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HomeMy WebLinkAboutcc min 1974/12/09 MINUTES OF AN ADJOURNED SPECIAL MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF CHULA VISTA, CALIFORNIA Held Monday December 9, 1974 An adjourned special meeting of the City Council of the City of Chula Vista, California, was held on the above date beginning at 7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers, Civic Center, 276 Fourth Avenue, with the following Councilmen present: Councilmen Hobel, Hamilton, Hyde Councilmen absent: Councilmen Scott, Egdahl Staff present: City Manager Thomson, City Attorney Lindberg, Director of Redevelopment Operations Desrochers, Community Development Coordinator Henthorn PUBLIC HEARING - Mayor Hamilton asked that the City Manager CONSIDERATION OF PUBLIC and his staff make appropriate comments INPUT RELATIVE TO THE before the opening of the public hearing. HOUSING /~ND CO,UNITY DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1974 Purpose Director of Redevelopment Operations Desrochers explained that this meeting was called to specifically solicit com- munity input on the needs relative to the preparation of the application for Block Grant funds and that basically this Block Grant Program involves the establishment of priorities for the betterment of the City. He noted that the legislation speci- fically states that this is intended to upgrade areas of the City to maintain a healthy community and to prevent deteriora- tion of property in middle- and iow-income areas of the City. Further, Mr. Desrochers said this is not a housing program -- this comes under another title of the Act. Citizen participation process Community Development Coordinator Henthorn stated that the citizen participation pro- cess associated with the application has been pursued and that on November IS, 1974 citizen participation packets were dis- tributed to approximately thirty organiza- tions and individuals. He reported that response has been minimal to date, but additional input is expected as the appli- cation process is pursued. Deadlines Mr. Henthorn explained that the deadlines are mandated by HUD in the regulations as published in the Federal Register. Comple- tion of a draft package is anticipated by January 15, 1975 and refinement of that draft is expected by the end of the month for adoption and forwarding the application to HUD. Amount of funding The amount of funding that is available under the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 for the City of Chula Vista is as follows: Fiscal Year 1975 - $264,000 (maximum) Fiscal Year 1976 - $627,000 Fiscal Year 1977 - $956,000 Adjourned Special Meeting 2 December 9, 1974 Mr. Henthorn remarked that following Fiscal Years 1977 and 1978, the City meets what has presently been determined to be its ceiling of $972,000 annually. In answer to Councilman Hobel's question, Mr. Henthorn stated these are annualized figures. He further explained that the allocation is for three years and there is a two-year option on it (a five-year total frame). He added that it could go on from there pending Congressional approval. Task force Mr. Henthorn commented on the task force approach. He said a task force has bee~ formed consisting of one representative from each of the departments of Planning, Engineering & Public Works, Parks & Recreation and Building & Housing. These individuals will be working full-time on this grant application -- the best approach to meeting the application deadlines as set by HUD. Cmnsideration of public input In answer to Mayor Hamilton's question, Mr. Henthorn stated that any public input received in the process of develop- ing the application will be considered and presented to the Council. Housing Mr. Henthorn responded to Council's queries in regard to housing by stating that there is a limited amount of funding available under Title I for rehabilitation of existing units, but there is no funding in Title I for new housing construction, such as housing projects. He continued and said that in the second year, Title II of the Act will be funded; there are a number of Titles and Title II funding will include new housing construction. Commitment of Federal government ~es~r~. Henthorn and Desrochers explained that the appropriation is good for three years, so there is assurance that the program will continue for that period of time; however, in the fourth and fifth years it is up to Congressional approval. The Federal government wants to guarantee at least three year5 if the City can come up with the programs to meet that funding. City Attorney's comments City Attorney Lindberg noted that it should be recognized that a financial commitment is not necessarily firm depending upon what may transpire. City's entitlement In answer to Councilman Hyde's question as to the City's entitlement if projects are justified, Director of Redevelopment Operations Desrochers explained that the City is not competing with anyone else. A formula was used based on the 1970 census as to low- and moderate-income people and what the City has received in the past. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop- ment does have a discretionary fund. The Adjourned Special Meeting 3 Dece~er 9, 1974 funds of any city choosing not to use those funds will go back into this "discretionary fund" and be reallocated later in the year. City Manager Thomson noted that if the City does not apply and secure the funds, they cannot be picked up in a later year -- that increment is lost. Benchmark evaluations In answer to Councilman Hobel's inquiry as to what the benchmarks are for evaluations, Mr. Desrochers remarked that the applica- tion is going to be divided into long-range and short-term projects, so principally, the City will address itself, in this first application, to short-term projects with some general long-term objectives. Then the City will reapply for the next year's entitlement. As for benchmarks, quite a bit of leeway is being given -- other communities are not being used to judge what Chula Vista's programs are going to be. Commencement date Mr. Desrochers stated that funding starts in January 1, 1975. He noted this was not even with the Federal fiacal year. Mr. Henthorn explained that upon approval of the application, the City will receive a commitment towards $264,000 and the ability to write or draw checks against ~hat amount. He commented that it will not be received in a lump sum -- it will be allocated on a project-by-project basis. Mr. Henthorn also remarked that these funds can be carried over from year to year as long as the project is being pursued. Mayer Hamilton inquired as to when the City must homplete public hearings and input for Fiscal Year 1976 funding. Mr. Henthorn explained that it will be one year after the approval of the City's initial application -- that date can fluctuate depending upon when approval of the application is received. Public hearing opened This being the time and place as advertised, Mayor Hamilton Opened the public hearing. Garry Wappes Mr. Wappes stated he represented "Our 690 Dennis Avenue House" and referred to that organization's proposal dated December 4, 1974 which the Council was in receipt of. He remarked that the proposal is based on past diffi- culties in finding a location for the center. He said Our House has'been at this current location for a little over two years in an extremely tenuous situa- tion, knowing that if it is sold they are immediately evicted. He said the location still remains iii~al],~ml~h~t~h they are cramped in office space. Adjourned Special Meeting 4 December 9, 1974 Mr. Wappes remarked that Our House is con- sidered to be the major youth counseling center in this area of the South Bay and that by providing this locational stability, the Council would assure the kind of stability the Center needs to continue to function. He indicated that he felt the most critical in terms of prioritizing is Section A-28, which provides for the support of public services and facilities concerned with employment, economic develop- ment, crime prevention, child care, health, drug abuse and education, welfare or recrea- tion needs of persons residing in the area, and that all of these services are currently provided by Our House. Mr. Wappes also noted the significance of residing on a historical site, but that the building is in poor condition. The center is willing to commit itself to spearheading a community effort to rehabilitate the building if the Council goes ahead and takes the action to purchase it. Mr. Wappes urged that the proposal of Our House be included in the Community Develop- ment Block Grant application. Discussion Points brought out during discussion between Mr. Wappes and the Council were: 1. The proposal relates primarily to the facility itself, not the program. 2. Program funds assume sufficient re- sources to provide rental of property in the event the center were to move. $. Presently, rent is nominal - about $400 a month. It would cost more if the center were to have to move elsewhere. 4. Purchase of Our House by the Community would help the center secure additional grants. (Any in-kind lease arrangement the City would negotiate can be used as matching funds for outside funding.) Proposal entered into record Mayor Hamilton requested the Clerk to formally enter the application by Our House into the record of the public hearing. Dukey Baldarama Mr. Baldarama stated he represents ~]AAC'and 1006 Angela Drive is the Associate Director of that project. National City He said MAAC is a social service agency represented throughout the South Bay, with service centers located in National City, south Chula Vista, 0ray area, Imperial Beach and San Ysidro. Mr. Baldarama stated MAAC's application has been presented to staff. The area his organization felt to be of most concern to the community is economic development, specifically paying jobs for Adjourned Special Meeting 5 December 9, 1974 the unemployed. His suggestions for bring- ing this about were: 1. Establish housing rehabilitation loans for low- and moderate-income families. 