Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)

The purpose of the RFP is to solicit sealed proposals to establish a contract through competitive negotiations for the procurement of developing viable urban communities. This shall be done by providing decent housing and suitable living environments and expanding economic opportunities, principally for persons of low and moderate income.

The CDBG Program is funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and provides an allocation of funds to local and state governments for a wide range of eligible housing and community development activities. The stated purpose of the program is:

“The development of viable urban communities, by providing decent housing and suitable living environments and expanding economic opportunities, principally for persons of low and moderate income.”

CDBG funds are allocated each year to cities with populations of more than 50,000 and urban counties with populations of more than 200,000. The City of Santa Fe is an “entitlement city” for the CDBG program, which means it automatically receives an annual grant from HUD based on a formula that takes into consideration community needs and other factors. These include: the extent of poverty, population, housing overcrowding, age of housing and population growth lag in relationship to other metropolitan areas.

Although Santa Fe must administer the use of CDBG funds in accordance with specific federal regulations, the Santa Fe City Council determines how to use the grant money according to the City’s Consolidated Plan priorities and other local needs. In Santa Fe, the CDBG funds are dispersed on a competitive basis to agencies/projects selected by the Santa Fe Community Development Commission (CDC) and approved by the City Council.

The City reserves the right to award contracts in full, by portions, or grouped as deemed in the best interest of the City. Funding is subject to current and future CDBG grant allocations and budget appropriations approved by the City’s Governing Body. No guarantee is made or implied by the City for the amount allocated to this RFP. The commitment of funds will result in contract(s)

Successful applicants that receive a CDBG award must fulfill the objectives of the program by carrying out eligible activities that benefit low and moderate income (LMI) residents, including but not limited to, persons who are homeless, persons who have disabilities, the elderly, and other special needs groups. Although not required, the agencies are also encouraged to find other funding sources to help leverage the CDBG funds.

Prior to submitting a proposal, each proposed offeror must meet eligibility under the CDBG program regulations and meets one of the National Objectives as defined by HUD. Information on eligibility and National Objectives must be used to classify each project requesting funding and to determine if it can be considered for funding. Any program that does not clearly meet a National Objective and is not an Eligible Activity will not be accepted. For more specific information on the eligibility of uses for CDBG funds, see 24 CFR 570.201 . Ineligible activities are described in 24 CFR 570.207 .