#COFlood: Community Development Block Grant Public Hearings Need Your Participation

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) allocated $62.8M dollars in Community Development Block Grant - Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) to the State of Colorado to assist in a portion of flood disaster related costs. This grant is designed to assist with a small amount of those needs not being met through Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds or other federal funds. To secure these HUD funds, the state must submit an action plan to HUD detailing a proposed allocation of these funds based on community priority. These funds will only address a small portion of the unmet need in the following categories: Housing, Economic Development and Infrastructure.

The state hosted the first series of meetings January 21-24, 2014, with local, state and federal partners and staff, housing authorities, business owners and service agencies who are working on flood recovery on behalf of your community. Those meetings addressed the proposed distribution of Colorado’s $62.8 million.

On February 11 - 13, 2014, the Governor’s Recovery Office, the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA), the Governor’s Office of Economic Development and International Trade, the Colorado Department of Agriculture, and the Colorado Department of Public Safety are hosting four public hearings to review and discuss the CDBG-DR process and the state’s draft Action Plan which will be available on Monday, February 10 at  https://dola.colorado.gov/cdbg-dr/content/action-plans.

The following are the dates and times of the upcoming hearings:

CDBG-DR Public Hearing Schedule

Tuesday, February 11
Manitou/Colorado Springs
4:30 - 6 p.m.
Manitou Springs Memorial Hall
606 Manitou Ave.
Manitou Springs, CO 80829

Wednesday, February 12
Estes Park
Noon - 2 p.m.
Estes Park Town Hall, Board Chambers
170 MacGregor Ave.
Estes Park, 80517

Wednesday, February 12
Boulder
7 - 9 p.m.
County Clerk & Recorder Office, Houston Room
1750 33rd Street
Boulder, CO

Thursday, February 13
Evans
6 - 9 p.m.
Evans City Hall, Cottonwood Banquet Room
1100 37th Street
Evans, CO 80620

Due to the expedited nature of the CDBG-DR program and the extremely limited amount of financial resources available, your participation at the hearing closest to your community is important. Citizens wanting to provide public comment at the hearings will be required to sign up upon arrival, with speakers going in the order they sign in.

As part of the state's Citizen Participation Plan (CPP), citizens are encouraged to review the Action Plan and provide feedback and comments. The Action Plan will be available for viewing on the state’s CDBG-DR website starting on Monday, February 10 with comments on the Action Plan being accepted through Tuesday, February 18, 2014.

To view the Action Plan, go to:  www.dola.colorado.gov/cdbg-dr

To provide comments online, go to: https://dola.colorado.gov/cdbg-dr/content/comments-feedback

Thank you for your time and participation in this important process.