1. (1) The purpose of the Urban Initiatives Program is to assist the efforts of eligible not-for-profit community-based organizations in community preservation and revitalization efforts, by providing funding for costs of urban initiatives projects, to foster the most effective use of public and private resources, and to promote innovative techniques to address the improvement of physical conditions of neighborhoods.
2. (2) The rules and regulations contained herein are applicable for defining eligible organizations and projects, selection criteria, and contract performance.

3. (3) Not-for-profit organizations participating in the program are eligible for contracts limited in duration up to a two-year term, with the possibility of extending the contract, at the commissioner's discretion.

   (b) Definitions.

   As used in these rules and regulations:

4. (1) Commissioner shall mean the commissioner of the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal.
5. (2) Community preservation activities or activitiesshall mean activities such as those designed to construct, maintain, preserve, repair, renovate, upgrade, improve, modernize, rehabilitate or otherwise prolong the useful life of residential dwelling accommodations; to restore abandoned and vacant as well as occupied housing accommodations to habitable and viable condition; to demolish structurally unsound or unsafe or otherwise unsightly or unhealthy residential structures which no longer serve or can economically be made to serve a useful purpose consistent with stabilizing or improving a neighborhood; to acquire and renovate buildings which contain housing accommodations; and to conduct similar activities with respect to retail, commercial, cultural, civic, and community establishments within neighborhoods, when carried out in connection with or incidental to a program of housing activities.
6. (3) Division shall mean the New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal.
7. (4) Immediate family shall mean, with reference to an individual person, that person's parents, stepparents, spouse, brothers, stepbrothers, sisters, stepsisters, sons, stepsons, daughters and stepdaughters; and the spouses of each.
8. (5) Municipality shall mean any unit of local government within the State with a population of 20,000 or more.
9. (6) Neighborhood shall mean an area within the municipality identified by recognized or established boundaries consistent with a determination of neighborhood eligibility under article XVI of the Private Housing Finance Law, within which the company will carry out its proposed project.
10. (7) Persons of low income shall mean individuals and families whose annual incomes do not exceed 90 percent of the median annual income for all the residents of the municipality within which they reside, taking family size into account.
11. (8) Qualified applicant or applicant or applicantshall mean a not-for-profit corporation under contract pursuant to article XVI of the Private Housing Finance Law or a bona fide, community-based, not-for-profit organization, or a predecessor not-for-profit organization, which shall have been in existence either as a corporation or as an unincorporated organized group performing significant community preservation activities for at least one full year prior to entering into any contract with the commissioner.

12. (9) Urban initiatives project, proposed urban initiatives project or proposed project shall mean a specific community preservation activity, or a series of such activities, which the qualified applicant proposes to undertake in the neighborhood.

    (c) Administrative procedures.

    The commissioner may provide administrative procedures necessary and appropriate to carry out the policy and intent of the Urban Initiatives Program and these rules and regulations.

    (d) Equal opportunity.

    All activities funded in whole or in part under the Urban Initiatives Program shall be consistent with all relevant Federal and State equal employment opportunity, nondiscrimination, and fair housing laws.

(a) Purpose.