The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing, Richard Monocchio, announced a $50 million Choice Neighborhoods Implementation grant to the city of Tucson for redeveloping Tucson House. HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge expressed satisfaction with Tucson receiving the award and acknowledged the city's dedication to neighborhood revitalization and collaboration with community members for a transformation plan in the Thrive in the 05 neighborhood.
"I am pleased to see Tucson is receiving this Choice Neighborhoods award," Fudge said in the an Aug. 2 release. "The city of Tucson has demonstrated its commitment to neighborhood revitalization, having collaborated with community members to create a transformation plan for the Tucson House and the Thrive in the 05 neighborhood. This public investment will give the local leaders the resources they need to achieve their vision for The 05."
Monocchio will participate in an August HUD On the Road event, the release reported. In order to support and empower local communities to improve the supply of affordable housing through building preservation and innovation, HUD officials will visit the country throughout the month.
"The city of Tucson and its many dedicated community partners have worked for more than a decade to redevelop the city's 5th ward," Monocchio said in the release. "This $50 million Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grant is a once-in-a-generation investment in the city and the state of Arizona after extensive local planning was done to renovate Tucson House and the Thrive in the 05 neighborhood. We are thrilled to contribute materials to the 'Thrive in the 5' project and to this particular celebration."
Seven additional cities around the nation will receive CNI Grants totaling $370 million, according to the release. In addition to offering residents services centered on income, health and education, the CNI Grants will assist in reviving and transforming the troubled public and/or assisted homes and neighborhoods around the nation, the release reported.
The CNI Grants provide funding for the building of new mixed-income housing complexes, enhance economic development opportunities and support extensive community revitalization initiatives that concentrate on the three areas of housing, people and neighborhood, the release said.
The new grant recipients will join a dedicated group of 44 more Choice Neighborhoods sites around the country that have contributed more than $6.3 billion in total to historically underserved regions. According to the release, to realize the wider Transformation Plan, the eight new grants have mobilized an additional $3 billion in public and private commitments.
