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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-21-2008 Housing & Community Development Commission AGENDA HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL THURSDAY, AUGUST 21,2008 6:30 P.M. 1. Call Meeting to Order 2. Approval of the July 17, 2008 Minutes 3. Public Comment of Items Not on the Agenda 4. Staff/Commission Comment 5. New Business · Discuss Community Development Block Grant Supplemental Funding · Flood Update 6. Old Business · Discuss Community Development Celebration . Announce HCDC Vacancy 7. Monitoring Reports · Hawkeye Area Community Action Program - Transitional Housing (Richman) · The Housing Fellowship - CHDO Operating Expenses, FY08 Affordable Rental Housing, FY06 Homeownership (Anthony) 8. Adjournment MINUTES HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 17,2008 - 6:30 PM LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL PRELIMINARY Members Present: Jerry Anthony, Marcy DeFrance, Holly Hart, Rebecca McMurray, Brian Richman, Michael Shaw Members Absent: Steve Crane, Charles Drum, Andrew Douglas Staff Present: Steve Long Others Present: Brooke Beelman, Kristin Peters RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL (become effective only after separate Council action): None. CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Anthony called the meeting to order at 6:41 p.m. APPROVAL OF THE MARCH 27, 2008 MINUTES: After a brief discussion of the format for the minutes, and the correction of a decimal point error on page five, the minutes were accepted as amended. McMurray motioned to approve the minutes; Hart seconded. The motion carried 6-0. PUBLIC COMMENT FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA: None. STAFF/COMMISSION COMMENT: Long noted that the June HCDC meeting had been cancelled due to flooding. He stated that the City has slowly getting back to some semblance of routine in the aftermath of the flooding. Long noted that a sandbag removal project for the Normandy Drive and Parkview Terrace neighborhoods would be underway over the weekend. NEW BUSINESS: HCDC Vacancies: Long noted that Rebecca McMurray and Andrew Douglas had both been reappointed to the Commission. Long stated that one opening remains on the Commission as Jerry Anthony, current Chair and a six-year member of the Commission, will be vacating his seat. Shaw asked if a new name had been found for the group that came up with a consensus statement on affordable housing. Long replied that the report had been delayed somewhat. Shaw said that he HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 17, 2008 Page 2 of8 thought it might make sense as the Commission moved forward in examining affordable housing issues to request that someone from that study be on the Commission. Several Commission members indicated that this was a good idea. Long noted that the deadline for filling the current vacancy is September I st. McMurray said she thought that the deadline was July 9th. Long stated that McMurray was correct, but that the deadline had been extended to September I st. Flood Update: Long reported on the flood and its effects on affordable housing. Long stated that one city-owned Public Housing unit on Eastmoor, a 4-bedroom single family home, was heavily damaged. The final estimates for repair and construction of the unit are not yet in, so the future of the building is uncertain. Sixteen units in Coralville owned by the Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship (GICHF) also sustained flood damage. These units, two 6-plexes and a 4-plex, are on Second Street. The damage to these units is significant, and is estimated at more than 50% of the total value of the buildings. GICHF is working hard with the State of Iowa to work out the financial implications of this damage and its effect on the terms and enforcement of loans on these properties. Long said that the parties are working hard to come to an agreement on the best way to move forward. Twenty-two households holding Section 8 housing vouchers were displaced from their units in Coralville, and two such households were displaced in Iowa City. Long noted that some of the voucher-holders were actually renting the GICHF units that were flooded, so the total number of low-income households directly impacted by the floods is slightly less than these numbers might indicate at first glance. After some discussion, it was determined that approximately 32 households were affected. Although the loss is devastating and poses a significant financial burden to the residents and to the GICHF in particular, Long noted that in comparison to what his counterparts in Cedar Rapids are facing, the aftermath is on a much smaller scale. Long stated that both the City and lenders are doing what they can to work with GICHF to allow it to meet its mortgage payments and rebuild from their losses. Long said that Congress has approved over $300,000,000 in supplemental Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to assist flooded communities. Long said that