New Orleans’ Brady renovation program is in danger of losing the loan it was supposed to receive, according to a new report.
The Associated Press reported that a state inspector general report said the $1.2 million loan was awarded in January but the State Department of Housing and Urban Development has not given the city time to get the property up to code.
The $1 million is the maximum amount the state can provide under the federal National Housing Act.
New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s office said the city is continuing to work with the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA to address the problem.
“The New Orleans City Council and the Department are committed to working with the DHS and FEMA, and working together to help ensure that the federal government does not have any additional funding to help New Orleans and the region as a whole,” the mayor’s office wrote in a statement.
The AP reported that DHS spokeswoman Erin Murphy said in an email to the AP that the department’s financial and legal oversight office is working with HUD to identify potential violations of the housing act.
She also said the department is continuing its investigation of the loan.
The New York City Department of Homeless Services told the AP it’s still working to determine how the loan came about.
“HUD’s Office of the Inspector General has been working with our office since January to review and address any violations of HUD’s law and regulations,” the department said in a written statement.
“We have not determined the cause of any of the issues.”AP writer Amy A. Pyle contributed to this report.