Mesa Celebrates Community Development Week and the 50th Anniversary of the CDBG Grant

Mesa Celebrates Community Development Week and the 50th Anniversary of the CDBG Grant

Mesa is celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program created in 1974 to empower individuals and build stronger communities by improving housing conditions and expanding economic opportunity. Over the last five years, over $22 million in CDBG funds have benefited Mesas community. Through partnerships with local non-profit agencies, these funds have provided housing rehabilitation assistance, capital improvements to community facilities, parks, and homeless shelters, COVID mitigation and prevention and critical services to assist the most vulnerable populations.

We have seen first-hand the incredible impact CDBG funds have had in Mesa. They are a critical resource to the City and our local non-profit partners looking to improve conditions for our community, said Mesa Housing and Community Development Director Michelle Albanese.

Mesas support includes awarding Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnership Program (HOME), Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) and Human Services funding to various non-profit organizations to administer housing-related activities. These agencies include House of Refuge, A New Leaf, East Valley Mens Emergency Shelter, City of Mesa, Housing Rehabilitation Program, Community Bridges, Family Promise and Community Legal Services. Since 2019, approximately $8.5 million in HOME funds have been allocated for housing programs and new development.

The City of Mesa team has been an invaluable partner for A New Leaf. The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) dollars have greatly impacted our success story. Your contributions helped improve the lives of the most vulnerable people in our community, said Faviola Chavez, A New Leaf Director of Real Estate.