FY 2010 HOPE VI Awards Emphasize Early Childhood Education and Community Services

On August 25th, HUD announced that it was making $1.24 million available in up to 4 HOPE VI awards. The award announcement was released in tandem with the announcement of $65 million in Choice Neighborhoods pilot program awards for FY 2010. Four to Six Public Housing Authorities will be awarded roughly $22 million each.

The HOPE VI program was initiated in 1993 to transform severely distressed public housing developments to mixed-income communities. For nearly 17 years HOPE VI funds have been used for demolition of severely distressed public housing, acquisition of sites for off-site construction, capital costs of major rehabilitation, new construction and other physical improvements and community and supportive service programs for residents. While HOPE VI has successfully funded the removal of many large public housing complexes in the United States, there has been widespread concern about displacement of residents.

The 2010 NOFA seeks to address some of this critique, maintaining a unit replacement requirement. Is also prioritizes early childhood education and community supports, and includes a requirement that all grantees provide Neighborhood Network Centers that provide “residents with on-site access to computer and training resources that create knowledge and experience with computers and the Internet as tools to increase access to Community Supportive Services, job training, and the job market.” Applicants who received HOPE VI FY 2009 awards all had strong early childhood education components to their plans.

HOPE VI Revitalization grant applicants will have until November 22, 2010 to submit applications. The full NOFA can be found here.