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Home My WebLink About1992-07-01 HAC MIN . MINUTES SPECIAL HOUSING ADVISORY COMMITI'EE Wednesday July 1, 1992 3:30 P.M. Conference Room 2 Public Services Building 276 Fourth Avenue, C.V. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL The meeting was called to order at 3:35 P.M. PRESENT: Chairman Joe Casillas, Members Cecilia Delgadillo, Dan Dennison, Maggie Helton, Allen King ABSENT: Kathleen Kearney, J.R. de Jesus Chantengco STAFF: David Gustafson Assistant Community Development Director, Alisa Duffey Rogers Community Development Specialist, David Harris Community Development Specialist, Ben Martinez Intern. GUEST: Walter Doughty, Kathy Lembo, Eric Parker, Chris Phillips, Dan Marcus. . EX-OFFICIO: Mitch Thompson (Absent) Diana Flint (Present) I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: None. 2. Transitional and Very Low-Income Housing Project Kathy Lembo of South Bay Community Services (SBCS) made a presentation of their proposed Casa Cuatro housing project for homeless and very low-income families. She stated fhat fhe idea of doing transitional and very low- income together is to provide affordable housing for fhe families who are ready to move out of the transitional units and enable them to maintain their support network in fhe same community. She is willing to do the projects separately, but feel it is better to do it all at once. Maggie Helton asked when they would actually spend the money. Ms. Lembo said they expected to complete fhe property purchase in December or January, perform the rehab in February, and move-in the residents in March 1993. David Harris presented the housing budget to the Committee. There will be an estimated of $475,000 of unappropriated funds in the Low and Moderate Income Housing Set-aside Fund. Of fhis amount, staff would like to see $125,000 reserved for the HUD Section 236 preservation project. This leaves $350,000 of Low/Mod funds lor housing projects. In addition, the City will receive $750,000 in HOME funds. In response to a question from the Committee on the need for a CUP, Ms. Lembo responded fhat she is discussing the issue with the Planning Director; she believes that a CUP is not necessary as fhere is no change in use and all services will be provided off-site. The CUP will not be processed prior to the funding request going to Council, . so it will become a condition of the funding. . . . Ms. Lembo stated that SBCS has experience with two other housing projects: an 8-bed shelter for homeless and runaway youth; and a condominium leased from Hun for an independent living program. Diane Flint asked for clarification on which funds were needed and how they would be spent. Ms. Lembo responded that they need $450,000 of Low and Moderate Housing Set-aside funds for the transitional housing and $300,000 of HOME funds for the very low-income housing. David Harris pointed out that only $350,000 would be available from the Low/Mod Housing Set-aside fund, and that additional $150,000 might need to be reallocated from the Mobilehome Relocation Park CIP. Joe Casillas asked about what funding was needed for other projects, like Bayscene Mobilehome Park. Alisa Rogers stated that they are still working on the financial structure, but that as much as $400,000 might be needed. Mr. Casillas questioned whether the cost per unit (about $70,000) for acquisition and rehab was more efficient than new construction. Ms. Lembo responded that a transitional housing project is more costly than your typical low- income housing project and pointed out that part of the money will leverage funds for the operations. Mr. Casillas stated that the cost seems excessive and doesn't get a big bang for the buck; he believes the City could use the funds more efficiently to provide homeownership opportunities. Alisa Rogers noted that the City has just received another allocation of Mortgage Credit Certificates (worth $10,000,000) to provide assistance to 125 first-time homebuyers. David Harris added that the City would probably allocate some of the HOME funds to assist low-income homebuyers in the Eastern communities. Alan King expressed concern that only 26 families would benefit from the $800,000 requested from the City. Ms. Lembo responded that the number may be small but that families come to the transitional housing from very bad conditions and that helping families with housing helps prevent other social problems. Over the long-term, she predicted that hundreds of families would be assisted. Diane Flint asked whether the Agency would be able to replenish the Low/Mod set-aside fund. Alisa Rogers stated that approximately $1,000,000 of revenue is collected annually; this revenue could be decreased by the State or it could increase with the new Rohr building and other redevelopment projects. Ms. Flint expressed concern that this would use up all the available funds for at least the next 12 months and will limit the Agency's ability to fund any other project. In response to the Committee's question regarding site selection, Kathy Lembo stated that SBCS looked extensively for an appropriate site (even checked the Eastern communities) and found this site to be the best as far as cost and location. Maggie Helton asked what size of families would be housed. Dan Marcus responded that HUD determines the maximum # of people per unit based on the size of the unit. Ms. Helton thought that the pros, such as good location and access to services, need to be weighed against the cons. David Harris pointed out that the cost per unit for new construction for the Civic Center Barrio project and the public housing projects are much higher, running $100,000 per unit or more. The City might be able to get more bang for the buck with homeownership programs, but that won't help the homeless population. David Gustafson mentioned that the City has negotiated a lot of first-time homebuyer opportunities, including Brandywine Classics (126 units), Brehm (72 units), and Salt Creek I (13 units). In addition, staff is currently negotiating with Baldwin for affordable housing in Salt Creek Ranch. Mr. Gustafson posed the rhetorical question of "given the universe of housing needs, how do we distribute limited resources?" He reviewed the list of the current housing priorities and stated that projects can also arise suddenly. He anticipates that funds will be needed to assist developers to meet their affordable housing requirements under the City's Affordable Housing Policy. . . . Maggie Helton stated a motion to approve funding for the Casa Cuatro project. Mr. Dennison seconded the motion. Mr. King stated that he didn't want the City to spend funds it doesn't have. Mr. Casillas stated that the project was too expensive; too large of an allocation out of the available funding; and, he wants to be able to fund other priorities and programs to meet other needs. Diane Flint emphasized that supporting non-profit housing is an important component of the City's housing program. MSC(HeltonlDennison)(3-2-2 Casillas, King opposed) (Kearney, de Jesus Chantengco absent) to recommend that the City Council! Agency approve $800,000 for the Casa Cuatro transitional and very low-income housing from the following sources: $350,000 from the Low/Mod Set-aside Fund, $300,000 from HOME funds, and $150,000 from the Mobilehome Relocation Park CIP. David Gustafson commended SHCS for taking on a top priority for the City but a difficult project to develop. 3. Fair Housing MSC(HeltonlDelgadillo)(4-1-2 King opposed)( Kearney, de Jesus Chantengco absent) that the Fair Housing Assessment Report be submitted to the Human Relations Commission for comments. Maggie Helton and Diane Flint will miss the next meeting. 4. ORAL COMMUNICA nON - None 5. MEMBERS COMMENTS - None 6, STAFF COMMENTS - None 7. ADJOURNMENT - AT 4:56 P.M. to the next regular meeting scheduled for July 22,1992 at 3:30 P.M. in the Public Services Building. P//v~), 1 ,.' " -'"' - -'; , i. .?//- / '._ t. .,-!/ lr' /,Jlrl/f-1i.>j! David Harris, Record~r IAG\A:',()7~i-92.HAC.MIN.J DISK fI5