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Plan commission endorses CDBG allocation plan amid calls for more multifamily funding
Summary
The commission voted to concur with the CDBG committee’s recommendation for 2026–2028 allocations after residents and commissioners highlighted a severe shortage of rental and affordable multifamily housing; staff said the plan largely follows prior years but noted federal funding uncertainty.
Taylor Jones of the Department of City Development presented the proposed Community Development Block Grant allocation plan for 2026–2028 and said the CDBG committee had recommended approval. Several public commenters urged a stronger emphasis on multifamily and rental housing, saying decades of single-family-focused HUD spending left a shortage of safe, affordable rental stock. "For 35 to 40 years, the city of Kenosha has put the majority of HUD funds into single family dwellings ... and it has left us with a severe rental housing shortage," Roida Huff said during public comment.
Alderman Austin acknowledged the need for multifamily units but said the city cannot build market-rate multifamily housing directly and must rely on private developers, incentives and potential tax tools: "Ultimately, we need to have somebody come forward with a plan that would come to us for approval," he said. Commissioners also warned the city may see fewer CDBG dollars given recent federal actions that excluded CDBG funding from a recently passed bill.
After discussion and supporting remarks from members of the CDBG committee, a commissioner moved to concur with the committee's recommendation and the motion passed. Commissioners thanked the committee for its work and asked staff to continue outreach and to look for ways to incentivize multifamily development within program constraints.
The motion was procedural concurrence with the CDBG committee recommendation; the plan will move forward per usual city processes and any allocations will be contingent on the availability of federal funds and subsequent administrative steps.
