The city of Boston is among six finalists competing to receive $61 million in grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Choice Neighborhoods (CN) initiative.

The Woodledge/Morrant Bay housing community in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood would benefit from the grant if the city was chosen. The funding is meant to be used to transform distressed areas of concentrated poverty into viable and sustainable mixed-income neighborhoods, according to a statement.

"There are many communities across the country that desperately want – and deserve – an opportunity to transform some of their most distressed neighborhoods into areas of opportunity and hope," said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. "These finalists submitted transformation plans for these neighborhoods that will tackle intergenerational poverty and address not just public and affordable housing, but the education, transportation and employment challenges that so often surround that housing."

HUD anticipates awarding two to four grants by the end of September.