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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-21-2005 Housing & Community Development Commission AGENDA HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL THURSDAY, APRIL 21,2005 6:30 P.M. 1. Call Meeting to Order 2. Approval of the Minutes from March 10 & 17, 2005 3. Public Comment of Items Not on the Agenda 4. Review FY06 Annual Action Plan · Recommendation to City Council 5. Old Business · Discussion of FY05 CDBG Projects that have not Performed per the Unsuccessful or Delayed Projects Policy 6. New Business · Discussion of National Community Development Week Celebration · Review and Discussion of the Draft Scattered Site Housing Taskforce's Recommendations 7. Monitoring Reports · Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County - Facility Rehabilitation (Hayek) · Shelter House - Emergency Assistance Program (Richman) · Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship - Affordable Rental, Longfellow (Anthony) · Free Lunch Program - Facility Rehabilitation (Greazel) · Free Medical Clinic - Case Management (Greazel) 8. Adjournment ,~ 1 -~= -4.... ~~W~~ ~ ~IJII., ....~ CITY OF IOWA CITY MEMORANDUM TO: Housing and Community Development Commission FROM: Tracy Hightshoe, Associate Planner DATE: April 14, 2005 RE: April Meeting Packet Once again thank you for your time and dedication over the last few months during the allocation process. With your recommendations complete, we can now concentrate on the administration of current projects and finish the remaining monitoring reports in the next couple of months. The following is a short description of the April 21 st agenda items. Discuss Recommendation to Council: FY06 Annual Action Plan At the March 17 meeting, you made your budget recommendations to Council. As you may know, the budget is only one part of the Annual Action Plan. The Plan includes the budget for FY06 CDBG & HOME funds, a description of the projects and activities to be funded, a fair housing plan and several HUD-required documents. The City Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the Plan on Tuesday, May 3 and formally approve the Plan that same evening following the public hearing. A draft copy of this document is included in the packet for review and recommendation. Old Business Discussion of FY05 CDBG projects that have not performed per the Unsuccessful or Delayed Projects Policy. This is a carry over item from last month's agenda. The following chart represents the agencies that did not meet the policy requirement to expend at least 50% of their CDBG award by March 15, 2005. Staff has updated this chart to reflect recent reimbursement requests. As of this mailing, these are our most recent figures. Total Spent as of ... . T nta I - April 14, 2005 % Expended DVIP - Securitv Cameras $4,4 78 $4,478 100% MECCA - Aid to AQencies $14,221 $14,221 100% NCJC - Facilitv Rehabilitation $6,000 $0 0% Old Brick - Accessibility Imp. $30,000 $0 0% The Unsuccessful or Delayed Project Policy states that HCDC may recommend the recapture of unspent funds or HCDC may allow the recipient to retain the funds for the previously approved project. The FY05 Wood Family Resource Center and United Action for Youth projects were discussed at previous meetings. Staff will provide updates on both of these projects at the June HCDC meeting. New Business Community Development Celebration We will need to form a committee to assist with the planning efforts for this year's Community Development Celebration. Proposed dates and locations for this year's celebration need to be determined. Review of the Draft Scattered Site Housing Taskforce's Recommendations Enclosed are the draft recommendations. Since these recommendations were distributed the taskforce has dropped #2 (residency preferences) in its entirety. The taskforce may make additional changes or modifications before the final recommendations are sent to Council. This will be an opportunity for HCDC to discuss the recommendations and decide what action, if any, the commission will take. Monitoring Reports · Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County - Facility Rehabilitation (Hayek) · Shelter House - Emergency Assistance Program (Richman) · Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship - Affordable Rental, Longfellow (Anthony) · Free Lunch Program - Facility Rehabilitation (Greazel) · Free Medical Clinic - Case Management (Greazel) If you have any questions about the agenda, or are unable to attend the meeting, please contact me at 356-5244 or by email at tracv-hiqhtshoe@iowa-citv.orq. Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship opening the doors of Iowa City 1700 South First Avenue, Suite 25B Iowa City, IA 52240-6036 319.358.9212 March 23, 2005 Matt Hayek, Chair Housing and Community Development Commission City ofIowa City 410 East Washington Street Iowa City, IA 52240 RE: HCDC Review of applications for HOME and CDBG funds Dear Matt and Members of the Commission: Upon review of the applications and staff reports for HOME and CDBG funds, I was surprised that the application from Extend the Dream for Affordable Rental Housing did not include a proforma investment analysis. I am extremely puzzled as to how Commissioners scored, reviewed and recommended funding for the application. The staff report conveyed that financial feasibility cannot be assessed because of the lack of a proforma. The FY06 Applicant guide clearly states that "The FY06 Housing Application, as in the past, requires the developers of rental housing projects to complete and submit a proforma for the project being proposed." Section 3 of the Application ends with "Note to HCDC: Review attached Proforma as part of the Feasibility Section." All other affordable rental housing applications included a proforma. Why weren't these requirements applied to all applications? As an applicant for affordable rental housing for the past several years, I believe it would be irresponsible to submit an application without first preparing an investment analysis that satisfies the underwriting criteria of funders and lenders. The fmancial feasibility of a proposed project is equally as important as the need and impact. Further, I believe that it is the responsibility of the Housing and Community Development Commission to provide a level playing field for applicants and to be good stewards of locally allocated federal dollars. The process implemented this year fell short of these important components. Sincerely, ~/~~ Maryann Dennis Executive Director CJøJ/,"t ~ Charlie Eastham President, Board ofTrus~ Cc Steve Nasby, City ofIowa City, Department of Planning and Community Development Steve Atkins, City Manager Ernie Lehman, Mayor, City ofIowa City MINUTES HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION MARCH 10, 2005 SENIOR CENTER, LOWER LEVEL CLASSROOM Members Present: Jerry Anthony, Erin Barnes, Lori Bears, Mark Edwards, Matthew Hayek, Rita Marcus, Brian Richman, Jayne Sandler, Members Absent: William Greazel Staff Present: Tracy Hightshoe, Steve Long, Steve Nasby, Steve Rackis Public Present: Mark Patton, Tom Walz, Bob Burns, Mike Townsend, David Wellendorf, Ron Hanson, Karen Kubby, Alan Axeen, Kristie Doser, Alaina Welsh, Mary Donovan, Maryann Dennis CALL MEETING TO ORDER Chairperson Hayek