In July, the CSPDC received notice of two grant awards from Virginia Housing. Collectively, these grants bring $1,725,000 in housing funds to the region. The CSPDC received an allocation of $1.7 million in funds through Virginia Housing’s Sponsoring Partnerships & Revitalizing Communities (SPARC) Program, a special allocation of reduced rate funding which provides a 1% adjustment to interest rates below Virginia Housing’s prevailing home loan rates. These funds will be used to complement the CSPDC’s existing First Time Homebuyer Program, which provides down payment and closing cost assistance to income-qualified homebuyers at 80% AMI or below. The CSPDC is currently completing initial program development activities with Virginia Housing and will begin outreach to Virginia Housing approved lenders in the coming month.
Additionally, the CSPDC received a $15,000 Community Impact Grant to conduct a Preliminary Architecture Report for a key property in Downtown Monterey. The building is the former home of the Highland Recorder Newspaper, and the property owner is partnering with the CSPDC, Highland County EDA, and Monterey town officials to assess potential future residential use. The study will kick off in August, and its findings will be used to determine best next steps for future re-development of the site for housing opportunities.