BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

CANTON -- St. Lawrence County has officially adopted the St. Lawrence County assessment of fair housing for 2024.

Legislators signed off on the resolution during the July 1 full board meeting.

According to the resolution, the county applies for and is awarded Community Development

Block Grant funding "o administer a variety of community and economic development projects

that principally benefit low to moderate income households throughout the County."

One condition of receiving federal funds is that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires local communities to certify that they affirmatively further fair housing.

"This obligation requires the grantee to conduct an assessment of fair housing in the community, take appropriate actions to overcome the effects of identified impediments, and maintain records concerning the local analysis and activities," county officials say.

County officials say the last assessment of fair housing was conducted in 2017, which relied on 2010 census data and "no longer accurately reflects current population demographics or housing conditions in the County."

"St. Lawrence County Fair Housing Task Force responded to the need to assess progress on fair housing issues, collaborated with St. Lawrence University on data collection and analysis, conducted meetings with stakeholders, and reviewed the draft “Assessment” prepared by St. Lawrence County Planning Staff," the resolutions states.

According to the resolution, the assessment identifies strategies to educate the public about housing discrimination and short and long-term strategies to improve equal opportunity for affordable housing in the county.