Bend City councilors unanimously vote to accept a housing

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – During the Bend City Council Meeting, the council members were tasked with approving the City Manager, to accept the Pathways to Removing Obstacles housing grant, also known as the PRO housing grant.

The City of Bend council members approved the acceptance of a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing also known as HUD.

On June 26, 2024, HUD notified city staff, that Bend was selected for a PRO housing grant award, in the amount of $5,000,000. The amount was less than the full amount requested in the city’s grant application which was $10 million.

Is it enough to make a significant impact on the city’s housing crisis? The City says, “yes!”

“We're thrilled! It was a very competitive first round of funding. One thing that's important, I think, for everyone to understand in housing development,  production is so expensive, and having these extra funds available for the community can make the difference. for a developer to have enough funds to make a project work,” said Affordable Housing Coordinator, Mellissa Kamanya.

Of the $5 million grant award, an estimated $1m will be allocated for program administration and planning costs for all proposed activities, with the remaining $4m to fund programs like: purchase land, develop infrastructure, buy down cost for housing development, or even construction – all under the umbrella of affordable housing.

Most importantly, the city says, the $5 million dollars will help in identifying and address barriers that have resulted in historic underproduction of affordable housing and widespread housing cost burden in bend.

this grant runs through 2029. When all of the activities are complete, the city envisions more housing on the ground – with a number of housing units including ADUs, townhomes, apartments, and up-to-market rate housing.