Vermont Housing & Conservation Board - Vermont Legislature

Federal Housing Funds Awards Supplement vhcb Awards July 2011–December 2012conjunction with state funds, vhcbIn administers federal funding forprograms to develop housing, increaseaffordability, add support services, providetechnical assistance, and leverage state andprivate dollars for land conservation inVermont.h o m e ProgramFederal home Program funds are aimedat serving low- and very low-incomeVermonters in housing developmentsmeeting the priorities of the StateConsolidated Plan. These funds help tocover project development costs, to creategreater affordability in the projects, andto supplement vhcb funds. The Boardadministers the program on behalf of theDepartment of Economic, Housing andCommunity Development. Since 1992vhcb has administered $63.5 million inhome funds.Healthy Homes ProgramFunded by the u.s. Department ofHousing and Urban Development, thisprogram has been operating since 4,administering $22.6 million to reduce leadhazards in more than 2,000 homes andapartments statewide. Beginning in 2013,services will expand to include assessmentand treatment of other housing safety andhealth concerns such as asthma and mold.v h c b AmeriCorps Programvhcb has operated this program for15 years, co-sponsoring AmeriCorpsmembers to serve with nonprofit housingand conservation entities statewide. vhcbhas administered $4.7 million in fundsfor this program since . In 2012 theprogram placed 32 AmeriCorps members.Agency of Transportation te-21vhcb has been awarded $2.5 million inte-21 funds to conserve land in proximityto state highways and enhance alternativetransportation systems such as trailsand bike paths. The “transportationenhancement” funds leverage state funds,providing another source of funds toconserve farmland and open land.Farmland Protection ProgramThrough the usda Natural ResourcesConservation Service, vhcb administersfunds from this federal programto conserve farmland. These fundssupplement Vermont’s state and privateefforts, increasing the amount of farmlandconserved. The Board has received$37.2 million in fpp funds for farmlandconservation. A previous program,Farmland for the Future, brought $14.2million in federal funds to Vermont forfarmland conservation.Vermont Farm Viability Programvhcb funding for this program issupplemented by federal fundingadministered by the usda NaturalResources Conservation Service and byusda Rural Development Rural BusinessDevelopment grant funding. vhcbhas served more than 439 farms andagriculture infrastructure businesses withthis program.h u d Economic DevelopmentInitiative Special Project GrantsThe Board administers these onetimefederal grants that are designatedby Congress for specific affordablehousing, community and economicdevelopment, historic preservation andland conservation projects statewide. Since8, the Board has administered nearly$25.5 million in Special Project Grants.Housing Opportunities forPersons with h i v/a i d shopwa funds provide rental subsidies,emergency assistance and supportiveservices to persons living with hiv/aids. This program was developed incollaboration with the Vermont hiv/aidsCare Consortium, the Department ofHealth, the Persons with aids Coalition,the Vermont Center for IndependentLiving, and the aids service organizations.To date, vhcb has administered more than$7 million in hud hopwa funds.h u d Technical Assistance Programvhcb has administered more than$400, in various hud funds to providetraining, operating support and technicalassistance to nonprofit developers ofaffordable housing. vhcb uses hudtechnical assistance funds to develop andco-sponsor trainings.Neighborhood StabilizationProgram Fundsvhcb has administered $5.3 million inNeighborhood Stabilization ProgramFunds for housing developmentsinvolving the redevelopment of blightedor foreclosed upon properties in certaintarget areas of the state.a r r a State Energy ProgramThe legislature allocated $2 millionto vhcb in American Recovery andReinvestment Act State Energy Programfunds to improve the energy efficiencyand add renewable energy systems toaffordable multi-family housing. TheARRA funds have been utilized in 725apartments across the state, improvingenergy efficiency in those units by anaverage of 30 percent.11