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BOOK 10-7 PAGE 775 In 1996, Indian River County was awarded a neighborhood revitalization Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). Funds from that grant were used to provide infrastructure improvements in both the Douglas Subdivision and the Whitfield Subdivision. Those improvements included hooking up 84 single-family homes to the county water system, paving roads in both subdivisions, and making drainage improvements in both subdivisions. In total, 151 lots benefitted from the road paving and drainage improvements. The closeout package for the Wabasso neighborhood revitalization grant has been submitted to the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) for its review. The DCA has 60 days to review the closeout documents and forward its findings to Indian River County. The county's grant administrator consultant does not anticipate any problems with the closeout package. With closeout of the current grant, the county may apply for another grant. According to DCA, the next CDBG application cycle submission deadline is June 30, 1999. As indicated in the CDBG program regulations, the primary objective of the Neighborhood Revitalization grant category is to conserve and revitalize declining low and moderate income neighborhoods by addressing the major problems contributing to such decline. Activities that could achieve this objective include but are not limited to: ► Improvements to deteriorating infrastructure; ► Provision of basic services such as water and sewer facilities where the applicant can demonstrate sufficient plant capacity and operation to serve such facilities; ► The construction or rehabilitation of facilities for the elderly and the handicapped; ► Land assembly or site preparation for new housing construction; ► Provision of roads and drainage facilities; or ' Mitigation of fimire natural disaster hazards, including voluntary acquisition of flood prone property and relocation of homes and/or beneficiaries from properties acquired. CBDG funds are awarded on a competitive basis using a scoring system. This system is described in the CDBG program rules. In each program category, the maximum score possible is 1,000 points. Those points are divided among three program factors as specified below. Communitywide needs 250 points Program impact, Scope of Work, LM Benefit 650 points Outstanding performance in equal opportunity employment and housing 100 points Total points 1,000 points For the 1998 finding period, the lowest score of the projects that were funded was 668.02. Of the three scoring factors, the community -wide needs factor is the only one that the county does not control, meaning that no action by the county can increase the community -wide needs score. To determine the community -wide needs score for a junisdiction, the DCA uses current U.S. Census data (1990). For Indian River County, the data relevant for only the unincorporated areas within the county shall be used in determining its community -wide needs score. Currently, Indian River County has a community -wide needs score of 67.42. For jurisdictions that have received CDBG fimds in the past, the DCA deducts points from that jurisdiction's community -wide needs score. Due to the Wabasso CDBG project, the county's community -wide needs score will be reduced by approximately seven points. The average community -wide needs score for jurisdictions that received finding in 1998 was 107. In addition to the scoring system, certain service arm requirements must be met for a service area to be eligible for CDBG funds. One such requirement is that at least 51% of the residents of the service area are to be low and moderate income persons. Another requirement is that on average, at least one low to moderate income aW household shall benefit for each $15,000 of CDBG funds requested in the original application. Income information for the proposed service area will be collected from a survey, which will be performed by the grant administrator. CDBG program income limits for households are shown below. DECEMBER 1, 1998