called the meeting to order at 6:30 PM APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM FEBRUARY 17, 2005 Motion: Anthony moved to approve the February 17, 2005 with corrections on pages 6 and 13 (staff will verify if L T&J applied or will be applying for non-profit status). Bears seconded the motion. Motion passed 8-0. PUBLIC COMMENTS OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Burns announced that their FY04 Whispering Garden project received Low Income Housing Tax Credits and state HOME funds in the last funding round. The project consists of 12 units of affordable rental housing. DISCUSSION REGARDING FY06 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT AND HOME INVESTMENT PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM REQUESTS Hightshoe announced that there are additional funds available to allocate. $200,000 in HOME funds were recaptured from the Blooming Garden project and $72,000 in CDBG funds are available as four prior year projects didn't spend all their allocation or had to decline the funds as the project was no longer feasible. This last week, 4C's returned their $32,000 CDBG allocation as the contractor cost was significantly higher than estimated and required additional space than what was planned. DISCUSSION OF RAN KINGS River City Housing Collective- Property Acquisition Bears discussed the score she gave this project, a 17. She said she did not like that there was no answer regarding how many persons would be served on page 126 of the application (Funding Request binder). She also added that the house was not physically accessible, especially for persons who use wheel chairs, and only one unit was on the first floor. Long stated there was a two-bedroom unit on the first floor and a common space area by the apartment that would be accessible. Johnson County Permanent Supportive Housing- Supplemental Loan Barnes asked how important the supplemental application would be in order to complete the project. Richman said it appears the primary application would be the most important, and the supplemental would be in case there would be enough funds for an additional allocation. Barnes confirmed that it would be to fund the primary allocation and if funds available fund the second and it is not a fund both or not fund either. Richman stated the primary benefit of the project is that it is a loan. Hayek asked if there was a breakpoint on projects? He stated this could be discussed with each applicant at next week's meeting on the 1 tho Sandler asked if the average allocation would work? Richman stated this application has multiple funding sources, leverages additional money, and in his opinion may work with a decrease in the number of units. Burns stated the primary application of $275,000 is critical. He stated he was confident that the project would receive LlHTCs and state HOME funds after the recent funding round that awarded credits to the Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 10, 2005 Page 2 Whispering Garden project. Burns mentioned the possibility of withdrawing the supplemental application as many housing projects were subrnitted for consideration. He will speak with the applicant. Commission members asked each housing provider present what would be the outcome if full funding wasn't received for their projects. Habitat for Humanity Patton answered Habitat would build fewer units, depending on the level of funding. Hawkeye Area Community Action Program- Transitional Housing Axeen said that HACAP requests to build 4 units. He added that 2 are needed for United Action for Youth (UAY) and 2 for HACAP. Due to UAY's immediate situation, priority would be to acquire the two units for UAY. Iowa City Housing Authority Tenant Based Rental Assistance (ICHA) Rackis said that reduced financial assistance would mean more targeting of households or less households served. The calculation provided was for 60 households (30 households served for a period of two years) times $414 (average rent) times 12 months in a year. City of Iowa City-Down payment Assistance Program Nasby said that if they did not receive full funding, they could chose to either serve fewer clients, or reduce the amount of assistance per household. Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship (Rental and homeownership) Barnes said she found it very difficult to do the volunteer section on the ranking sheet. Richman agreed and stated that changing the format of the application might solve the problem. Dennis answered the question, what would happen to the project is less funding is received, by stating they would do fewer units. Lead based paint is an issue in the areas they want to locate scattered housing sites. Increased costs for rehabilitation and lead-based paint may affect the feasibility of the project, as with HOME, rents are capped. If costs exceed what they can generate in rent, the project does not become feasible. Dennis stated at last month's meeting there were questions about the costs of the Community Land Trust (CL T) program to the buyer. When weighing the costs associated with the CL T, Dennis stated it is still more advantageous to the homeowner as the land is not being purchased. Homes through the program are not eligible for the Homestead Credit, however homeowners do not pay for the cost of a 30-year amortized loan at current interest rates (6%) for the price of the lot (lot price approx. $40,000). This is a monthly saving of $239. Dennis stated that it is still very advantageous to the buyer after reducing the $20/month fee charged by GICHF and not being able to take advantage of the Homestead Credit. Extend the Dream Foundation - Rental Housing Walz stated that if they received less funding, the project remains viable, as they would obtain private financing to fill the gap. They will review and discuss what this break-even point would be. Hayek questioned if the rental housing and micro-enterprise center are tied together and dependent on both receiving funds? Walz answered that yes, funding is needed for both projects. Richman asked if partially funded and private dollars were needed, how much could they raise? Walz answered possibly half the acquisition costs. Sandler asked how much was left in the CDBG Economic Development Fund. Nasby stated $59,000. Patton noted that Habitat works with the Section 8 Homeownership program. Richman added they have three single site applications and 6 scalable, multi-site applications. Hayek acknowledged Burns request to speak. Burns stated that due to the high number of applications the Johnson County Supportive Housing LP is withdrawing the Supplemental application. Nasby requested they submit a letter to formally withdraw the Supplemental application. