and program leaders addressed the council in support of the recommended allocations and services. John Mendelson, executive director of Central Valley Low Income Housing Corporation, highlighted the cost effectiveness of prevention programs and said his organization’s homeless prevention program helped 72 people in 35 households avoid homelessness in 2023. Public commenters including Nancy Lam and Pat Barrett urged the council to find short‑term funding for Gospel Rescue Mission’s men’s shelter, which faces a May 1 closure; staff said they are working with the mission and will return with options but that any deviation from NOFA scoring carries HUD risk.
The council voted 6–0 to approve the annual action plan and the slum/blight map (Vice Mayor Wormsley absent). The council authorized the city manager or designee to adjust allocations when final federal allocations arrive and to submit required documents to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
