Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Cdbg Home Cpp topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning Commission recommends CDBG/HOME participation plan updates, urges stronger community engagement
Summary
The Charlottesville Planning Commission voted to recommend City Council approve revisions to the CDBG/HOME Citizen Participation Plan that streamline review steps and reconfigure task-force representation, while urging a new, community-focused engagement approach for residents most affected by CDBG/HOME spending.
Anthony Warren, the cityof budgets and grants management, asked the commission on June 1 to recommend changes to the city's Citizen Participation Plan (CPP) for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME funds, saying the current document (last updated in 2016) needed both HUD-aligned language and more practical, public-facing guidance. "I'm here tonight to ask for your consideration and review of proposed updates to the citizen participation plan," Warren told the commission.
Why it matters: the CPP spells out how the city notifies residents, runs public hearings and structures the CDBG/HOME task force that shapes spending recommendations for HUD-funded programs. Warren said the proposed revisions would streamline the review process, preserve a planning commission seat on the task force, and shift several neighborhood-tied seats into at-large positions while expanding representation from public-service organizations.
Key details: the proposed changes include updated HUD references, explicit recognition of the city's partnership with the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) on HOME, a maintained nine-member task force but with five at-large seats (with preference for representatives tied to priority populations), and a streamlined schedule to reduce timing bottlenecks caused by late HUD notices. The city announced a 30-day public comment period running from June 15 to July 15 and updated hearing dates (first reading to City Council moved to July 20, with second reading Aug. 3).
Discussion and concerns: commissioners pressed staff on two issues the task force has repeatedly raised: whether removing Planning Commission hearings would reduce public transparency and how to handle unexpected changes in HUD award amounts. Warren said the recommendation to stop bringing plans to Planning Commission before City Council is intended to shorten timelines and allow more adaptive responses when HUD allocations arrive late. He also said staff would explore informal presentations or work sessions and aim to move application windows earlier in the year to allow more time for deliberation.
Direct quote: "We are open to any considerations that you guys might have," Warren said, adding the office aimed to keep a commissioner on the task force and to provide clearer, more accessible materials to the public.
Outcome and next steps: after discussion commissioners voted unanimously to recommend that City Council approve the CPP amendments and the related municipal code changes in Chapter 2, Article 13, with an added recommendation that "a more effective community engagement plan for the people most affected by CDBG and HOME spending replaces the Planning Commission public hearing." The city will accept written and online comments during the posted comment period and return the matter to City Council for final action.
