Century Plays It Safe With $1.2 Million Housing Grant Application For Seven Homes

May 14, 2026

Facing a deadline next week, the Century Town Council reached a consensus Tuesday evening to prioritize financial safety over competitive points in an application for a $1.2 million state housing grant.

During a workshop follow-up to last week’s regular meeting, council members weighed two distinct paths for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program: promise more homes to increase their chances of winning or promise fewer homes to ensure the town can actually afford the work.

Ultimately, the council directed grant consultant Robin Phillips to submit an application requesting $1.2 million to rehabilitate or replace seven homes.

The decision comes after the council punted the issue on May 5, citing concerns over the town’s potential liability. Under CDBG rules, if a municipality fails to complete the exact number of homes promised in its application, it may be forced to pay back the entire grant—money local officials say the town does not have.

“What I don’t want to see is us having to give money back and pay money out that we don’t have,”council member Henry Cunningham said. “If we shoot lower, then we may not have to pay back money and still have the opportunity to rehab some more houses.”

To maximize competitive scoring, the town originally considered a plan to rehabilitate 16 or 17 homes at a cost of roughly $62,000 each. However, council members argued that $62,000 is no longer a realistic figure for a “total rehab” in 2026 because every house rehabilitated much meet all aspects of code. A roofing rehabilitation, for instance, might require a complete electrical upgrade under CDBG guidelines.

Current estimates for a full demolition and reconstruction are closer to $140,000 to $150,000 per unit. Additionally, the grant must cover significant “soft costs,” including $180,000 for administrative and inspection fees and roughly $30,000 for temporary relocation of residents during construction.

By committing to only seven homes, the council effectively accepted a 100-point scoring penalty in the state’s competitive ranking. However, the strategy provides a much higher per-unit budget. This ensures that even if all seven selected properties require full replacement, the town will have sufficient funds to meet its contractual obligations.

The council noted that if the grant is awarded and construction costs for the first seven homes come in under budget, the town can always “pull” additional applicants from their waiting list to help more families.

The formal application is due to the state next week. It will be several weeks, or even months, before the town knows if it has been awarded the grant.

In 2018, the town received a similar $700,000 CDBG grant for up to 10 families. That followed $1.3 million tornado recover housing grants in 2016.

File photo.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under TOP STORIES