An $8.9 million action plan is slated to begin this year and be completed by 2025, focusing on projects that will largely go toward the revitalization of Owensboro’s northwest neighborhood.
The Citizens’ Advisory Committee for community development approved the plan Thursday for the Northwest Neighborhood Revitalization Strategy Area (NRSA).
Community Development Director Abby Shelton said most of their programming is geared toward the low-to-moderate income population. Noting the recent 2021 Department of Housing and Urban Development income limits just published, Shelton said the median income of Owensboro was listed as $64,400.
“If you take a four-person family, the most you can make is $51,500,” Shelton said.
The Northwest NRSA is one of the oldest communities in the city. It contains 748 single housing units, 73 vacant homes, 31 mobile homes and 88 commercial properties.
So far, the Northwest NRSA has a total investment of $8.9 million. The total five-year investment will include $4.175 million in public investments and $4.798 million in private investments. Shelton said those numbers could still increase.
Federal HOME funds for 2021 total $278,358. The majority — $172,000 — will be spent on first-time homeowner programs, including partnerships with Habitat for Humanity.
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for 2021 total $518,555. Of that amount, $165,000 will go to homeowner exterior rehab programs, while $152,000 will go toward the commercial facade programs.
CDBG programs will include $15,000 commercial facade rehab with a 25% match as well as $15,000 grants toward homeowner exterior rehab with sliding scale qualifications. These will include landscape design improvements, sidewalk connections, bus stop installations and downspout removal programs.
Locally funded programs will come with less restrictions, Shelton said. The four programs being funded and provided by the City include a single family rental reimbursement program up to $4,000 and a 50/50 matching grant, two single family new development/rehab programs, and 50/50 demolition grant.
“The applicant will spend $5,000 and the City will pay $5,000 of the cost,” Shelton said of the demolition grant.
According to Shelton, the City has already engaged a landscape architect for beautification of the 1st and 2nd street corridors.
Suggestions made by the landscape architect included the addition of bikeways and bike lanes, roadway runoff via small water quality features, putting overhead utilities in the ground, new turf, smaller ornamental trees along the roadway, new decorative lighting for street and walkways, and patterned sidewalk and roadway pavements.
The municipal order approving the plan will be submitted to Owensboro City Commission on May 4. After that, the Annual Action Plan will be submitted to the HUD on May 7.
Shelton said the COVID-19 pandemic had slowed down large-scale projects such as these, though she said the Northwest NRSA was still slated to be completed in 2025.
The next step will be a review of the plan proposal being matched with the needed dollars on a year-by-year basis. Shelton said it would be a methodical process that would be reviewed by City officials in the near future.
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