DeGette Announces $4.5 Million for Denver to Expand Capacity for Housing Development
DENVER, CO – RealEstateRama – Congresswoman Diana DeGette (CO-01) announced that the City and County of Denver is receiving a $4.5 million grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This comes from $85 million in grant funding for the first ever Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing) program. PRO Housing aims to identify and remove barriers to affordable housing production, preservation, and lower housing costs.
“Accessible and affordable housing is the bedrock for healthy and successful lives,” said DeGette. “This funding from HUD will help Denver better serve our community and improve housing infrastructure. I look forward to seeing how this funding will help our community and put more Denverites on track to success.”
PRO Housing provides grant funding to communities actively taking steps and demonstrating progress in addressing local housing barriers such as outdated local regulations and land use policies, inadequate infrastructure, lack of available financing for development, and risks associated with extreme weather and an aging housing stock. Winners of the PRO Housing competition will update state and local housing plans, revise land use policies, streamline the permitting process, and take other actions to create more housing-forward communities.
HUD received considerable interest in the first round of PRO Housing funding. Applications were submitted from more than 175 communities – representing a wide variety of demographics, geographies and population sizes – across 47 states and territories. Successful applicants demonstrated a commitment to eliminating barriers to housing and progress toward creating more housing forward communities. The winners of PRO Housing are actively deploying strategies to boost housing supply, reform local regulations, incentivize development, prevent displacement, and encourage community driven solutions. Given the broad interest and urgent need to address housing supply, applicants will be provided technical assistance to address housing costs. Later this year, HUD will make $100 million in additional funding available for round two of the competition.