2000-2001 Report on Community Development Block Grants

Introduction

This is the 2000-2001 updated version of our last report that we developed to help encourage and assist arts organizations in obtaining federal financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for structural and programmatic improvements that make arts programs and activities more accessible to disabled people. It provides specific examples of how HUD's Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) are used to make access improvements in cultural buildings across the country. HUD's 2001 CDBG budget is $4.4 billion that may be allocated for removal of structural and programmatic barriers in both private and public buildings.

 This report shows how CDBG funds have made arts activities more accessible by installing elevators, removable seats, accessible restrooms, ramps, etc. For example, in 1998-1999 the Town of Fairfield in Vermont used funding to rehabilitate an old elementary school for use as a community center. Accessible work done on the school included renovation of one bathroom and installation of a new, accessible entrance way. The City of Franklin in New Hampshire used their grant to remove several architectural barriers from the Franklin Public Library and added an elevator, accessible bathrooms, walkways, and lighting. This report includes:

• a brief description of the Community Development Block Grant Program
• examples of projects that have used CDBG funds for the removal of barriers in cultural facilities
• contact persons in each state for detailed information and applications to apply for CDBG funding

The Arts Endowment's Office for AccessAbility gratefully acknowledges the assistance of the individual Community Development Block Grant managers, the HUD personnel in the many field offices across the country, as well as the State Arts Agencies and their 504/ADA Coordinators, who provided examples of barrier removal projects in their states.

The Office for AccessAbility provides advocacy and technical assistance to make the arts more accessible to people with disabilities, older adults, veterans, and people living in institutions. This office and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies produced Design for Accessibility, An Arts Administrator's Guide, a comprehensive step-by-step guide and resource book on making facilities and programs accessible to people with disabilities. To order a print copy, call or write the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies:

1029 Vermont Avenue, NW 2^nd Floor
Washington, DC 20005
202.347.6352 (V/TTY); 202.737.0522 (FAX)
E-mail: nasaa@nasaa-arts.org

The Arts Endowment, the Humanities Endowment and NASAA are in the process of updating the Guide and putting it on NASAA's website, which should be completed next year

National Endowment for the Arts · an independent federal agency
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20506