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 10, 2005 Page 3 Rackis noted that their application, TBRA, is a scalable project, targeting households based on need, not time of application. Barnes stated that the volunteer portion of the application is difficult, as it should only include volunteer hours for the actual project. This varies extensively between housing, public facilities, and public service activities. Richman agreed and stated the commission should review this part of the application. Habitat for Humanity ReStore Patton said they plan on buying a warehouse to operate a construction materials restore, and use the money to construct more affordable housing. He stated the Quad City store nets about $40.000/year. He mentioned that if comparable to the success of the Quad City store, even though the local restore might not have the same success, Habitat could build (purchase lot) for one home site a year. Richman noted if they were to fund lot acquisition at $350,000 (the amount requested for the ReStore) that would be equal to around eight homes. Anthony asked if the Quad City Restore is the only one in Iowa. Patton said there are Restores in Des Moines and one in Cedar Rapids in the next 6 months. Sandler asked if the Cedar Rapids store received CDBG funding. Patton said they did not receive CDBG funds. Long asked how the Iowa City store is doing. Patton said they made $9,000 so far, but the Coralville site is only temporary. Hayek said that this project is not just an investment in housing related activities, but there would be some job training involved, building trades, and recycling activities. Patton said the Iowa Department of Natural Resources gave them some seed money. He said that last year, the Quad City ReStore saved 300 tons from going in the landfill. The project also provides temporary storage for donated items. Anthony asked if they discussed this project with the City's solid waste department. Patton said they did discuss and they would like to see them get into a permanent building, most likely to co-locate with different services/activities. Sandler asked if the City would pay for a co-located facility. Nasby stated this has been discussed. The City would pay the City portion, Habitat would pay for their own. Barnes said that she likes the training component of the project, as well as the fact that they recycle materials. She asked if there would be any paid jobs. Patton said there would be Americorp and Vista, about 2.5 FTE paid positions. Free Lunch No discussion. Domestic Violence Intervention Program (DVIP) Richman said Free Lunch and DVIP are requesting such small amounts of money, he could see no reason not to fund the projects. Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County- Broadway Building Improvements Hayek said that Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County sent a handout braking down their priorities. He said the first thing was to replace cabinets and countertops, next doors and screen, the tile, and last the parking lot. Richman said that he considered it a good project, fairly manageable in size. Free Lunch programl Free Medical Clinic Hayek said that it appeared the committee recommended close funding amounts for this project. Goodwill Industries of Southeast Iowa Hayek said that there was an email received containing a project estimate. The estimate also included other planned work at the site. Barnes said that the average allocation for Goodwill was around $37,000. She questioned if they could complete the project with this amount. Townsend said they have to purchase an entire air conditioning system, so they would try to find other funds, but would appreciate whatever funding they could get, the bigger the better. Barnes asked if they Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 10,2005 Page 4 would be able to finish the project within a year. Townsend replied they would. Richman asked if they could use funds for other rehabilitation activities. Nasby replied yes, but the request would need to go through the commission. Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa Hayek said there were 22 support letters received for the project and noted that the applicant provided answers raised during the last meeting. Richman asked if there is a breakdown between paving the parking lot and remodeling the entrance. Hightshoe said that staff will follow up, and include it in the packet if a response is received in time. Sandler asked if there would be an increase in the cost of the lease due to the additional parking? Hightshoe referred to applicant's memo. The memo stated any facility improvements would not result in an increase to the basic lease. Sandler stated the lease expires in 2009, if applicant takes all options the lease would go through 2019. Sandler stated applicant is requesting a 7-year declining balance loan. She noted if funded, there could be a longer declining balance loan. Sandler raised questions about the true cost of the lease. Hightshoe stated staff would request clarification. Hayek asked if funding a leased facility (for profit owner) is something they want to do. Aliberl Hillel Jewish Student Center Accessibility Renovation Long stated Hillel received an award from the Braverman Foundation for the project. Applicant will forward the information to the commission. Sandler stated the information was per HCDC's questions at the last meeting. Old Brick Repointing Project Wellendorf said that Old Brick got the matching grant for the project. He said that the Old Brick would need all new mortar. He said they have 7 non-profit renters that provided direct service to the community at a value of $1.5 millions dollars last year. He said they hope to get more groups to use the facility. They have non-profit Thursdays, which means free space that day for non-profits. They are booked out two months in advance for those days. Barnes questioned if they have the number of LMI persons served. Wellendorf stated they have information for the past year, but do not have information prior to that. He stated it is hard to judge the general public using the building. They are doing surveys now and collecting information from Table to Table and other non-profits that use the facility. Barnes asked if most were LMI persons. Wellendorf replied yes, figures for this past year show that. Their renters serve LMI persons. Sandler asked if any of the non-profits are involved in financially supporting the project. Wellendorf said that they have been asked and are considering donations. There would be additional fundraising as part of the larger renovation as well. Coulter stated they would meet with the Lutheran bishop next week. Anthony asked about a capital campaign. Wellendorf stated that almost all their projects have been successful due to fundraising and volunteerism. Coulter stated the Kirkwood masonry class would use the site as a teaching tool. Emma Goldman Clinic Kubby said the project is an all or nothing thing. She said that in terms of funding, if they do not receive the full amount, they would do more fund raising or take out a loan. Bears questioned the bid date for the project. Kubby responded April. Kubby stated that the volunteer hours reported on the application was for this project only. Hayek questioned if there were any more comments on the public facilities projects. No response. Sandler asked if public service activities could be funded less than $1,000 and if not, what was the rationale. Hightshoe stated staff did discuss setting a $1,000 threshold. The rationale was to be consistent with HOME regulations that do not allow funding of less than $1,000 per housing unit. Also, staff time for a project of $100,000 or under $1,000 is basically the same. Another consideration staff reviewed is if projects that receive less than $1,000 are viable or if it significantly increases the ability of Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 10, 2005 Page 5 the service provider to provide that service. Last, receiving CDBG funds subjects the recipient to all the federal regulations of the CDBG program. Free Medical Clinic Hayek said that everyone funded the project. Shelter House Hayek asked which project would be more critical, the outreach coordinator or the emergency assistance program. Long stated his guess would be the application for the outreach coordinator as it is tied to the STAR program. Hightshoe stated staff would confirm. Compeer Program Richman stated he did not fund this application. He added that they stated they have other sources of funds they could use. Hayek said that he knows their program was shrunk out of necessity. Anthony said they lost the Robert Wood Foundation funds. Sandler added they have a quarter time executive director due to the loss of funds. Hayek said that he likes the Compeer partnership with other organizations, and the strong reliance on volunteers. Emma Goldman Clinic Hayek questioned if the project was scalable. Kubby said that any amount helps provide services and absorb costs. She said they allocate $38 per client, so $1,000 would provide help for approximately 25 clients. Extend the Dream Walz said that they do not have paid staff. He added there are three persons that run eight businesses. He added that they would need the 2 VISTAS for the current activities. Walz stated this was a one-year request. River Run will provide half the cost for the proposed activity. Barnes asked if all the applications from Extend the Dream Foundation were tied together and wanted to know how others view this. Anthony asked if the tenants that would live in the new housing would work downstairs in the new commercial area. Walz said that is their plan, but they are not sure when that would occur because there are renters there now. As units become available, yes eventually this would happen. Hayek asked if there are cuts in VISTA. Walz said there is terrible cutback of about 25%. TIC Housing Program Hayek said that the average funding was pretty low for this project. Richman asked if others felt that other agencies meet or address some the needs. Sandler answered yes, she thought so. Family Services - Savvy Seniors Hayek stated the project was essentially money management seminars for seniors. Bears asked if the Senior Center does this type of activity, budgeting and fraud awareness. Hightshoe stated staff would follow up. OMNI Therapies Hayek said that most people did not fund this project. Richman stated that with such limited funds, do for profits really need the funds. Sandler said the challenges they had last year when they made application did not change. Transportation is still an issue. Barnes stated that $6,000 for advertising is a low priority use of funds for her. Hayek stated he still would like to encourage new groups to apply for funds. Richman said that unless the for-profit provides an absolute necessity service that would not be available anywhere else in the community, he would be opposed to funding going to for profit companies. Hayek stated that funds go to for-profit housing providers. Richman replied that with only $11,000 for public services, it would be best to fund non-profit providers. Member questions if applicant met with staff. Hayek answered that applicant did meet with staff to address problems from last year. Sandler stated that the applicant took the time to complete the application, but was disappointed that no one was there to discuss. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 10,2005 Page 6 L T&J Consulting- Iowa City Community Grantwriters Workshop No discussion. Hayek stated there is an extra $200,00 for HOME eligible housing activities and $72,000 in CDBG funds. Hightshoe requested changes in allocations and scores be submitted as soon as possible. Hightshoe stated staff would need the changes no later than Monday. Hayek announced the Scattered Site Housing Task Force will have a public hearing on March 28. The League of Women Voters will have a forum on affordable housing March 23rd. FAIR will have a panel discussion regarding housing issues on March 30th. Adjournment Sandler moved to adjourn. Richman seconded. Motion passed 8-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:20 PM s:/pcd/minuteslHCDC/200S/03-10-QS,doc MINUTES HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION MARCH 17, 2005 SENIOR CENTER, LOWER LEVEL CLASSROOM Members Present: Jerry Anthony, Erin Barnes, Lori Bears, William Greazel, Matthew Hayek, Rita Marcus, Jayne Sandler Mark Edwards, Brian Richman Tracy Hightshoe, Steve Long, Steve Nasby, Linda Severson, Steven Rackis Mark Patton, Tom Walz, Eugene Spaziani, Kafi Dixon, David Wellendorf, Ronald Luhman, Joan Luhman, Karen Kubby, Mary Donovan, Alaina Welsh, Bob Burns, Dave Maeglin, Sandy Pickup, Ron Hanson, Maryann Dennis, Carol Spaziani, Heather Haynus, Gerald Sonkin, Rose Fredrick, Charlie Eastham, AI Axeen, AI Young Members Absent: Staff Present: Public Present: CALL MEETING TO ORDER Chairperson Hayek called the meeting to order at 6:40 PM. PUBLIC COMMENT OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Hayek asked if there were any public comments regarding non-agenda items. Anthony said that he and Hayek are the HCDC representatives on the Scattered Site Housing Taskforce and that the Taskforce would be holding a public meeting on March 28 at 6:30 p.m. at the Senior Center for public input on the recommendations being made by the Taskforce to the City Council. Anthony suggested that HCDC also playa role in reviewing the Taskforce recommendations. Hayek said that the recommendations would be available from the City and on their web site tomorrow (March 18). Hightshoe said that in the packet the staff memorandum notes several projects that are not in compliance with the Unsuccessful or Delayed Projects Policy, as they had not spent at least 50% of their funds by March 15. Long said that DVIP had submitted a pay request for all of their funds this week so that was completed. Nasby said that a representative from Old Brick was present if the Commission had questions. Hayek and Hightshoe said the matter would be on the Commission's April agenda. DISCUSSION REGARDING FY06 CDBG AND HOME REQUESTS Hayek gave a brief overview of the funding process and referred the Commission members to the ranking sheets and average allocation information that staff had put together from the Commission's individual ranking sheets. Hightshoe said that the "consensus" ranking sheet with the yellow boxes showed points were the Commission appears to agree on funding. Hayek asked if there were any questions. If not, the Commission could start the allocation process. MOTION: Greazel moved to consider the public service projects. Sandler seconded. Motion Passed 7:0. Compeer Program - Operational Funding MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $1,000 for the Compeer Program project. Sandler seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. Free Medical Clinic - Operational Funding MOTION: Marcus made a motion to allocate $2,500 for the Free Medical Clinic project. Sandler seconded the motion. Greazel said that he would like to see at least $5,000 allocated for the project. Motion failed 3:4, with