McHenry Times

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) said on Tuesday that Illinois will receive over $67 million in federal grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for affordable-housing and homeless-assistance programs, with Will and Kane counties receiving nearly $5 million.

“This federal investment will give local development agencies across Illinois the ability to offer affordable housing and homeless assistance to the people in their community who need it most,” Durbin said.

The funds come from four different federal grant programs, with the largest chunk coming from Community Development Block Grants, which aim to improve urban neighborhoods by facilitating access to housing and economic opportunities for low- and moderate-income residents.

Other grant sources include the HOME program, which funds affordable housing for low- and very-low-income residents; Emergency Shelter Grants, which fund the maintenance and improvement of homeless shelters and related services; and the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) grant program, which funds projects that help low-income residents who have HIV/AIDS and their families with housing and other services.

More than 60 percent of the funds will be disbursed to the state, with the remainder being divided among several county and municipal governments, including Will, Kane and Cook Counties.