The City of Portland is seeking applications for the 2021-2022 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Development/Eco-Development Program.

The City of Portland CDBG program is designed to foster innovative and creating programs that address the critical issues facing the City of Portland. The CDBG funds should be seen as seed money for starting or expanding innovative programs. Their goal in funding a program is to help get it off the ground or successfully expand.

Goals

• Neighborhood Investment and Infrastructure: Create strong, safe, accessible and vibrant neighborhoods- Invest in infrastructure to improve neighborhood assets and build strong, safe, accessible and vibrant neighborhoods. Improve accessibility through ADA compliance. Build sidewalks and trails to improve connectivity, increase the use of bicycles as a mode of transportation, and redevelop streetscapes to create shared streets for cars, bikes, and pedestrians that integrate with the fabric of the neighborhood. Support programs that increase safety in neighborhoods for residents and visitors. Invest in programs and services that address the specific needs of members of the community. Encourage programs that build a sense of inclusiveness, safety, and security within individual neighborhoods
• Housing Availability: Increase housing availability and affordability- Increase housing availability and affordability to all Portland residents regardless of income, race, ethnicity, and family size. Encourage housing development by removing barriers to traditional urban housing types while ensuring the inclusion of workforce housing in significant development projects.
• Economic Opportunity: Create economic opportunities to transition people out of poverty- Invest in Portland businesses to enable them to expand to create jobs. Invest in persons wanting to create microenterprises. Engage job seekers in a continuum of services to increase their professional capacity, financial stability, and ability to maintain employment. Focus on difficult to employ populations including homeless, new Americans and single parent head of households. Combine resources and build partnerships between public and private entities to provide opportunities to transition Portland residents out of poverty to sustainable employment and financial stability.
• Address the Needs of the Growing Homeless Population: Prevent and reduce homelessness - Prevent individuals and families from becoming homeless and entering into the shelter system. Rapidly rehouse those who enter the shelter system. Provide necessary resources to assist vulnerable population’s transition out of homelessness, including housing opportunities for chronically homeless or long-term stayers at homeless shelters.

Project Objectives

Once a national objective and eligible activity has been identified, each proposal must address one of the following objectives:

• Creating Suitable Living Environments
• Providing Decent Affordable Housing
• Creating Economic Opportunities

Funding Information

• Minimum Grant Request: $10,000 Development Activities
• Maximum Grant Request: EXCEPT Public Infrastructure Projects No more than 30% of the previous year's allocation amount or $250,000, whichever is less.
• Maximum Cumulative City Request: 85% of funding available for Development Activities

Eligible Activities

In addition to meeting a National Objective, each project must be an Eligible Activity. Such projects include:

• Acquisition of real property by purchase, long-term lease, or donation.
• Housing development support for construction of new permanent residential structures may be eligible under certain circumstances.
• Home ownership assistance too low to moderate-income households and housing services, including housing counseling, loan processing, inspections, and homebuyer down-payment assistance.
• Economic development activities such as:
  • Programs that provide assistance to private for-profit business including but not limited to grants, loans, technical assistance and other forms of support, for any activity where the assistance and other forms of assistance is appropriate for carrying out an economic development project.
  • Programs that provide economic development services including but not limited to outreach efforts to market forms of assistance, screening of applicants, reviewing and underwriting applications for assistance, preparation of necessary agreements, management of assisted activities, and screening, referral and placement of applicants for employment in CDBG eligible economic development activities, including training for persons filling positions.
  • Programs that provide assistance through a public or private organization or agency to facilitate economic development to microenterprises or persons developing microenterprises by providing credit or financial support, technical assistance or advice, or general support, including but not limited to peer support, counseling, childcare transportation and similar services.

Requirements

The City of Portland has added the following requirements to supplement the Federal Requirements:

• Conflict of Interest: Proposals will not be permitted from agencies or organizations that have staff, board members, contractors or anyone receiving financial gain volunteering on the City’s CDBG Annual Allocation Committee.
• Domestic Partner Ordinance: All recipients must adhere to the Domestic Partner Ordinance of the City of Portland, Chapter 13.6.

For more information, visit City of Portland.