Public Hearing Notice

Public Notice City of Blue Springs, Missouri Community Development Block Grant 2020-2021 CDBG Annual Action Plan The City of Blue Springs is presenting the 2020-2021 Annual Action Plan for public review and comment. The draft plan will be available for a 30-day public comment period beginning Saturday, August 15, 2020 and ending on Tuesday, September 15, 2020. The purpose of the public comment period is to allow the public the opportunity to review the plan and submit comments prior to the final draft being submitted to the City Council for approval. The public is encouraged to review and make comments, or attend the final public hearing, including organizations that provide assistance to low-moderate income residents and individuals who may be homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, public housing agencies, residents of public and assisted housing developments, and low-moderate income residents. The 2020-2021 Annual Action Plan covers the 1-year period beginning October 1, 2020 and ending September 30, 2021. The Annual Action Plan describes the specific CDBG projects and activities that the City will undertake during the program year. The City has received an allocation of $268,985 for the 2020-2021 program year and will be reprogramming $92,970 from pre-2019 allocations that have not been expended. The City has a total program of $361,955 for the program year and is proposing to expend the funds on the following projects: $136,000 for low-moderate income housing benefit ($100,000 for Minor Home Repair Program and $36,000 for First Time Home Buyers Program); $40,240 for public services benefiting low-moderate income clientele ($3,000 for Fieldhouse Recreation Scholarships, $12,240 for Hope House, and $25,000 for Community Services League); $55,000 for slum-blight area benefit ($25,000 for Downtown Alive and $30,000 for Commercial Façade Grant Program); $120,000 for low- moderate income area benefit (Park Improvements Program); and $10,715 for program administration and planning. The final draft of the 2020-2021 Annual Action Plan will be presented to the City Council at a public hearing. A public hearing will be held by the City Council on Monday, October 5, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. at the Howard L. Brown Public Safety Building located at 1100 SW Smith Street, Blue Springs, MO 64015. At the public hearing, the City Council will open the public hearing, receive public comments, close the hearing, and accept the plan as submitted or as amended. The City shall consider the views of citizens, public agencies, and other interested parties in preparing the draft plan and final submission. A summary of all public comments will be attached to the final submission. The Annual Action Plan will be submitted to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) after City Council approval for review and approval. ALTERNATE HEARING LOCATION: If, on the date of the public hearing, the City is under continued public gathering and personal distancing restrictions, the public hearing will be held via teleconference. MEETING LOCATION AND PARTICIPATION INFORMATION WILL BE POSTED ONLINE AT www.bluespringsgov.com/AgendaCenter AND ON THE MEETING AGENDA. For more information or to submit comments on the Annual Action Plan, contact Matt Wright, Senior Planner, at 816-220-4504 or mwright@bluespringsgov.com. The draft plan may be viewed on the City’s website at www.bluespringsgov.com/CDBG. Individuals who do not have access to internet may request a copy or a viewing of the draft plan by calling 816-220-4504. Please note that due to COVID-19 restrictions and limited accessibility, this public notice will not be posted or draft plan made available for viewing at Vesper Hall or Mid-Continent Public Libraries as has been done in the past. Written comments may be submitted via email to mwright@bluespringsgov.com or mailed to Attn: CDBG, Community Development Department, 903 W. Main Street, Blue Springs, MO 64015. All written comments must either be received during the 30-day public comment period to be included with the draft plan or by Noon on the day of the October 5, 2020 public hearing to be included with the public hearing. Published in The Examiner: Saturday, August 15, 2020