Greazel, Hayek, Sandler, and Marcus opposed. MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $5,000. Barnes seconded the motion. Motion passed 6:1, with Anthony voting opposed. Shelter House - Emergency Assistance Program MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate $1,000 for the Shelter House Emergency assistance project. Marcus seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 2 Shelter House - Operational Funding MOTION: Anthony made a motion to allocate $3,500. Bears seconded the motion. Barnes noted that if this motion passed only $500 would remain in the public service category. Barnes proposed to allocate up to $4,000 total for Shelter House. Anthony withdrew his motion to allocate $3,500 for the Shelter House operational project. MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate $4,000 for the Shelter House. Greazel seconded the motion. It was noted that these funds to Shelter House leverage other federal funds (STAR). Sandler said that there is a similar situation in the case of Extend the Dream Foundation, as they need the funds to leverage another resource. Motion passed 4:3, with Hayek, Sandler, and Bears opposed. Anthony mentioned that Extend the Dream Foundation would get money in other categories. Marcus said that she would like money for Family Services. Sandler said that the Senior Center provides about the same services. Marcus said that she was unaware of the potential duplication. Hightshoe said the Senior Center provides a "scam" prevention session. Marcus questioned how much impact one session would have and noted that she is sensitive to this issue as she is helping out a fraud victim. Extend the Dream Foundation - Operational Funding Sandler said that the Senior Center would have other resources to do additional sessions. Sandler said that finding funding for Extend the Dream is a concern for her. Sandler added that Shelter House has gotten operational funding for many years from CDBG. Hayek noted that the VISTA is a good program and it is important to encourage new applicants. MOTION: Sandler made a motion to reduce the amount allocated for the Shelter House Operational project from $4,000 to $3,000 and allocate $1,000 to the Extend the Dream project. Motion passed 5:2, with Anthony and Marcus opposed. MOTION: Greazel made a motion to consider public facilities and economic development projects next, Barnes seconded. Motion passed 7:0. Free Lunch Program - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $1,777 for the Free Lunch Program. Barnes seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. Domestic Violence Intervention Program (DVIP) - Facility Rehabilitation Anthony asked about the status of the FY05 CDBG funding. Sandler noted the project was done and additional funds were leveraged. MOTION: Marcus made a motion to allocate $3,525 for the DVIP program. Barnes seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. Aliberl Hilel Jewish Student Center - Accessibility Renovation The Commission asked if the matching funds Hillel had requested were awarded? The repres~ntative from Hillel said that they did get a matching grant of $12,500. Marcus asked if they would do the project if no CDBG funds were awarded. The answer from Hillel was that the accessibility project would not be done. MOTION: Marcus made a motion to allocate $12,500 for Hilel project. Sandler seconded the motion. Motion passed 6:1, with Greazel voting against. Free Lunch programl Free Medical Clinic - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $17,646 to Free Lunch Programl Free Medical Clinic. Sandler seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 3 Old Brick Foundation - Repointing Project MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate ,$50,000 for Old Brick Repointing Project. Sandler seconded the motion. Greazel said if funding is so close to the requested amount why not just do it all so that they would not have to do the rest at a later date and incur additional expenses. He noted there was an economy of scale here with the equipment rental. Sandler asked if Old Brick would do the whole project if $50,000 in CDBG were awarded. Wellendorf said that Old Brick has always found a way to make things happen. Anthony had concerns whether they would be able to do both the FY05 and FY06 projects in the same time. Wellendorf said the FY05 project was well underway and it should be complete soon. Anthony said he was inquiring about the capacity. Wellendorf said that the repointing project would be in August or September. Barnes said that the FY05 project relied on many volunteers so it took longer and a paid contractor would do the FY06 project so it could move along faster. Wellendorf said that the stairs caused the delay with the FY05 project. Anthony said he still had concerns. Hayek said he shared Anthony's concerns but was willing to support the proposed project. Motion passed 5:2, with Anthony, and Marcus voting against. Emma Goldman Clinic - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $20,000 for Emma Goldman Clinic. Sandler seconded the motion. Barnes asked if these funds would leverage other funding? Hayek said it looked like other funding was from the agency. Kubby said that the matching funds are from Emma Goldman Clinic and volunteers. Sandler asked if there were in-kind contributions? Kubby said that the clinic had received donations from suppliers but not contractors; however, there is a donation line on the bid form. Motion failed 3:4, with Anthony, Hayek, Marcus, and Barnes voting against. MOTION: Sandler moved that Emma Goldman Clinic be allocated $15,000. Greazel seconded. Motion passed 4:3, with Marcus, Barnes and Anthony voting against. Extend the Dream Foundation - Economic Development MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $88,000 for Extend the Dream project. Greazel seconded the motion. In response to a question, Nasby said that the Economic Development Committee met earlier today to discuss the project and that Walz was present and could answer questions. Nasby said that the Council Economic Development Committee is supporting the project but would wait for the HCDC decision before taking any action on potential funding. Walz said that the Council Economic Development Committee saw the project as more social service oriented than economic development. Sandler asked if the amount of funds left in the FY05 CDBG Economic Development Fund was about $59,000 that Council could allocate to this project? Nasby said that there was $59,000 left in that account, but the Council Economic Development Committee did not discuss any specific amount of funding they would consider for this project. Motion passed 4:3, with Marcus, Barnes, and Anthony opposed. Habitat for Humanity - ReStore Project MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate $200,000 for Habitat for Humanity project. Marcus seconded the motion. Anthony asked Greazel what his thoughts were on this project as he had been involved with the organization and had given the project no funding. Greazel said that he had a higher priority for the housing application that was going to meet a more immediate need and the ReStore is a longer-term project. Marcus said that since it is a long-term project would it not provide on-going long-term benefits to the community. Barnes