More funds available for housing programs

Additional funding for nonprofits recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and more money for affordable housing projects and housing assistance in the Sussex County Housing Trust Fund have been made available.

Sussex County received $45.5 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds that must be spent before the end of 2024. Sussex County earmarked its funding for a variety of initiatives that included public safety, affordable housing, wastewater infrastructure, low-income services and other post-pandemic efforts.

Council approved the following allocation of ARPA funds: $25 million to sewer infrastructure; $8.3 million to affordable housing and low-income programs; $5.3 million in grants to nonprofits; $3 million to security upgrades to sewer infrastructure; $1.4 million to emergency operations and emergency medical employees; and $500,000 to the county's kitchen incubator program.

In a March 28 report to Sussex County Council, Finance Director Gina Jennings updated the expenditures to date and made recommendations to allocate the remaining funds with an emphasis on affordable housing initiatives that meet the guidelines of the federal funds allocations.

Funds for nonprofits

An additional $1.2 million in funding will be made available to eligible nonprofits during an application round that opens next month. This is in addition to the $5 million in funding last year that nonprofits received.

Jennings said the added funds became available as some other previously intended recipients or initiatives no longer needed the ARPA funds.

To qualify, nonprofit organizations, among other criteria, must be recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(19) entities and provide service in Sussex County. Eligible organizations can apply for up to $40,000 in economic impact relief assistance under the county’s ARPA program.

Applications for this newest funding round will be accepted beginning Monday, April 3. The deadline to apply is May 1. For more information, go to sussexcountyde.gov/ARPA-grant-program-application.

Funds for housing

On Monday, April 3, the Community Development & Housing office will begin taking applications from individuals and groups in search of affordable housing options, either through rentals or homeownership. The program, known as the Housing Trust Fund, is one way the county is working to promote access to and preservation of affordable housing.

About $4.1 million in funding – most from the ARPA relief package to Sussex County – will be available to applicants in this newest round, the second since the program launched in spring 2022.

The county awarded $3.3 million in the Housing Trust Fund’s inaugural round, assisting nearly three dozen homebuyers, as well as supporting the preservation or creation of more than 150 new affordable units.

“The Housing Trust Fund has been tremendously successful, so much so that we stopped taking homebuyer applications after just a few months,” said Community Development & Housing Director Brandy Nauman. “The affordable housing demand is certainly out there. Our program showed that, and this newest round will help us to continue to meet some of that need.”

Under the program, qualified individual applicants can apply for forgivable loans up to $30,000 to assist with down payments and settlement fees, while developers, groups and others working toward increasing the affordable housing stock can apply for up to $500,000 grants with the promise their projects will serve a defined customer base. All applicants must meet income eligibility requirements and other criteria.

For more information on the program, go to sussexcountyde.gov/housing-trust-fund.

Affordable housing

Council had approved funds to support three affordable housing programs, including $6 million for grants to affordable housing developers with a cap of $500,000 or $50,000 per affordable unit; $300,000 of direct buyer's financial assistant allowing up to $30,000 for down payment and settlement costs for households earning 65% of the area median income or less; and $2 million in additional rehabilitation funds increasing the allowance from $7,500 to $10,000 to expand the emergency repair and roof replacement program and connection fee assistance for affordable housing units connecting to the county sewer system.

So far, Jennings said, 10 homebuyers have received direct financial assistance for down payments and settlement costs, and 64 homes have been repaired, with five projects under construction and 17 applications in process.

Part of the funds dedicated to housing rehabs were used to pay outstanding taxes, fees or liens to allow homeowners to participate in the program under the county's clean-hands ordinance.

The county also used $571,000 to hire four paramedics and four emergency operations staff.

First-round recipients

Nonprofits receiving grants during the first round included: $995,000 to Tidal Health in Seaford to expand healthcare services in rural, low-income communities; $950,000 to Montessori Works in Seaford to renovate the campus barn to provide space for medical education, social and emotional assistance and health screenings to be available to the community; $750,000 to Beebe Healthcare in Lewes for rural healthcare and social service connection to build public health capacity and address rural workforce needs; $665,000 to Easterseals in Georgetown to replace an outdated HVAC system; $615,000 to Bayhealth in Milford for COVID-19 medical equipment and a new emergency room; $570,000 to Children's Beach House in Lewes to expand its youth development program to provide year-round programs for 100 children; $500,000 to Community Resource Center in Rehoboth Beach to keep low-income families and individuals in stable housing by preventing eviction and utility discounts.

ARPA funds to date

Funds spent to date include: $157,561 in wastewater infrastructure, with $25 million remaining; $1.5 million in nonprofit grants, with $5 million remaining; $732,346 in cyber security upgrades, with $3 million remaining; $413,000 in low-income housing rehabilitation, with $500,000 remaining; $290,000 in low-income homebuyer assistance, with $300,000 remaining; $95,925 in low-income assistance relief, with $300,000 remaining; $28,320 for the county kitchen incubator project, with $300,000 remaining; $1.4 million for additional public safety employees, with $300,000 remaining; and $113,337 in administration of ARPA program, with $1.2 million remaining.