Nearly $7 Million Awarded to City of Austin for More Affordable Housing
By Talisa Treviño, KXAN.com
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded the grant through its program — Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing — and will be spread over six years, according to a city press release.
Around $3 million of the grant will help finance the Ryan Drive affordable housing development and future developments in the South Congress area. $1 million is also set aside to help fund new zoning tools for “more diverse and attainable housing.” $750,000 is planned to update the Austin Strategic Housing Blueprint and opportunity mapping, the city said.
“Austin continues to demonstrate that our priority is to ensure access to affordable housing for all Austinites. We are ready to implement these grant dollars to expand our impact on equitable housing initiatives,” said Mayor Kirk Watson in the press release.
In the release, the city’s Housing Department said, “Regulatory and other barriers have made it difficult to produce, preserve, and access affordable housing. Underserved communities of color and low-income populations feel these pressures more severely. These barriers also reduce opportunities to build generational wealth and further increase evictions and the likelihood of homelessness.”
Interim Director of the Housing Department, Mandy DeMayo, said in the press release, “This impactful funding from HUD will allow us to strategically update policy plans, invest in development near future light rail, and create new zoning tools to unlock missing middle opportunities.”
City of Austin Housing Grant Activities
Update the Strategic Housing Blueprint and Opportunity Mapping Index
Invest in the Development and Preservation of Affordable Housing Near Planned Light Rail
Create New Zoning Tools to Unlock Missing-Middle and Urban Mixed-Use Development, Enabling More Housing Opportunities for All