September 14, 2020

CDBG-DR ANNOUNCES ACTION PLAN AMENDMENT #2 & PUBLIC HEARINGS

Public Comment Period Ends October 3

The Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority (VIHFA) announces that its second amendment for the Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Action Plan is out for public review and solicitation of feedback. In addition, the Citizen Participation Plan, which guides public outreach activities for the various federal grants administered through VIHFA has been updated and is also out for review and comment.

Public hearings are scheduled for Tuesday, September 15 and Wednesday, September 23 at 6 p.m. via Zoom and simulcast on Facebook Live.

Per the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) guidelines, any funding changes greater than 1% of the total Disaster Recovery allocation or any change in the designated beneficiaries of a program constitutes a substantial amendment and must be made available for review by the public and approved by HUD.

Action Plan Amendment #2

The Amendment will incorporate a substantial change to the current Action Plan (which includes Amendment #1) by introducing Tranche 2A, $53 million allocation for unmet infrastructure needs in the Local Match Program, as well as inserting additional funds in Housing programs, complete funding of the Randolph Harley Plant project; creation of the Public Services and Facilities Sector; a formal request of a LMI data waiver and updates financial projections and expenditure outcomes.

Citizen Participation Plan
The laws governing federal programs require VIHFA to involve the community, provide information on the proposed projects and request feedback from the people that will benefit from the use of the funds. The VIHFA Citizen Participation Plan is being updated to include language about disaster programs; the inclusion of social media as a platform for public participation; and to allow alternative requirements when there is an existing emergency, such as the current health pandemic environment.

English and Spanish translations of the full-text Action Plan Amendment #2, Citizen Participation Plan and their summaries can be found HERE.

Due to COVID19 restrictions, all VIHFA offices remain closed to the public. To request a hard copy of the documents, email [email protected] or call 340-772-4432, ext. 3258.

Public Hearings & Outreach

The public comment period is open from September 3 – October 3, 2020.

VIHFA will host two virtual public hearings and two radio outreach activities to discuss the Action Plan Amendment #2 and updates to the Citizen Participation Plan.

Tuesday, September 15 | 6 p.m.
Virtual Public Hearing via Zoom – https://tinyurl.com/y62v7tcp

Meeting ID: 337 636 3442 Passcode: APA#2
Thursday, September 17 | 9 – 10 a.m.

Radio Outreach – 107.9FM Da Vybe, St. Thomas
Tuesday, September 22 | 9:45 – 10:45 a.m.

Radio Outreach – 103.5FM Reef Broadcasting, St. Croix
Wednesday, September 23 | 6 p.m.

Virtual Public Hearing via Zoom – https://tinyurl.com/y62v7tcp
Meeting ID: 337 636 3442 Passcode: APA#2