asked if Habitat was indeed having difficulties finding sites for homeownership. Anthony said that Habitat for Humanity is a good group and he supported their efforts. He added the problem they would face is that they would not be able to find sites in Iowa City and meeting the low- moderate income thresholds. Anthony said that without a feasibility study on this project the HCDC would Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 4 be in the same role as a venture capitalist. Sandler said that finding a site may not present as large as a problem as some think, but finding one that is affordable to Habitat in the necessary time period is the k~y. Anthony said that if the site was identified and ready he would be more supportive, but the question of Iowa City being a large enough market was still a concern for him. Bears asked how long the current store could be in Coralville. Patton said that they have essentially been given until fall and after that it is uncertain. Barnes asked Patton if he had any comments to make regarding the discussion that has occurred. Patton said that smaller communities do have ReStores and that Iowa City, with it's high number of renters, makes for a high demand market. He added that the bigger picture with the ReStore is to combine it with other complimentary services like the Furniture Project. Hayek asked about a feasibility study. Patton said that the experience with ReStores nationally is that college communities do the best. Anthony asked if any other cities had used CDBG funds for a ReStore. Sandler asked if any sites have been identified. Patton said that several are being looked at in the $450,000 price range, but he could not disclose the locations at this time. Barnes asked what items are sold at a ReStore? Patton said new construction materials, some furniture, appliances, fixtures such as doors, sinks, etc. Motion failed 2:5, with Bears, Greazel, Anthony, Sandler, Barnes opposed. Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County· Broadway Building Improvements MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $40,000 for Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County- Broadway Building Improvements. Anthony seconded the motion. Greazel said there were some immediate needs that need to be taken care of, and he would be more comfortable funding the more immediate needs. He mentioned the parking lot would be the lowest priority for him. He added that the flooring represents the highest priority, while cabinets and countertops replacement even though needed could be partial. Marcus said that the issue with the parking lot was not that it is a priority, but a safety hazard for children while playing basketball. Anthony asked why the last year funds were not spent. Hightshoe said they were dealing with a contractor for windows. Greazel asked if HCDC could recommend which of the proposed activities should be funded. Hightshoe answered that they could make that part of a recommendation, but it would ultimately be up to the Council to decide. Hayek said he would prefer to leave the money to Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County discretion. Severson said that the NCJC had been dealing with a serious mold issue in the fall that may have caused the project delay. The Center had to close and send all children to the Pheasant Ridge facility for a period of time. Motion passed 5:2, with Hayek and Marcus opposed. MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate $50,000 for Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County- Broadway Building Improvements. Sandler seconded the motion. Motion passed 6:1, with Greazel voting against. MOTION: Greazel made a motion to go to the housing category next. Sandler seconded the motion. Motion passed 5:2, with Hayek and Sandler opposed. Hawkeye Area Community Action program- Transitional Housing MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $300,000 for Hawkeye Area Community Action Program. Anthony seconded the motion. Hayek said he got a call from HACAP mentioning that their per unit cost would be about $78,000, and if they could get funded for example for 2 units, they would be the units associated with United Action for Youth. Greazel said it is a good program and they have a need for more units. Sandler mentioned that last year she thought they had problems identifying the units, but it is significant that they identified four units for the current year. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 5 Barnes said her concern would be about how the rest of the money would be split, as there are a number of projects yet to be considered. Motion passed 4:3, with Hayek, Barnes, and Marcus opposed. Extend the Dream Foundation- Rental Housing Project MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $98,000 for the Extend the Dream program. Bears seconded the motion. Greazel said it would be an interesting project, which would do a lot of good to people in need, and was impressed by the amount of volunteer involvement. Bears suggested that everyone visit Uptown Bill's. Anthony asked if the foundation had any experience managing rental housing. Walz said the foundation has been managing a property for about two years with the Universal Design Home. Sandler asked how many units are in the universal design home? Walz said three bedrooms with tenants. Sandler asked if the purpose of the mixed-use building was a live\work situation? Anthony asked if the tenants would be required to be participants in the training program. Walz said it was the goal to provide live\work as an option, but tenants would not be required to participate with Extend the Dream Foundation. Sandler asked if rent would be charged. Walz said yes. Motion failed 3:4, with Barnes, Marcus, Hayek, and Anthony against. Sandler said that she wanted the project to get some funds to leverage against the economic development funds for the project. Walz said that partial funding was okay and they would make it work. MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $75,000 for the Extend the Dream program. Marcus seconded the motion. Motion passed 5:2 with Barnes and Anthony opposed. Habitat for Humanity - Homeownership MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $100,000 for Habitat for Humanity project. Anthony seconded the motion. Barnes said she would be concerned that they would need to still find sites, and that $100,000 would be a too big an amount. Greazel said that the issue is not so much finding sites but having the funds to buy a site they would have to pay the full amount, or someone else would buy it. Barnes asked how much could one lot cost. Greazel answered that it would be between $40,000 and $45,000 per lot. Sandler added they still have money left from last year so giving this project partial funding this year was why she proposed the $100,000 amount. Hayek said that in the Scattered Site Housing Taskforce's discussions lot costs were an issue and scattering them could raise the costs. He supported more funding for the project. Motion passed 5:2 with Barnes and Hayek opposed. Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship - Homeownership MOTION: Anthony made a motion to allocate $181,200 for Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship project. Bears seconded the motion. Greazel said that it would be a good project that he would support full funding. Sandler said that less money for ownership would mean more money to support rental housing, so she would be against full funding for this project. Hayek said he too supported the project, but at a lower amount. Barnes asked how many units could be done with $150,000. Motion passed 4:3, with Sandler, Marcus, and Hayek opposed. Johnson County Permanent Supportive Housing LP - Rental Housing MOTION: Anthony made a motion to allocate $275,000 for Johnson County Permanent Supportive Housing project. Barnes seconded the motion. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 6 Hayek pointed out that the supplemental application that accompanied this project had been withdrawn. Sandler said that this would be a positive project helping more people with less money and it leveraged other resources. Anthony said he had concerns about getting the tax credits, but due to the comments he heard from Burns he thinks they will get the tax credits. Motion passed 7:0. City of Iowa City - Downpayment Assistance Program MOTION: Greazel made a motion to allocate $100,000 for City of Iowa City-Down payment Assistance Program. Marcus seconded the motion. Sandler said she is very opposed to the project because not all lenders would be able to participate and that $15,000 per unit would be too much for down payment assistance. Greazel withdrew the motion. Iowa City Housing Authority· Tenant Based Rental Assistance (ICHA) MOTION: Bears made a motion to allocate $200,000 for Iowa City Housing Authority Tenant Based Rental Assistance (ICHA) project. Greazel seconded the motion. Bears was pleased with ICHA project and she had contacted Rackis. Sandler said that it is a great project, but the two years waiting list is still way too long. She added that $200,000 would be too much to fund, but would be in favor of funding $150,000. Barnes agreed that the amount could be lower. Motion failed 2:5, with Sandler, Hayek, Greazel, Marcus, and Barnes opposed. MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $150,000 for Iowa City Housing Authority Tenant Based Rental Assistance (ICHA) project. Bears seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship - Rental Housing MOTION: Anthony made a motion to allocate $175,000 for Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship rental housing. Sandler seconded the motion. Sandler said she would like to allocate $200,000 and reduce the Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship home ownership by $25,000. Barnes said she would like money spent in homeownership. Greazel agreed with Barnes. Motion passed 5:2, with Sandler, and Hayek opposed. Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $10,000 for Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa project. Greazel seconded the motion. Greazel said that his concern would be the fact that they do not own the parking lot. Sandler agrees the parking lot would be a concern, but that she would like to support the facility updates. Hayek said there was a letter received clarifying the lease with the landlord and the use of parking area. Sandler said the letter indicates the landlord would have exclusive right to the parking lot as they continue to lease the existing property. Greazel said he would support the entrance issue, but the parking lot would be an issue with the landlord. Greazel added that he does not believe that they would be allowed to just gravel the parking lot. Sandler asked if the landlord could pave the lot, and Planned Parenthood to lease it afterwards. MOTION: Sandler amended the motion to add the money allocated to be used for construction of the new patient entrance, as well as replacing the damaged countertops and fixtures. Greazel seconded the motion. Motion passed 4:3, with Barnes, Anthony, and Hayek opposed. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 7 Goodwill Industries of Southeast Iowa - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Anthony made a motion to allocate $60,000 for Goodwill Industries of Southeast Iowa project. Bears seconded the motion. Greazel asked if they can do it with partial funding and he remembered it as an all or nothing project. Townsend said that Goodwill will do the project, but as much funding from CDBG as possible would be appreciated and it was not an all or nothing project. Barnes said that she would like to see more money left for housing and City of Iowa City-Down payment Assistance Program. Motion passed 4:3, with Barnes, Sandler, and Marcus opposed. Habitat for Humanity - Homeownership MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate $45,000 for Habitat for Humanity Homeownership program. The motion failed because it was not seconded. Emma Goldman Clinic - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Greazel made a motion to raise the allocation for Emma Goldman Clinic by $5,000 to $20,000. Bears seconded the motion. The motion failed 1 :6, with Sandler, Hayek, Marcus, Bears, Anthony, and Barnes opposed. Aliberl Hillel Jewish Student Center - Accessibility Renovation MOTION: Sandler made a motion to reduce the amount allocated for Hilel project from $12,500 to $10,000. Greazel seconded the motion. Sandler said that they could find other funds to match. Hayek said he likes and would like to promote the hosting of other agencies, and would be opposed to the decrease in funding. Motion passed 6:1, with Hayek voting opposed. Habitat for Humanity - Homeownership MOTION: Barnes made a motion to reduce the allocation for Habitat for Humanity from $100,000 to $90,000. Barnes said that she considered if a lot could be purchased at $45,000, $90,000 would be enough to purchase 2 lots. The motion failed because it was not seconded. River City Housing Collective - Property Acquisition MOTION: Anthony made a motion to allocate $25,000 for River City Housing Collective- Property Acquisition. Sandler seconded the motion. Sandler said they already identified location, but it is not purchased yet. Bears asked if the $25,000 would be enough to purchase the building. Greazel said he would support the $25,000 proposed, but not the full funding. Motion passed 6:1, with Barnes opposed. Hayek noted that there wàs $39,564 left to be allocated to any projects outside of public service. Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship - Rental Housing MOTION: Sandler made a motion to allocate $39,564 for Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship rental program in addition to $175,000 already passed. Greazel seconded the motion. Anthony said he would like to see some money allocated for the City of Iowa City-Down payment Assistance Program. