The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced this week that it will be awarding $110 million in grants for revitalizing communities and transforming public and assisted housing. The Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Program focuses on joining the housing, resident and neighborhood aspects of revitalization.

“We make these funds available for communities that are serious about breathing new life into areas that have seen very little public investment over the years,” said HUD Assistant Secretary Sandra Henriquez.

HUD is looking for communities with comprehensive plans to transform distressed public and assisted housing into energy-efficient mixed-income housing. The plans must also address how to assist residents living in the developments and surrounding neighborhood, as well as how to ensure the area will have access to early learning programs, public transportation, jobs, high-quality public schools and other services.

The grants are available for local governments, public housing authorities, nonprofits, and for-profit developers that apply in conjunction with a public entity.

Also this week, HUD awarded $3.6 million in Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grants to 13 communities to help them develop a comprehensive revitalization plan. The Implementation Grants help communities take the next step and make their plans a reality.

The grants were awarded for the first time last year for projects in Boston, Chicago, New Orleans, San Francisco and Seattle, totaling $122 million. To read summaries of the winning projects, click here.

Applications must be submitted by April 10 at www.grants.gov. HUD will award a maximum of $30 million each to four or five applicants in December.