CDBG PRO Housing: Addressing Zoning, Permitting, & Building Code Barriers to Affordable Housing

Dane County Department of Human Services, Wisconsin is issuing a Request for Proposal for the Community Development Block Grant Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (CDBG PRO Housing) Program, funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). This is a planning and policy implementation solicitation, exclusively open to municipalities located within Dane County. The procurement seeks implementation-ready projects that address zoning, permitting, and building code barriers to affordable housing through deliverables including zoning and land-use updates, permitting process improvements, mixed-use development support, missing middle housing initiatives, housing barrier analyses, ordinance drafting, and other regulatory reforms that accelerate housing production and preservation. Applicants must document their proposed activities using a logic model framework that identifies local barriers to affordable housing and aligns each barrier with eligible PRO Housing activities, and must complete either Category A projects (36-month implementation requiring 60% milestone completion within 24 months and 100% within 36 months) or Category B projects (24-month implementation requiring 60% completion within 18 months and 100% within 24 months). The RFP was released on March 23, 2026, with a question submission deadline of April 3, 2026, and a proposal response deadline of April 24, 2026 at 11:59 p.m., submitted electronically through the Dane County eProcurement Portal; awards are estimated for Summer/Fall 2026. Proposals are evaluated on a 100-point scale addressing CDBG/PRO Housing Goals alignment (60 points), Cost and Budget Review (18 points), Leverage funds (4 points), Narrative description (12 points), and Experience and Qualifications (6 points), with a mandatory pass/fail Project Readiness certification requirement; applications scoring 60 or lower will not be considered for funding.

Only municipal staff may submit applications, and this procurement is restricted exclusively to municipalities within Dane County; multiple municipalities may collaborate if communication channels and memoranda of understanding are clearly documented. No incumbent vendors, set-asides for disadvantaged enterprises, or minority/women-owned business enterprise requirements are specified in the opportunity documents. However, local vendor preferences are extended to Dane County vendors who receive five additional evaluation points, and adjacent county vendors receive two points. Administrative costs cannot be billed to the contract; only direct project delivery costs including municipal staff time for planning and project coordination, professional services, legal services, community engagement activities, environmental reviews, and impact fees are allowable. The resulting contract shall be effective upon execution for one year with mutual renewal options for up to four additional one-year periods, with pricing structured as reimbursement-based payments contingent upon achievement of specified milestones and completion of County-approved deliverables. No specific award values or maximum budget limits are stated in the available documentation; funding appears to be allocated from HUD's broader PRO Housing program which provides national awards ranging from $1,000,000 to $7,000,000, though the Dane County municipal allocation amounts are not specified.