Albuquerque, Gallup, Las Cruces, Ohkay Owingeh and Santa Fe receive $1.4 million in grants from HUD for affordable housing and economic development

FORT WORTH, Sept. 11, 2007 – Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson today awarded $1,402,715 to rural housing programs in Albuquerque, Gallup, Las Cruces, Ohkay Owingeh and Santa Fe, New Mexico, to stimulate economic development, create jobs and produce more affordable housing. The funding is part of $16.8 million in grants provided nationwide through HUD’s Rural Housing and Economic Development Program. Information about the five NM grantees follows.

In addition to the HUD grants announced today, rural communities are expected to leverage more than $7.2 million from other public and private sources to promote economic development and employment.

“These grants will go a long way toward producing more affordable housing in rural communities across our country,” said Jackson. “HUD funding, and the private investment these grants will generate, will offer more than just an affordable home to working families in rural areas. These grants will trigger economic development and breathe new life into rural neighborhoods that are desperate to grow.”

Rural Housing and Economic Development (RHED) grants help pay for land acquisition, new home construction, housing demolition, infrastructure improvements and construction training. Other possible uses include homeownership and financial counseling; financial assistance to homeowners, businesses and developers; creating microenterprises and small business incubators; and establishing lines of credit or revolving loan pools to benefit the local business community.

Qualified applicants are local rural nonprofit organizations, community development corporations, federally recognized Indian tribes, State housing finance agencies and/or local economic development agencies. RHED grants have provided nearly $190 million, creating more than 12,000 jobs, assisting nearly 8,200 businesses and producing nearly 20,000 affordable homes.

Rural communities will use this funding as seed money to pay the start-up costs for housing or economic development projects. These grants will also help organizations to hire and train their staffs, develop strategic plans and acquire office space and other needed facilities.

Community Area Resource Enterprise (CARE), Inc. in Gallup, New Mexico, will use its $299,125 grant to provide affordable housing to low-income residents and to promote economic development. In addition, funds will be used to purchase the historic Ricca Mercantile/Grand Hotel Building in downtown Gallup. The plan is to convert the hotel into a multi-purpose facility with 12 affordable housing units and commercial retail space that will result in job creation and new business development opportunities. Proposed leveraging for this proposal is $1,424,125.
Contact: Sanjay Choudhrie
P.O. Box 4296, Gallup, NM 87305
Telephone Number: (505) 722-0066

Dona Ana County Colonias Development Council in Las Cruces, New Mexico, will use its $203,590 RHED grant to create community-based approaches to economic development in the Colonias through education, job training, networking and shared experiences. Proposed leveraging for their project is $128,231.
Contact: Megan Snedden
1050 Monie Vista, Las Cruces, NM 88001
Telephone Number: (505) 647-2744

New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority in Albuquerque, New Mexico, will use its $300,000 RHED grant to expand their REVIVE program. This program, in existence for 6 years, has renovated 70 homes on Tribal and Colonias land. This grant will continue to bring about new development in two new areas. Proposed leveraging for this organization is $3,118,500.
Contact: Iris Encinias
344 4th Street, SW, Albuquerque, NM 87102
Telephone Number: (505) 767-2233

Pueblo of Pojoaque in Santa Fe, New Mexico, will use its $300,000 RHED grant to assist the Tribe in Phase III of White Sands Village, which will result in the construction of 20 new affordable housing units, 10 of which will be for low-income residents. Proposed leveraging for this project will total $2,596,250.
Contact: Allyn Martinez and George Rivera
27 Tribal Works Road, Santa Fe, NM 87506
Telephone Number: (505) 455-3383

San Juan Pueblo Tribal Council in Ohkay Owingeh, New Mexico, will use it’s $300,000 RHED grant to renovate 11 homes that will be occupied by low and very low-income tribal homeowners. In addition, the grant will be used to develop a construction business that will hire and train staff from among unemployed tribal members for economic growth.
Contact: Tomasita Duran
P. O. Box Ohkay Owingeh, NM 87566
Telephone Number: (505) 852-0189