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Wausau staff detail CDBG, HOME and lead-hazard programs and funding limits
Summary
Community Development Manager Tammy Straatz briefed the committee on Wausau's CDBG allocation ($582,106), allowable uses (15% cap for public services), HOME program assistance (down-payment assistance up to $10,000 at 2% interest), lead-hazard grants ($380,000 state DHS award), rental rehab caps and affordability requirements.
On July 7, Tammy Straatz, Community Development Manager, walked the Economic Development Committee through Wausau's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) portfolio and related programs, describing funding levels, program mechanics and recent local projects.
Straatz said the city's current CDBG allocation is $582,106 and that federal rules limit use of up to 15% of that annual allocation for public-service activities (roughly $87,000 at the stated allocation). She explained the program's "timeliness" requirement (a January 1 start date and expenditure expectations through November) and said the city has historically relied on a revolving loan fund: loans are repaid and funds are recycled into new projects.
Straatz described specific program components: HOME-funded down-payment assistance (up to $10,000, 2% interest, borrower contribution of $1,000 required), homeowner rehabilitation (low-interest loans that are repaid into the revolving fund), rental rehabilitation assistance for landlords (up to $15,000 per qualifying unit, funding up to 75% of the project with deferred payments and a 5-year affordability term), and acquisition funds used to purchase vacant lots for affordable housing development. She also reviewed lead-related programs: a Lead Safe Homes allocation (state DHS-funded) that produced approximately $380,000 in funding, 21 completed projects to date, and training for local contractors and risk assessors.
Straatz noted some operational challenges: the down-payment program has been underutilized because buyer offers in the current market are often written without contingencies and outbid program participants; she also noted that the HOME program caps maximum sales price for assisted homes (stated as about $337,000), which limits participation in the current market.
Committee members asked clarifying questions about rent limits, program eligibility and whether seller tax rebates could be used as an incentive; Straatz said Wisconsin law does not permit the proposed tax-rebate approach. The committee did not take formal action on CDBG at this meeting.
