Washington – U.S. Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor and U.S. Representative Vic Snyder (AR-02) today announced that the Arkansas Development Finance Authority will receive $5,000,000 in U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funds through the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that was signed into law in July. The funding will help stabilize communities in Arkansas that have suffered from high rates of foreclosure.
Funds under HUD’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program will be used to acquire abandoned and foreclosed properties, rehabilitate blighted properties and oversee redevelopment of neighborhoods. The Arkansas Development Finance Authority will distribute funds to housing authorities and developers in Arkansas that will acquire and redevelop foreclosed and abandoned properties to provide housing for lower and middle-class Arkansans.
“I am pleased to announce this investment that will improve the availability of affordable housing options for Arkansans and revitalize areas that have been hit the hardest by these tough economic times,” Lincoln said. “I am proud to have played a key role in crafting the Wall Street Reform legislation that fought for Main Street and provided this funding. As Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, I will continue to work to improve housing for all Arkansans.”
“The housing crisis has hurt many communities across Arkansas, as more homes fall to foreclosure and families struggle to find housing within their budgets,” Pryor said. “These federal funds will help revitalize foreclosed properties and in turn revitalize communities, providing affordable housing options and raising home values in the surrounding areas. This is what the Wall Street Reform Act was meant to do – help Main Street and working families – and I’m pleased to see its benefits at work for Arkansas.”
