CINCINNATI, Oct. 24, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- A $15 million fund for housing hurricane evacuees, established by the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati (FHLBank) Board of Directors, will be unveiled in a series of eight "New Neighbors" workshops throughout the FHLBank district of Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee, November 7-10. Workshops are targeted to FHLBank member institutions and area housing providers. Grants of up to $20,000 per household will be awarded to FHLBank member institutions for the acquisition, rehabilitation or new construction of rental or owner-occupied housing.
"The workshops will be conducted by our Housing and Community Investment officers to explain the mechanics and application process of the New Neighbors program," said David Hehman, president, FHLBank. "We will use our established housing delivery system to put these dollars to work for the thousands of people ready to get on with their lives."
The FHLBank's Board of Directors created the relief fund in September following Hurricane Katrina, to help provide permanent housing for households displaced by 2005 hurricanes. The $15 million New Neighbors fund is over and above the FHLBank's congressionally mandated Affordable Housing Program, which this year will provide nearly $25 million in funding for affordable housing projects.
Seminars will be conducted in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus in Ohio; Louisville, Kentucky; and Jackson, Knoxville, Memphis and Nashville in Tennessee. A schedule of seminars and registration information is available on the FHLBank's web site at http://www.fhlbcin.com.
The FHLBank is an $81 billion congressionally-chartered wholesale regional bank providing financial services for residential housing and economic development to 740 member financial institutions located in Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee. It has contributed $200 million for the creation of 34,000 units of lower-income housing through its Affordable Housing Program since 1990, and $4 million to help 658 persons become first-time homebuyers through the American Dream Homeownership Challenge. The FHLBank System includes 12 district Banks, is wholly owned by its 8,100 member institution stockholders and does not use taxpayer dollars.