VIHFA to Award Grants for Vulnerable Populations; Individual Amounts Not to Exceed $2.5M

Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority

The Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority (VIHFA) has announced the availability of Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery funding under the Public Services and Special Needs Housing Program.

Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, government agencies and (non-governmental organizations) NGOs that service vulnerable populations in the Virgin Islands. The goal is to fund those entities that may have been affected by the hurricanes or that were born from a need that was realized after the hurricanes.

The Public Services and Special Needs Housing Program was initially awarded $37.5 million in the Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Action Plan. An amendment is forthcoming and will redirect funding to other urgent need programs. In consideration of the proposed changes, a notice of funding availability now reserves $7,395,000 for public services and special needs housing. Under the conditions of the notice of funding availability, the VIHFA intends to award grant funds to eligible applicants in an individual award amount not to exceed $2.5 million.

The application deadline is 4 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022. Applicants must submit a completed application and all supporting documents described in the program notice of funding availability electronically to pspf@vihfa.gov. No hard copies will be accepted, and no extensions of the due date will be granted. VIHFA reserves the right to award selected applicants in accordance with funds made available by (Housing and Urban Development) HUD and based on any applicable statutory constraint at the time of award issuance.

Prospective applicants must attend one of the mandatory orientation sessions as follows:

Applicant Orientation Session Information:

Session A

Date: Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Time: 5:30-6:00 p.m.

Meeting ID: 842 8218 5397

Passcode: 155902

Training Registration Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84282185397? pwd=VStURUJFTkoreXhUZWNBQlI5Unc2Zz09

Session B

Date: Tuesday, July 12, 2022

Time: 5:30 – 6 p.m.

Meeting ID: 868 7434 9113

Passcode: 514873

Training Registration Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86874349113? pwd=UElYMUpiSnNZK1UrVmtsR0J5c21lZz09

For more information, contact Dan Derima at 777-4432 (St. Thomas/St. John) or Zakenya Ross at 772-4432 (St. Croix).

CDBG-DR is presidentially declared during a major disaster. Congress appropriates funds to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) when there are significant unmet needs for long-term recovery. The three core aspects of recovery are housing, infrastructure and economic revitalization. CDBG-DR funds can only be spent to meet the recovery needs caused by the disaster(s) specifically stated in the appropriation.

Each funded project must meet at least one of the three national objectives as follows:

Address slums and blight

Address an urgent need for recovery

Benefits low- and moderate-income (LMI) persons

“Primary benefit to low/mod income persons” means:

at least 51% of the direct beneficiaries of an activity or area residents are low-income

the activity benefits a population generally presumed to be low-income

housing is created that will be restricted to occupancy by low-income households

jobs are created/retained and at least 51% of the jobs will be held or available to low/mod income residents