The City of Holyoke is an Entitlement Community for the Community Development Block Grant and is the Lead City in the Holyoke-Chicopee–Westfield HOME Consortium. These grants are awarded directly from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG)
FY2024 Annual Plan
The FY2023 Annual Plan development process has started! Key dates, including application availability and deadlines, are shown on the 2024 Annual Plan Calendar.
What agencies have applied for FY2024 CDBG funds?
The FY2024 CDBG Proposal Book contains all of the 2024 applications.
How are CDBG Funds allocated?
Allocation of the CDBG funds is done through a competitive multi-step grant process whereby interested agencies and others submit proposals to provide public services benefiting low and moderate-income persons in Holyoke. The FY2024 funding cycle will begin in early October; applications will be released in early-mid December.
OCD staff, the Citizens Advisory Council (CAC), the Mayor and the City Council review the proposals and make funding recommendations. The Mayor makes all final award decisions and submits the allocation plan to HUD by May 2024, for activities beginning on July 1, 2024.
Proposals must meet HUD regulatory eligibility criteria and be able to demonstrate performance objectives and outcomes.
How can the public participate in the CDBG allocation process?
The public is invited to attend CAC and City Council meetings to observe allocation discussions and to attend public hearings regarding annual plans and re-programming requests. The 2024 Annual Plan Calendar lists all public meetings and hearings. Please confirm dates, times, and locations with OCD or the City Clerk.
How are the City of Holyoke’s needs and priorities determined?
Every five years, OCD prepares a five-year Consolidated Plan with specific annual updates detailing the projects to be undertaken in that program year.
The 2020-2023 Strategic Consolidated Plan presents an overview of the City’s priorities for the next five years. The Annual Plan details the activities to be funded by CDBG and HOME for that year. Due to the size please contact our office to view.
How is the progress of funded activities monitored?
OCD conducts fiscal and performance monitoring of each funded agency to ensure that all programs and projects are in compliance with OCD and HUD regulations.
By September 30th of each year, OCD must prepare a Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER) to report on the progress of funded projects. The CAPER is then submitted to HUD.
Due to the size of the full CAPER if you would like to view it, please contact our office.
HOME Investment Partnerships Program
HOME funds are allocated via a separate Request for Proposals procurement process. Please call our office for more information.
CHDO Certification
The City of Holyoke, on behalf of the Chicopee-Westfield-Holyoke Consortium, conducts certification for the Consortium’s HOME program. At least 15% of the Consortium’s HOME allocation must be awarded to qualified CHDO’s.
All new and existing CHDO’s must become familiar with CHDO Policies and Procedures. All new CHDO’s must complete the CHDO application. A Recertification Application will not be accepted for initial certification. The deadline for certification submittal is November 30th for CHDO status eligibility December 1st- December 1st. Recertifications for existing CHDO’s will be due annually on November 1st.
HOME-ARP Program
The City of Holyoke, lead city for Holyoke-Chicopee-Westfield Consortium is developing a plan for use of the HOME-ARP funds. The Consortium includes the cities of Holyoke, Chicopee and Westfield and has been awarded $3,329,224.00 in HOME-ARP funds.
HOME-ARP funds may be used benefit qualifying populations through:
- Tenant-based Rental Assistance (TBRA);
- Development and support of affordable housing;
- Provision of supportive services;
- Acquisition and development of non-congregate shelter;
- Nonprofit capacity building and operating assistance; and
- Funds for the planning and administration of the HOME-ARP Program.
For the purposes of HOME-ARP, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) defines qualifying individuals or families, including Veterans, that are:
- Homeless, as defined in section 103(a) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act;
- At risk of homelessness, as defined in section 401 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act;
- Fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking (as defined by HUD in 24 CFR 5.2003) or human trafficking (as outlined in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 as amended [22 USC 7102]); and
- Part of other populations, where providing supportive services or assistance under section 212(a) of the National Affordable Housing Act 42 USC 12472(a) would: a. Prevent a family’s homelessness; b. Serve those with the greatest risk of housing instability.
Community Development Block Grant-COVID (CDBG-CV)
HUD provided CDBG-CV funding to the City of Holyoke to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The FY2019 CDBG-CV Spreadsheet details how CDBG-CV funds were awarded.