NOFAs aimed at restoring housing

Funding for residents affected by Hurricane Rita is closer today as the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs released two Notices of Funding Availability (NOFAs) totaling $105 million for disaster recovery efforts.

The department is making $82.8 million through one NOFA available to eligible applicants to repair, rehabilitate or reconstruct existing affordable rental housing units that experienced hurricane damage. The rental housing restoration funds are targeted to 22 counties including Angelina, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Hardin, Harris, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Montgomery, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Polk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Trinity, Tyler, and Walker.

Applicants must prove ownership of the development site on or before September 24, 2005, and 51 percent of the units repaired or rebuilt must serve households at or below 80 percent of the area median family income.

The second NOFA provides $22.2 million for the restoration of critical infrastructure to all cities and counties within a 29-county region: 22 counties from the rental housing restoration fund plus, Cherokee, Gregg, Harrison, Houston, Marion, Panola and Rusk counties.

The minimum award per contract will not be less than $50,000 and will not exceed $5 million.

April 13 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approved TDHCA's action plan to use $428.6 million in federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds toward the state's recovery efforts. The qualifying nonprofit organizations, forprofit entities, public housing authorities, and local governments will be able to apply for grants and loans and begin to make repairs in their respective communities.