AUBURN – Federal shuffling of housing and community development grants money has local officials worried.
Money for local communities through the Community Development Block Grant program would be reduced, according to the budget presented by President Bush on Monday. Those cuts, combined with new eligibility requirements, could change how much help Auburn and Lewiston get in the next few years.
The president’s budget calls for $1.15 billion in cuts to the CDBG program nationwide. Other grant programs that look to increase, however, include the HOME program, which offers grants to help low income people qualify to purchase homes.
“We really don’t know how we’re going to end up fitting in all this,” said Reine Mynahan, Auburn’s Community Development administrator. “This is all evolving over time, so we’re sure that coalitions are going to form to look at it and react as more and more comes out.”
Both cities have received CDBG money since the program began in 1974. The communities have used the money to pay for social service agencies, building affordable housing and paying for community amenities such as Festival Plaza and Bonney Park in Auburn and Railroad Park in Lewiston.
The cities also use the money for economic development in the form of business loans and support for the Bates Mill Enterprise Complex.
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