2. Create child Care facilitie~ for low income working or unemployed mothers Other areas MAAC feels deserve high-priority attention are: 1. The creation of a senior citizen multi- purpose center in south Chula Vista or Otay area; 2. Creation of a multi-purpose social service center ~o~ %he community; 3. Expansion of services to youth -- more drug counseling, employment assistance, career development and recreational facilities at the neighborhood level. In answer to Councilman Hyde's question, Mr. Baldarama stated his organization is presently located at 268 Anita Street, which is classified as the County, but the geographic area served by MAAC extends to within the City limits. Mr. Baldarama, in response to Councilman Hobel's query, said his organization is presently funded by the Office of Economic Opportunity and that monies are received from the County of San Diego, City of San Diego, City of National City, City of Chula Vista and the Department of Action out of San Francisco, making MAAC a multi-funded agency. He reported that the annual budget at present is over $300,000. In answer to Mayor Hamilton's inquiry, Director of Redevelopment Operations Desrochers explained that these funds, if Chula Vista were to receiye~would have to be spent in the City limits on any public facilities the City were to purchase or support. Mr. Baldarama explained, in regard to the rehabilitation of residential areas discussed previously, that there is no program at pre- sent for this purpose. He is suggesting that the lowest possible interest rate be provided these low and moderate income fndividuals. He further explained that basically what he is talking about is that money would be loaned to these individuals and repaid at the lowest interest rate. Director of Redevelopment Operations Desrochers, in answer to Councilman Hyde's query, stated there is a code enforcement program that could be a part of this appli- cation and this could be a proper use. Adjourned Special Meeting 6 December 9, 1974 Joy Tonneson Ms. Tonneson, representing the League of 36 San Miguel Drive Women Voters, stated this organization's priorities for the best use of the Community Development Act funds would be: 1. Provide housing for low to moderate income persons. 2. Upgrade downtown Third Avenue, with the possibility of including moderate income housing in the plan. 3. Create small neighborhood branch-type libraries. 4. Create small parks and/or a senior citizen center in the western part of the City. 5. Speed up the installation of wheelchair ramps in the City. 6. Create bike trails. Ken Koke Mr. Koke spoke as a member of many of the 550 Azalea community activities in the City of Chula Vista and offered his thoughts on a possible utilization of the funds. He suggested the City acquire a parcel of land, presumably a little bif s~uth and east from the existing Civic Center complex, which could be utilized in the form of a general home for recreation and other civic activities such as Boys Clubs, Girls Clubs, Y~ICA, etc. He feels the many organizations like the aforementioned have proved their worth but are lacking a capitol site. If a "'condominium" concept were to be applied to this site, organizations could share such facilities as baseball, football and soccer diamonds, a swimming pool, indoor complexes which could accommodate basketball and badminton courts and the like. Mr. Koke remarked that he feels it would be easier to get community cooperation for a donation for a complex such as this than to get donations for individual organizations. He commented that his picture of such a complex would be a site about twenty acres on rolling terrain with the facilities scattered about uniquely, but close enough to each other to be shared. He said such a complex would serve those activities which are well put together, well founded, but poorly funded. Irene Scalley Ms. Scalley indicated her prime concern is 239 Fifth Avenue the health and welfare of Chula Vista'5 senior citizens. She noted that Chula Vista does not have a nursing home, but does need one. Ms. Scalley also noted the need for transportation for our senior citizens (perhaps mini-buses) and a centrally- located facility which might serve the Adjourned Special Meeting 7 December 9, 1974 seniors' nutritional needs. She suggested the Lillian Rice School, which she has heard will be closed after June. Another alternative would be the Salvation Army facility. Ms. Scalley reiterated the fact that Chula Vista is in need of a nursing home and asked that this be considered. She indicated she would be meeting with senior citizens in the near future and could come up with some written recommenda- tions. Public hearing closed There being no further conlments, Mayor: HaMilton declared the public hearing closed. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Hamilton adjourned the meeting at 8:46 p.m. to the regularly scheduled Council meeting of December 10, 1974 at 7:00 p.m. Deputy City Clerk