Community Development
The Community Development Division helps
the city to implement its comprehensive planning program.
Through its various adopted plans, the city has identified
large general goals to guide the orderly development and
maintenance of the city. The community development department,
through the consolidated strategy and action plan, sets
more specific goals within the larger context and provides
for the funding and action needed to achieve those goals.
The funding is available for projects that will help achieve
national objectives as determined by Congress for the use
of Community Development Block Grant funds. The department
is primarily funded by a Community Development Block Grant
and receives some city funds.
A large portion of the funding for this
department receives goes to replace substandard streets,
drainage, street lighting, sewer and water lines, and park
and recreation facilities in areas that have low to moderate
income populations.
Below is a list of the block grant programs
and requirements:
Emergency Housing Rehabilitation
To qualify for emergency rehabilitation,
the condition of a home must pose an immediate and extreme
threat to life, health, safety, or one in which at any
moment lives may be in jeopardy because of a code violation.
The applicant must qualify by meeting the
following basic requirements:
-
Must reside within the city limits of Bossier City.
-
Must own the home and not own any
other property.
-
Must have owned the home for at
lease one (1) year.
-
Must meet certain income and mortgage
guidelines set by HUD.
-
Cannot have over $7,500 in any bank/financial
institution.
-
Home must be clean and orderly prior
to work beginning.
- Contractor must have complete access
to the home, inside and out during normal working
hours (7 am to 6 pm).
Emergency Shelter Grant
Sub grants are available only to 501c(3)
non-profits not individuals. Requests for proposals are
requested each spring from qualified sub-recipients.
Eligible activities are as follows:
-
Renovation, rehab, and conversion
of buildings for use as emergency shelters or
transitional housing for the homeless.
-
Essential services.
-
Operating costs such as maintenance,
insurance, rent, etc.
-
Homeless prevention.
-
Administration.
Micro-Loans for Business Development
This program is designed to lend up to
$15,000 to small businesses that are just starting up and/or
require additional capital to increase the growth of the
business. Funding from this program may be used to finance
purchases of equipment, inventory, supplies, or for physical
expansion of a business operation. The business must benefit
low-to-moderate income persons by creating or retaining
jobs or services to a predominately low-income neighborhood.
-
Loan amount is $5,000 to $15,000.
-
Terms 36 - 180 months amortization
at 6% interest.
-
Required to create jobs for low income
persons, which must be documented each year for
the term of the loan.
Eligible Uses
-
Acquisition of fixed assets & working
capital loans not to exceed 50% of the loan.
-
Fixed assets including acquisition
of property, buildings & equipment for the
business.
-
Renovation of existing facilities,
demolitions & site preparation.
-
Construction/renovation is subject
to Federal labor Standards& Historic Preservation
requirements.
Ineligible Uses
-
Speculative activity, i.e. - developers,
real estate investments, etc.
Public Service Grants
This program provides funding to community
based, not-for-profit organizations that implement programs
and/or projects addressing priority housing, non-housing,
homeless/special needs, or human services. Only organizations
with non-profit status, 501(c) (3), and/or are certified
Community Housing Development Corporations (CHDC) are eligible
to receive funding.
Eligible Activities:
-
The service must benefit low-to-moderate
income persons.
-
Examples of activities include,
but ARE NOT LIMITED TO: child care, educational
programs, services for senior citizens, job training,
health care, fair housing activities, drug abuse
counseling and treatment, youth programs for
low to moderate income persons.
-
Must be in operation for at lease
tone (1) year.
Ineligible Activities
-
Duplication of city wide programs already
in existence.
Single Family Housing Rehabilitation
The level of funds available is $1,000
to $24,999 per unit. Applications are only taken in January
of each year.
To qualify for the housing rehabilitation
program the following basic requirements MUST BE MET:
-
Reside in the city limits of Bossier
City.
-
Own the home and not own any other
property.
-
Have owned and occupied the home for at least
one (1) year.
-
Meet certain income & mortgage
guidelines set forth by HUD.
-
May not have over $7,500 in any
bank or financial institution.
-
Home must be clean & orderly
PRIOR to the start of the project.
-
If any of the surfaces to be worked
on are found to contain lead, all residents may
be relocated during the rehab process.
-
Contractor must have complete access
to the home, inside and out.
Eligible Owner
-
Income does not exceed eighty percent
(80%) of the median income for the MSA area based
on family size.
-
Must own the property and have true
title.
-
Applicant(s) are eligible for one
(1) full rehab within a 10-year period.
Eligible Property
-
Any single-family dwelling unit
occupied for one (1) year as a principal residence
by the owner & family, including a dwelling
that is a duplex unit, in which the one (1) unit
of the dwelling is an eligible property.
-
The property value after rehab must
not exceed the current 203 (b) mortgage limit
for the area/type of property being assisted.
Ineligible Property
-
Mobile homes or buildings that contain
two (2) or more rental units.
Contact Info:
Monday - Friday: 8:00am - 5:00pm
Bob Brown
:
Director
Rick Fowler: Housing Rehabilitation Specialist
Kay Jackson: Federal Aid Coordinator
620 Benton Road
P.O. Box 5337
Bossier City, LA 71171-5337
318.741.8560 - Fax: 318.741.8563
