News Flash

Barrier Busters Network Continues to Assist with Emergent Needs, 3rd Quarter Report Available Now

The Barrier Busters 3rd Quarter Report provides information about the type of funding requests distributed to Washtenaw County residents from July 1 - September 30, 2021. Highlights include: 

• 45.3% of total requests in the third quarter assisted u...

Community Input Sessions in South Ypsilanti

Washtenaw Urban County is planning on additional community investments in neighborhoods located on the Southside of Ypsilanti and we hope to work with local residents to make decisions through a collection of community input. 

In 2019, we held a s...

Notice of Public Comment Period on Proposed Fiscal Year 2022 Community Services Block Grant Plan

Notice of Public Comment Period on Proposed Fiscal Year 2022 Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Plan

The Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development (OCED) will accept public comments on its Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Plan f...

Washtenaw County Residents Affected by Flooding Eligible for Disaster Food Assistance Program

Starting tomorrow, low-income residents of Wayne and Washtenaw counties who were affected by recent flooding and are not already receiving food assistance benefits soon can apply for federal Disaster Food Assistance Program benefits. The Michigan Departme...

New Human Services Partnership to Replace Coordinated Funding

Washtenaw County and the City of Ann Arbor are working together in coordination with other local funding agencies to develop a New Human Services Partnership to replace Washtenaw Coordinated Funding.

The New partnership will focus investments in efforts to...

UPDATED: Flood Resources Available for Washtenaw County Residents

UPDATE: The deadline for survivors for the June 25-26 severe storms and flooding to register with FEMA for individual disaster assistance has been extended to Wednesday, October 13, 2021. 

The extension applies to survivors living in Wayne and Was...

Rental, Utility, and Internet Assistance Available as Eviction Moratorium Nears Expiration

Rental and utility relief assistance funds are available now! Learn more here.

The Federal CDC Eviction Moratorium will end on July 31, but assistance funds are available to help qualifying households in Washtenaw County who continue to face pande...

Barrier Busters Unmet Needs Fund Continues to Support Residents Impacted by the Pandemic

A summary report from the Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development (OCED) shows financial assistance requests made during the first quarter of 2021 (January through March 2021) to the Barrier Buster Unmet Needs Fund continued...

Brownfield Redevelopment Authority Releases Bi-Annual Report

Washtenaw County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (WCBRA) recently released the program’s bi-annual report. The report includes information about activities, grant programs, and financial data from 2019 and 2020. 

Highlights from the r...

Barrier Busters Releases 2020 Annual Report

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, OCED worked to increase and expand the capacity of Barrier Busters, welcoming new partners with strong community connections to the network. Additional funding was also secured from partners including Washtenaw County...

COVID Emergency Rental Assistance is Now Available!

Having trouble paying or receiving rent? Federal funds are available to help tenants facing pandemic-related hardships avoid eviction while also ensuring landlords can recoup owed rent through the COVID Emergency Rental Assistance (CERA) program. CERA is ...

Financial Assistance Requests Remain Higher than Average as the Impact of COVID-19 Continues

The Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development (OCED) recently released updated Barrier Busters COVID-19 response summary reports. These summary reports detail Barrier Busters activities between July 1 and September 30. During that time...

Washtenaw County OCED Releases New Report on Activities from January 2019 Through August 2020

The Washtenaw County Office Community and Economic Development (OCED) released a report detailing activities from January 2019 through August 2020. The report includes a summary of programs, initiatives, and&am...

OCED Partners with Community for Socially Distant Parkridge SummerFest & Joe Dulin Community Day

This summer, Parkridge SummerFest and Joe Dulin Community Day celebrated 10 years of bringing together music, food, and community in Parkridge Park every fourth Saturday of August. This year’s festivities looked a little different due to the COV...

Barrier Busters Requests Triple During COVID-19 Response

Newly released summary reports from the Washtenaw County Office Community and Economic Development (OCED) show financial assistance requests made to the Barrier Buster Unmet Needs Fund tripled during the first months of the COVID-19 pand...

Community Chooses New Playground Design Ypsilanti’s Parkridge Park

Over the last year, the City of Ypsilanti and the Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development engaged over 100 residents to identify and prioritize what type of investment they want to see in their community. Last Summer, dozens of commu...

New Partnership and Program Supports Renters to Prevent Eviction

Washtenaw County OCED is partnering with Housing Access for Washtenaw County (HAWC) and Legal Services of South Central Michigan (LSSCM) to administer a new Eviction Diversion and Prevention (EDP) program. The EDP program connects individuals to financial...

MEDIA RELEASE: Ann Arbor Announces Affordable Housing Waitlist Website

On Friday, July 24, 2020, the Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development (OCED), along with the City of Ann Arbor, launched a new affordable housing waitlist website: AnnArborWaitlist.com. The waitlist will open for the first t...

Washtenaw County Continuum Of Care Adopts Racial Equity Statement

On July 15, 2020, the Washtenaw County Continuum of Care (CoC) Board adopted a statement committing to understanding and addressing racial equity in the local homelessness response system. 

In ...

Michigan Launches Program to Support Small Business Impacted by COVID-19

Washtenaw County Opens Cooling Centers

With temperatures expected to rise above 90° this week, Washtenaw County will open two (2) cooling centers beginning July 7^th. Starting Tuesday morning, the atrium of the Community Mental Health building at 555 Towner St. in Ypsilanti and the Lear...

Substantial Amendment to Urban County Citizen Participation Plan available for comment

Nonprofit Agencies Receive Support From Washtenaw County and Community Partners

Washtenaw County nonprofits are playing a major role in stepping up to provide essential services to the members of our community during the COVID-19 crisis. From helping coordinate food distribution to staffin...

Washtenaw County Partners to Support Local Businesses During the COVID-19 Crisis

“Just as Washtenaw County has been working hard to ensure residents have the latest public health information and access to essential services, we are committed to helping the small business community,” said Gregory Dill, Washtenaw Cou...

Washtenaw County Support New Statewide Capacity Building Initiative

Through Washtenaw Coordinated Funders, the Office of Community and Economic Development is supporting a new initiative that will enable nonprofits to connect with talent and receive capacity-building support. &ldquo...

Washtenaw County Summer Youth Employment Program Now Accepting Applications

“Being a part of SummerWorks was awesome! My job led to an internship and the internship turned into my career!”

- 2017 SummerWorks Participant 

Are you between the ages of 16 and 24? Do you w...

Public Comment Period & Public Hearing | Needs Assessment for Urban County 2022-23 Action Plan

NOTICE OF PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD & PUBLIC HEARING

Needs Assessment for Washtenaw Urban County | 2022-23 Action Plan

Pursuant to U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development regulations, notice is hereby given by the Washtenaw County Office...