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March 4, 2014                                                               Brenda Lopez    956.544.8352

PRESS RELEASE: Congressmen Filemon Vela and Rubén Hinojosa Announce HUD Awards $2 Million to Boost Job Growth and Business Opportunities Along U.S. – Mexico Border

Funds will be used for colonias and underserved rural areas

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressmen Filemon Vela (TX-34) and Rubén Hinojosa (TX-15) announced $1.6 million of the $2 million was awarded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to three nonprofit organizations, Accion Texas, Affordable Homes of South Texas, and the Community Resource Group Inc. This funding will directly impact colonias in our South Texas communities. Funding is provided by the Border Community Capital Initiative (Border Initiative).

"I am pleased the Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded Affordable Homes of South Texas with funds to improve living conditions in the Rio Grande Valley's colonias," said U.S. Rep. Vela.  "I applaud community-based organizations such as Affordable Homes of South Texas which assist low-income families find safe and reasonably-priced housing while strengthening our local economy."

"For decades, the dire living conditions experienced by residents in border colonias have flown under the federal radar," said U.S. Rep. Hinojosa. "During a federal agency visit to McAllen in 2011, community leaders raised the need for greater federal coordination and funding priority for colonias, and the Obama Administration listened. The funds brought back to our communities through the Border Community Capital Initiative will help to improve housing, small business opportunities, and basic services. While this funding is just a first step toward a sustainable, quality standard of living within our colonias, the impact will be great and long-lasting. I congratulate the recipients, all of whom are upstanding organizations that contribute greatly to our communities. Together with Congressman Vela and other community leaders, I pledge to continue to raise awareness about the neglected conditions of the colonias at a federal level."

“The 7,000+ members of La Union del Pueblo Entero (LUPE) are pleased and excited by the announcement by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) of some $2,000,000 to be invested in improving housing conditions in area colonias,” said Juanita Valdez-Cox, Executive Director of La Union del Pueblo Entero.  “These funds will help distressed families improve their living conditions, and that is wonderful news for them. But the story only begins there. This investment also means new employment opportunities in the construction industry that will be tapped to make repairs and improvements. Fortunately, the strong Section 3 plan recently adopted by the Council of Governments means that local workers will stand first in line for those new jobs. And because of the strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit of our community, we anticipate that many new businesses will be created so families can begin to climb the ladder toward success and economic stability. In the end the relatively small investment by HUD will be multiplied many times over and contribute to making the Rio Grande Valley an even better place to live and work for all of us.”

“This is a huge opportunity for the border area,” said Nick-Mitchell Bennett, Executive Director of Community Development Corporation of Brownsville.  “To have some of the most productive affordable housing producers in the state of Texas teaming up to meet mortgage and lending needs for low-income families could be a game changer for the RGV.  This partnership could be the start of a new model in affordable housing production.  We could not be more proud.”  

The Border Initiative is a collaborative effort among three federal agencies - the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of the Treasury - Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) and the Department of Agriculture - Rural Development (USDA-RD). The Initiative's goal is to increase access to capital for affordable housing, business lending and community facilities in the chronically underserved and undercapitalized U.S./Mexico border region. Specifically, it will provide direct investment and technical assistance to community development lending and investing institutions that focus on affordable housing, small business and community facilities to benefit the residents of colonias.

The Border Initiative's involvement stems from discussions between community members and federal agency representatives at National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB), 2011 Border Summit in McAllen. Grantees expect to leverage an additional $5.5 million from other public and private sources to increase investment in ‘colonias’ where there are few opportunities for businesses to access private capital.

HUD announced grants to the following organizations:

The grant funding announced today is part of the White House Rural Council. The Council was launched by President Obama in 2012 to help create jobs and expand opportunities in rural communities.  

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