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes March 17, 2005 Page 8 The motion failed 2:5, with Bears, Greazel, Barnes: Anthony, and Marcus opposed. Goodwill Industries of Southeast Iowa - Facility Rehabilitation MOTION: Barnes made a motion to reduce the allocation for Goodwill Industries of Southeast Iowa project from $60,000 to $50,000. Anthony seconded the motion. Motion failed 2:5, with Bears, Greazel, Marcus, Sandler, and Hayek opposed. City of Iowa City - Downpayment Assistance Program MOTION: Barnes made a motion to allocate $39,564 for the City of Iowa City-Down payment Assistance Program. Anthony seconded the motion. Sandler asked how many households could be helped with $40,000 in downpayment assistance? Nasby said with the reduced amount of funds the per unit threshold would be lower so probably eight households would get $5,000 each. Sandler asked how that compared to the number of households assisted by tenant based rent assistance for the same amount? Rackis said the cost per household was based on the housing assistance payment standard they got from HUD which is about $414 per unit per month. So over one year the amount per household would be approximately $4,900, but the costs could be higher or lower depending on the household. Marcus said that homeownership creates wealth so it is a worthwhile goal. Anthony said he likes both, but the ownership project would repay funds to the HOME program and TBRA funds would be lost. Hayek noted that GICHF's -application for rental how~ing was about $100,000 per unit. As such is there a break point for another unit or two? Dennis said they would look for other funding. Eastham said that two-bedroom units with low or no lead based paint costs would lower the project costs. Motion passed 4:3, with Sandler, Greazel and Hayek opposed. All Non-Funded Projects (Habitat for Humanity ReStore, Emma Goldman Clinic Operational Funding, Family Services Operational Funding, L T & J Consulting Operational Funding, OMNI Therapies Operational Funding and TTC Housing Program Operational Funding) MOTION: Sandler made a motion that applicants not funded will get $0. Greazel seconded the motion. Motion passed 6:1, with Hayek opposed. City of Iowa City - Downpayment Assistance Program and Tenant Based Rent Assistance MOTION: Sandler made a motion that $9,564 from City of Iowa City-Down payment Assistance Program to be transferred to Iowa City Housing Authority Tenant Based Rental Assistance (ICHA). Bears seconded the motion. Motion passed 4:3, with Barnes, Marcus, and Hayek opposed. ADOURNMENT Greazel moved to adjourn. Sandler seconded the motion. Motion passed 7:0. The meeting adjourned at 9:00 pm. s:/pcd/minuleslHCDC/2005/03-17 -05,doc ·,--.-~,._..._~,.,.._---,,- ,......",.w=. "'":'f'J'~'~'''"''''W4#=''''~''' ...,.,"'''' Iowa City Scattered Site Housing Taskforce Recommendations For City Council 18 March 2005 T ONLY The Taskforce recomm~~ds the fol~owinu~neral policy ob,iectives: (1) Iowa City should maintain its commitment to assisted housing and increase opportunities for affordable housing generally. (2) Iowa City should adopt a scattered site policy to ensure a fair share distribution of assisted housing throughout the community without reducing the supply of such housing. 1;'he Taskforce reco~mends the followiJ.!& s,p,ecific policy, obiectives: (1) The City should neither encourage nor support additional transitional or emergency housing within census tract 18. At present, 45 percent of all transitional housing, and 70 percent of all emergency housing, is located within tract 18. The new Shelter House facìlìty will result in the location of 100 percent of all emergency housing within tract 18. The City should make land available for emergency and/or transitional housing elsewhere in the community. (This recommendation is not intended to impact plans for the new Shelter House facìlìty. The Taskforce recognizes the difficulty to date associated with finding a location for the new shelter. It also considers this issue to have been resolved by the City.) . (3) The City should commit resources to encourage future assisted housing to be placed in underrepresented census block groups identified by the fair share matrix provided with these recommendations. This means committing additional funding (i.e. beyond current expenditures and beyond the CDBG/HOME funding stream from HUD) to providers of assisted housing to offset the increased costs of developing housing in such areas. " (4) If it commits sufficient resources to scatter assisted housing without causing a reduction in current rates of supply, the City should not support additional assisted housing in census block groups identified as significantly overrepresented. (5) The City should encourage affordable housing within the private market. This may involve changes in zoning and code regulations; permitting smaller lot sizes, row housing, and the like; and exploring creative approaches to housing and development policy. Page 1 of2 - -- -------------.~- ~ "" """,,""''''~''_M "'", "jj" ''''_1O,{,L''-'''''' ¡)'~' "'~MiM) Iowa City Scattered Site Housing Taskforce Recommendations for City Council 18 March 2005 DRAFT ONLY (6) The City should encourage low- and medium-density rental housing (such as duplexes, town houses and the like) to be developed in currently-underrepresented areas ofthe community. At present, almost all rental housing is confined to only 10 of 31 census block groups. Such a policy would disperse rental housing away from the University of Iowa student areas and make it easier for families to compete with students for such housing. (7) The City should take steps to increase home ownership among its low-income population. (8) The City should ensure that the needs of our assisted housing population are adequately met by the community's service providers. The City should avoid imbalances between the level of need and the ability to meet that need through human and social services. (9) The City should develop an inclusionary zoning policy for new housing developments. The policy should incent developers, using hold-hannless or other appropriate "carrots," to include a percentage of affordable housing in new developments. Density bonuses and similar approaches should be considered by City planners. An inclusionary zoning policy holds great promise for affordable housing at minimal cost to taxpayers. (10) The City should launch a campaign to educate the community about the importance of affordable housing, the perils of allowing the status quo to continue, and the degree to which housing and development decisions must involve all segments of the community. (11) The City should enlist other local municipalities, as well as the county and area school districts, for purposes of collective action to address affordable housing and services. The issues of housing and poverty cannot be solved by the City alone. (12) The City should expect owners and managers of all rental housing to manage their facilities adequately. Much public opposition to such housing results from deficient maintenance and management oftenant populations. As a mere 1,150 of the approximately 15,000 rental units in Iowa City are assisted, it is important to monitor even unassisted housing facilities. (13) In conjunction with its review ofthe Consolidated Plan (CITYSTEPS), the City should provide for a yearly review of fair share data so that the matrix provided with these recommendations is updated as conditions within block groups change. The Taskforce recommends that City staff and HCDC coordinate this annual task. (14) In the event some or all of these recommendations are adopted, the City should conduct a comprehensive review of any scattered site policies at five-year intervals. The City should consider a sunset provision to ensure that such policies are closely monitored. Page 2 of2 ---~------~ ""'.. 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