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Programs and Initiatives

Emergency Svcs Grant
CDBG
The Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) is an annual source of funding that supports a wide range of activities that preserve and develop urban communities. The program’s principal beneficiaries are impacted-income households. The goals of the program are to provide decent, safe, and sanitary housing, to provide a suitable living environment, and to expand economic opportunities.
HOME
The HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) provides formula grants to states and localities that communities use – often in partnership with local nonprofit groups – to fund a wide range of activities including building, buying, and/or rehabilitating affordable housing for rent or homeownership or providing direct rental assistance to low-income people. HOME is the largest federal block grant to state and local governments designed exclusively to create affordable housing for disadvantaged households. HOME funds are awarded annually as formula grants to participating jurisdictions (PJs). The program’s flexibility allows the city to use HOME funds for grants, direct loans, loan guarantees or other forms of credit enhancements, or rental assistance or security deposits.
HOPWA

Stable housing allows persons living with HIV/AIDS to access comprehensive healthcare and adhere to HIV treatment. The Office of HIV/AIDS Housing manages the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) program. HOPWA is the only Federal program dedicated to addressing the housing needs of low-income people living with HIV/AIDS and their families. Grantees partner with nonprofit organizations and housing agencies to provide housing and support to these beneficiaries.

Our
Resources

The Critical Repair program, home repairs are provided to 200 households annually within the city limits of Birmingham. The Critical Repair program is supported through an annual allocation of $1.5 million in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). To support the increasing demand for the home repairs, the city is seeking to identify agencies’ current applicants and a waitlist of over 300 households.

An incentive program to improve the façades of buildings within priority redevelopment areas. By enhancing the appearance of building façades, the program serves to improve the economic viability of these areas. Better aesthetics increase property values, improve the marketability of space within the buildings and draw business and residents to the area.

On July 26, 2023, HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge visited Birmingham to announce the Housing Authority of the Birmingham District and the City of Birmingham were awarded a $50M Choice Neighborhoods Implementation grant focused on the Smithfield-College Hills-Graymont community. Birmingham is the first city in the state of Alabama to receive a Choice Neighborhood Implementation grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HABD, the City, BCS, UAB and the United Way are working with national and local partners to revitalize the Smithfield Court public housing site and provide high quality housing options , social services and case management to public housing families and neighborhood investments totaling over $283M.
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Explore the City of Birmingham’s groundbreaking move in community development with the recent $25.2 million loan fund awarded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). As part of the Community Development Block Grant Program, Section 108, this initiative establishes a $25 million citywide Loan Pool to provide long-term, reasonably priced financing for businesses, non-profits, and City departments. The Loan Pool aims to fill financing gaps, enabling job creation, affordable housing enhancement, and the advancement of equity and development opportunities. With a focus on mixed-use projects, adaptive reuse, and community investments, Birmingham’s plan prioritizes support for Black, Indigenous, and people of color-led developers, businesses, and organizations. The Section 108 program, offering low-cost, long-term financing for various projects, underscores Birmingham’s commitment to innovative and community-driven solutions for a thriving and equitable future.
The Birmingham City Council approved the Safe Sleep Pilot Program as well as approval of the purchase of up to 100 sleeping units. in January of 2023. The goal of which is to provide safe sleeping alternatives for the city’s chronically unhoused residents through the purchase of micro-shelters. The pilot- Home for All- is a community-wide partnership in service that includes dignified Pallet sleeping units and a number of wraparound services. The pilot provides additional resources for people who either sleep in shelters or on Birmingham’s streets each night. It addresses an immediate need for shelter based on recommendations from members of the city’s unhoused community and service providers. It also allows organizers to engage, assess and learn about the needs of the unhoused for plans to create transitional and permanent supportive housing in the future.
Magic City Community Champions aims to forge thoughtful partnerships across industries in the city of Birmingham to address specific social conditions unique to each neighborhood. The champions’ rich knowledge of Birmingham enables them to identify and establish the right partnerships across different industries to address each community’s needs. By aligning resources and goals, they leverage the expertise of each partner to collectively make an impact on the health and wellbeing of residents in under-resourced neighborhoods.

Ready to Own Birmingham is a down payment and closing costs assistance program (DPA) that provides homebuyers with flexible gap financing to put homeownership within reach.  
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Well-designed, market-driven economic development programs are often key to long-term disaster recovery efforts. A typical economic development program for CDBG-DR grantees is a small business loan or grant program. A small business loan or grant program provides low- or no-cost loans to small businesses that have been impacted by the disaster, or are part of a targeted industry for future growth. The goal is to create and retain jobs for the community by stabilizing weakened businesses, encouraging business owners to re-open or expand their business, and attracting entrepreneurs for growth potential.

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