A public input period will occur for a substantial amendment to the 2021 Annual Action Plan American Rescue Plan.

The public input period will occur Nov. 14-Dec. 1 2022, with a public hearing to take place on Dec. 8 during the regular Board of County Commissioners meeting, starting at 9:30 a.m. in the Third Floor Hearing Room at the County Administration Building, 111 S. Cherry St. Olathe, KS.

Background on the Substantial Amendment

The Annual Action Plan is Johnson County’s application and distribution plan for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Community Planning and Development Block Grant Programs (HOME and CDBG).

Johnson County received an additional funding allocation through the American Rescue Plan Act to be administered through the HOME Investment Partnership Program for activities that must primarily benefit qualifying individuals and families who are homeless, at risk of homelessness or in other vulnerable populations.

Johnson County conducted a stakeholder consultation process to identify unmet housing and service needs among qualifying individuals and families. Based on this information, the county identified the following priority needs:

• Affordable rental units for 0-30% AMI and 31-50% AMI households
• Permanent Supportive Housing units
• Non-congregate shelter for adults and families with children
• Supportive services

Johnson County’s HOME-ARP Allocation Plan proposes the following eligible activities and budget amounts:

• Acquisition/development of non-congregate shelters: $3,380,546.00
• Administration and planning: $596,560.00  
• Total allocation: $3,977,106.00

A draft of the Substantial Amendment, which includes the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan, will be available online for review.

Additional Comment Methods

Oral and written comments will be accepted during the Dec. 8 public hearing. You can also submit written comments to Jay C. Leipzig, Director, Johnson County Planning, Housing & Community Development at jay.leipzig@jocogov.org or leave comments via phone 913-715-0424.

To be considered for inclusion in the final Allocation Plan, all oral and written comments must be received by the county no later than Dec. 1, 2022.

Accommodations

If any individual requires special accommodation (i.e., a qualified interpreter, hearing assistance, etc.) or a non-English speaking individual requires a translator in order to participate in the public hearing, they are requested to notify the Community Development staff at 913-715-8990. For individuals with hearing impairments, please call the TDD line at 913-894-8822 no later than 48 hours prior to the public hearing.

Next Steps

The Board of Commissioners is expected to take action on the draft Substantial Amendment, which includes the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan, at its regular meeting on Dec. 8 at 9:30 am. The county anticipates submitting the approved plan to HUD on or before Dec. 15, 2022.