the City is waiting to hear how much of this money it will get and when; as of right now, neither the federal government nor the city government has an idea yet of what that figure might be. Long said that they are in almost daily contact with the federal government on this matter. Long said the State is also looking at which regulations and requirements can be waived in order to speed up the allocation and distribution process; they are looking at waiving such things as the one-for-one match on down-payment assistance, and the usual required public comment periods. Richman asked if this was money that the federal government was specifically targeting for the flooding. Long replied that from what he has heard, the language in the bill is somewhat vague and part of what is being determined right now is exactly which disaster it applies to. The funding is for a "disaster," Long explained, but the "flood" and a specific geographical area were not clearly delineated as its recipients. Long said that it was assumed when Congress passed the bill that it was for the Midwest: everything between Minnesota and Missouri (north to south boundaries), and Ohio and Iowa (east to west boundaries). However, Long said, the bill did not explicitly state that. Shaw noted that disaster assistance issues are still being sorted out from Hurricane Katrina. Long said that HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 17,2008 Page 3 of8 in the floods of 1993, the City received $2.5 million; however, no extrapolations to this year's amount can be made from that figure. Long acknowledged that it is somewhat frustrating not to know how many dollars the City will have to work with, as he receives calls every day from flood victims looking for assistance. Richman asked if the City had started working on a plan for how funding would be distributed. Long said it is being worked on, but that it is difficult to plan too extensively without knowing how much money is involved. Long said the primary request being made from citizens is for housing rehabilitation dollars. Long said that it may be possible to waive the public service cap, in which case funds could be used for things such as: utility deposits, utility payments, rent payments, and operational funds for the Crisis Center. Other possible uses for the money could be: elevating homes and purchasing land. Long said it all depends on how much money the City is given. Richman stated that he is not making recommendations one way or the other at this point, but he wanted to know if the City would have it within its discretion to make grants or loans directly to affected individuals. Long said he believed it would, and that he also believed that it would be allowed to assist small businesses. Long said it was possible that additional hiring would need to be done to help administer the funds and implement action plans. As soon as he hears, Long will e-mail Commission members to inform them ofthe dollar amount granted. Long said that, unfortunately, there will be a lag time of a few weeks between the announcement and the receipt of funds. Long gave a brief overview of the structural damage incurred during the flood. In Parkview Terrace (Eastmoor Manor and Normandy), there were 136 buildings with varying degrees of damage, Long said. In Idyllwild, 92 condominiums in 23 structures were damaged. Of the 92 condominiums, 86 were occupied. Long noted that approximately half of Idyllwild is located in the 1 DO-year floodplain, and approximately half is located in the 500-year floodplain. On Riverside Drive, across from the Art Museum, 16 apartments were damaged. Long shared an aerial view of the flood's crest with Commission members. McMurray said that she had heard there was a petition among Normandy Drive residents to not rebuild there, but to be in some way bought out. Long said that he had heard about that. The program in question is one that is run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Long said, through their Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. FEMA allocates a certain amount of money for the entire state, Long said, an amount that has not yet been determined. The first step for the City is to know officially who is interested in participating in such an option. After that, the City would submit a notice of intent to FEMA, submitting the names of each property owner, the value of the property, and the amount of damage. Long said FEMA then does a cost-benefit analysis to see what the damage is in relationship to the value of the home, and what the potential is for future flooding. Long said the City would submit a notice of intent for all parties who applied and from there the State and FEMA would make a decision. FEMA pays 75% of the costs on such a buyout, 15% comes from the State, and 10% from the City. Shaw asked if there would be a reassessment of the boundaries of the 100-year floodplain in light of recent events. Long said he had been hearing that, and while it has not been confirmed, it would not surprise him. After the floods