ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Allentown is set to receive more than $3.6 million in federal funding, which city officials plan to use for housing and community development programs and local nonprofits.
Allentown City Council is expected to soon approve a plan detailing how that money will be spent. A city council committee signed off on the proposal Wednesday, sending it to the full body.
- Allentown officials are earmarking $882,000 to retain and build affordable housing in the city
- More than a dozen local nonprofits also stand to receive some funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Allentown must submit its application for HUD funding by June 30
Council members could vote to approve the $3.6 million spending plan at its meeting Wednesday.
The spending plan “serves as the template” for Allentown’s application for grants from three programs run by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, officials said.
Allentown officials are applying for $3,676,392 from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant Program, HOME Investment Partnerships Program and Emergency Solutions Grants Program.
The city must submit its application by June 30 or it could miss out on the money.
Affordable housing support
The biggest chunk of that federal funding would be put toward affordable housing projects, if council approves the spending plan.
As much as 46% of households citywide spend more than 30% of their income on housing — a level considered “unaffordable."Allentown's Five-Year Consolidated Plan, published in March 2020
Officials are set to devote about $882,000 — almost a quarter of the city’s funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development — to retain and build affordable housing.
The spending plan also would allocate $300,000 for the city to buy, manage and sell properties.
Many residents and officials point to Allentown's lack of affordable housing as one of the city's most pressing issues.
As much as 46% of households citywide spend more than 30% of their income on housing — a level considered “unaffordable” — according to data from the city’s five-year consolidated plan published in March 2020.
But those statistics show Hispanic and Black households in Allentown are burdened by housing costs at a much higher rate.
While 63% of white households in Allentown spend 30% or less of their income on housing, just 41% of Hispanic households and 44.6% of Black households have affordable housing costs, the city’s stats show.
City Council approved a $196,000 contract last month for a study of the city’s housing stock and related services.
The “neighborhood-by-neighborhood” assessment will help officials develop a strategic plan to guide the city’s housing-related actions through 2028, an Allentown official said.
Local nonprofits to get help
More than a dozen nonprofits also are set to get some of the city’s federal grant money.
Allentown Rescue Mission, which helps house men who are homeless, stands to get $40,000 to support its work.
ASPIRE to Autonomy would get about $15,000 for its women’s shelter on Hamilton Street, as well as a $5,000 grant, according to the spending plan.
City officials are earmarking about $74,000 for the Lehigh Conference of Churches, with most of those funds to support the organization’s rapid rehousing work.
Community Action Lehigh Valley will get $30,000 for its youth entrepreneurship programs and $25,000 for its Sixth Street Shelter in Allentown, the spending plan shows.
Many other nonprofits are in line for $10,000 grants, including Allentown YMCA, the Boys and Girls Club of Allentown, the Lehigh Valley Center for Independent Living, The Literacy Center and Valley Youth House.
Valley Youth House runs several shelters, including one in Bethlehem, which serves ages 12-17. It also offers transitional housing, substance-abuse and many other programs.