of 1993, Long said, the boundaries were adjusted. Long said that this year's flood was a tremendous, unprecedented event, and that it will likely be studied for years. In the coming years, Long said, he expected that the floodplain regulations would also be reviewed. The University, he noted, is and will be going through a similar process of self-examination. Richman asked what the procedure for allocating additional CDBG money would be: will the Commission need to have a role in allocating that funding or will it go straight to City Council? Long said that he would like to have the Commission playa role in allocation. Long said it would depend largely on timing. Anthony noted that Council could step in and say what the money would HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY I7, 2008 Page 4 of8 be for. Long agreed that that was of course possible, but that he was guessing a lot of the funding would go to housing rehabilitation. Richman inquired about the status of City Park and whether or not it was open. Long stated that it was not open. Richman said that he could not begin to think how the park would be cleaned up. McMurray noted that the bike trails have been cleaned up already and said she has been very impressed with the how quickly they have been brought back to good condition. Some Commission members noted that Park Road Bridge is now open, though the Iowa Avenue Bridge remains partially closed. Long stated that all City buildings are again fully operational with the exception of the Animal Shelter and the old Sewage Treatment Plant. Long said the future for both of those sites is still being determined. Again, Long said, in comparison with the situation in Cedar Rapids, Iowa City fared pretty well. Long said that in talking with his counterparts in Cedar Rapids it seems as though every public building they had is gone. Shaw noted that the mayor of Cedar Rapids had just prior to the flood begun a downtown redevelopment campaign, and now the downtown is completely destroyed. Anthony said that Cedar Rapids had just hired the same architectural firm that the University has retained to review its master plan. Long pointed out that one good thing that happened during the flood was that Iowa City, Coralville, and the University of Iowa worked together seamlessly and were in constant communication. Richman asked if there was anything the Commission could do or be thinking about at this point while they are waiting for more information about funding. Long said they could help remove sandbags over the weekend. Hart asked where the sand came from and where it would go. Long said it came from nearby quarries in Cedar Rapids, Marengo and Dubuque. Shaw noted that there was not as much direct contamination in the Iowa City floodwaters as there was in the waters inundating Cedar Rapids, and as a result, he imagined, the sand could likely be re-used. Long cautioned that it had not yet been determined whether or not the sand could be safely re-used. Long said he thought it was possible that some of the sand could be used on the roads. Long said now that he would update the Commissioners on any news he received regarding additional funding. OLD BUSINESS: Discuss Community Develooment Celebration: Long stated that this celebration had been cancelled due to the flooding, and that the Commission needed to determine if they wished to reschedule the event. Shaw pointed out that this decision could in some ways indicate how the community was responding to the floods: should the celebration just be tabled, or should it come out stronger than ever as a way of making a statement? Shaw said that he could see it both ways: on the one hand, a celebration could be one way of showing unity and continuity in the face of the floods, on the other hand, it could also seem that the Commission was intent on having a celebration whether or not the community was really ready for it. HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 17,2008 Page 5 of8 Long said that timing is an issue here. For one, Long said, a lot of the agencies funded by the Commission actually played a big part in the flood: the Crisis Center managed the United Way funds, the Food Bank is receiving a tremendous amount of donations, the Free Medical Clinic has been busy with a variety of patients. So in one way, Long said, it may provide some good public relations for CDBG funded agencies and demonstrate their importance to the community. Long noted that the celebration did not have to be in the summer, that it could be any time of the year, or that a year could be taken off. McMurray said she had the impression that Staff generally pulled the whole thing together, and she wondered if Staff had the time, given all of the additional responsibilities the flood brought on, to put on such an event. Long said that the celebration has been done enough times now that it is essentially ready to go at any time, so Staff would not be overburdened by this event. If the Commission wants it to happen, Long said, Staff will make it happen. Hart said that she understood the idea that timing-wise all of the service agencies could be feeling a little "maxed out," but that she did like the idea of showing off, from a public awareness point of view, what services were being provided in the area. Long said it was also possible to do a scaled-back version of the event. Shaw said it came back to a question of what does the community need or want, and how does the Commission determine that. Shaw asked if such a celebration would be an additional stress on the community and the organizations the Commission funds. Richman suggested that the Commission take out an advertisement recognizing organizations that receive CDBG money and have helped in community flood relief, and let the community know in a simpler, public way how much the City appreciates all of the assistance these agencies have provided in this time of crisis. Richman said the celebration could then be resumed the following year. DeFrance said she thought this was a great idea. Long agreed, saying that he felt bad asking the usual vendors who donate items for the celebration to provide money for it this year. Richman asked if Long would investigate the cost of a newspaper ad, and perhaps even see if the Press Citizen would be willing to offer one at a discounted price for this cause. Discuss Allocation Process: Shaw asked if it was the past, just-completed, allocation process that was being discussed, or that of future allocations. Long said that it would be valuable to discuss both, and to perhaps form a subcommittee to explore improvements that can be made. McMurray said that as she recalled Commission discussions, one concern was in regard to agencies "double-dipping" in the funds by receiving both aid-to-agencies-funding and services-funding. The Commission had discussed eliminating this problem by making those receiving one form of funding ineligible for the other. McMurray said that more of the Commission's limited funding would be available for larger grant amounts if this issue was addressed. Shaw asked if the Commission had standing committees at this point, or committees that have already been formed on a particular issue. Long said there had been a committee for the community development celebration. Shaw said that he was asking because if there are committees in place already, the Commission could be directing them to do something, and if not, the Commission could re-establish the allocation committee. Richman said that he believed that a committee had been established to discuss the allocation process and that he believed it consisted of himself, Crane, and Drum. Richman said that the committee had met, and that they had discussed some relatively minor changes to the allocation process like making the application easier for Commissioners to evaluate and compare. Richman said that it had been a long time since the committee met and that he did not recall a lot of the details that were discussed. Long said that one idea that had been discussed was changing the $1,000 minimum for public-service funding. Long said that possibly having a higher minimum had been discussed. Shaw said the minimum did come up quite a bit during the last cycle. McMurray said that is seemed that the City Council may have wanted the limit increased as well. Richman said that the issue was less with HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 17,2008 Page 6 of8 having a $1,000 minimum, and more one of the Commission getting comfortable saying to some agencies, "This is not your year." The Commission, Richman contended, needs to be more selective. Shaw said that the Council's charge was to focus the money a little differently. McMurray said that she believed the majority of applicants do apply for more than $1,000. Long said he would move the agenda item to the next meeting for further discussion. Anthony said that if the double-dipping issue was resolved it would help the Commission in being more focused and strategic in their funding. MONITORING REPORTS: City of Iowa City - Economic Development Fund Long referred to a memo from Tracy Hightshoe on this topic. Long stated that the City had received $750,000 in requests for CDBG funds from 13 applicants wishing to start or expand business in Iowa City. The City funded 8 of those requests with a total of$265,000. The businesses that received funding were: 1. Discerning Eye, an eyeglass store on Washington Street, received $35,000 and retained one full-time employee as a result of the funding. 2. La Reyna, a Mexican restaurant/grocery store on Keokuk, received $60,000, retained two full-time employees, and created three more full-time positions with help from the funding. 3. Gluten Evolution LLC, a company that distributes gluten-free products internationally, received $50,000 and created one and a half full time positions with help from the funding. 4. Nile Valley Restaurant, a Sudanese restaurant on Gilbert Street, received $25,000 in funding and created three full-time employment opportunities. 5. The Wedge Downtown, Inc., expanded to a second location and created six full-time employment opportunities. 6. The Home Ec. Workshop, across from Hamburg Inn on Linn Street, received $15,000 in funding. The business rents out sewing machines as well as its own space for Home Ec. parties, and sells fabric and sewing supplies. 7. Alfie's Beauty Supply is a store on Kirkwood Avenue that received $5,000 in funding. 8. Textures Salon received $35,000 in funding and is currently looking for a location. All of these businesses are still operational. Long said that in the past eight or nine years, only three of the businesses helped by CDBG funds have gone out of business (money was recovered by the City from two of these failed ventures). Hawkeve Area Community Action Proe:ram - Transitional Housine: (Richman) Richman said he was unable to get in touch with HACAP. Iowa City Free Medical Clinic -Accessibility (Richman) Richman said that accessibility improvement at the Free Med Clinic is a three-part project including: a restroom remodel, a front-entryway remodel, and adding handicap parking spaces. The restroom and the parking spaces are done, Richman said, but they are still waiting on welders to complete the front entryway. Long noted that a lot of similar projects have been put on hold because contractors will be working elsewhere for awhile. Long added that HACAP did purchase two units in the last two months, one on Benton and one on Camden. The Housine: Fellowship - CHDO Operatine: Expenses. FY08 Affordable Rental Housine:. FY06 Homeownership (Anthonv) HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 17, 2008 Page 7 of8 Anthony said that he had not had time to contact them and joked that he did not believe they would have had time to respond either. Long noted that in the middle of the flood the agency's auditor showed up, compounding their workload issues. Neiehborhood Centers of Johnson County - Facility Rehabilitation (DeFrance) DeFrance said that she had spoken with the agency and that she was told a contract had been signed and that rehab is to start on August 11 tho The agency intends to rehabilitate its kitchen facilities. City of Iowa City - Housine Rehabilitation Long referred to a memo by JeffVanatter giving an overview and update of the housing rehabilitation programs. In the 2008 fiscal year, $236,958.95 was spent on project costs and administration on 24 CDBG-funded projects; the average-median income for those households was 39%. Approximately $34,000 was committed to other projects that are started or about to begin. The Rehab Office expended $32,983.10 in project costs and administration on three HOME-funded projects; the average median income for these households was 24%. Approximately $51,000 is committed to other projects that are started or about to begin. Under the Targeted Area Rehabilitation Program, or T ARP, (now known as GRIP: General Rehabilitation and Improvement Program) $140,792.27 was spent on nine projects, the average median income for those households was 74%. Approximately $78,000 has been committed to other projects that are started or about to begin. Wetherby Friends and Neiehbors -Solash Pad (McMurrav) McMurray said that Beth Koppes and Kris Harms are spear-heading this project, and are both out of town. Marcia Klimmerman spoke with McMurray and provided her with a lot of information. The fund-raising goal for the project is $200,000; they have raised nearly $180,000. Funding was received from: one agency donated $100,000; CDBG gave $30,000; the Parks and Recreation Department gave $47,000; they received a P.I.N. grant for $3,200; a car-wash raised $500; the Fraternal Order of the Eagles gave them $600; a few individual donors gave them $700; Saddlebrook gave them $500; the University of Iowa Community Credit Union gave them $250; Hills Bank gave them $500; Hodge Construction gave them $1,000; another P.I.N. grant for $5,000 was awarded for a different fiscal year; a few individual donors gave $50 each; a garage sale made about $100. Over the winter, one-hundred letters went out to local businesses and industries. The group had scheduled follow-up phone calls for June, but because of the floods, the group is no longer comfortable doing that. Although the group had really hoped to begin construction in August, they too are having a difficult time securing a contractor. They will be opening the project up for bidding in the fall with intentions to begin construction in the spring. The hope is that the splash pad will be very popular and will result in the establishment of other splash pads in local parks. ADJOURNMENT: Richman motioned to adjourn; DeFrance seconded. Long asked if the Commission wished to have an August meeting. He asked Commissioners to e- mail him to let him know who could attend. There was some discussion that if there was information on additional CDBG funds, then an August meeting would be quite necessary. Long said they would plan on having one. A vote was taken and the motion to adjourn carried 6-0. The meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.