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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCommunity Development Block Grant Commission - Minutes - 10/16/2014COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT COMMISSION FUNDING DELIBERATIONS 215 N. MASON ST., FORT COLLINS OCT. 16, 2014 5:45 P.M. COMMISSION MEMBERS PRESENT: Anita Basham Holly Carroll Gordon Coombes Catherine Costlow Jamaal Curry Margaret Long Kay Rios Kristin Stephens COMMISSION MEMBERS ABSENT: Robert Browning STAFF PRESENT: Sharon Thomas; Janet Freeman; Beth Rosen; Bruce Hendee OTHERS PRESENT: Troy Jones, Tatiana Martin and Diana Cohn of the Affordable Housing Board; a half‐dozen citizens; Kate Jeracki, Note Taker. The meeting was called to order by Vice Chair Gordon Coombes at 5:45 p.m. with a quorum present. The purpose of the meeting was to allocate funds requested during the 2014 Fall Cycle of the Competitive Process. The Commission deliberated six Housing requests and no Public Service requests. A total of $801,956 was available, with a 15 percent CHDO set aside of $80,954; none of the current projects were CHDO‐eligible, so that amount could not be allocated in this funding cycle. Requests totaled $2,007,792. Representatives from the Affordable Housing Board presented their priority rankings of the requests before the Commission: 1. HO‐4 Fort Collins Housing Authority: Village on Redwood ‐ $1,500,000 2. HO‐6 Neighbor to Neighbor: Coachlight Plaza Windows Phase 2 ‐ $43,257 3. HO‐3 Fort Collins Housing Authority: Tenant‐Based Rental Assistance for CDDT ‐ $225,730 4. HO‐5 Loveland Housing Development Corp.: LHIP ‐ $85,000 5. HO‐1 CARE Housing: UFAS Accessibility ‐ $127,356 6. HO‐2 Fort Collins Housing Authority: Administrative Fees for CDDT Program ‐ $26,449 Affordable Housing Board Chair Troy Jones said his members had a difficult time coming to consensus on many of the requests. They generally agreed on the first and last rankings; HO‐6 was the least controversial and ranked second. He and the other board members in attendance agreed that the rest of the requests received individual rankings that varied greatly from member to member. While some felt strongly that HO‐3 should be prioritized because it was making new rental units available, even if only temporarily, 2 others questioned the amount of resources to be devoted to serving a relatively small number of people, for example. Jones also reviewed the City’s housing goals that his board used to evaluate each project and the point system used to determine the final priorities presented to the Commission. Acting Chair Coombes thanked the Affordable Housing Board for their thoughtful review and recommendations. He then opened commission deliberations at 6:08 p.m. Coombes and Sharon Thomas reviewed the process to be followed by the Commission and reminded observers they would not able to give input to the decision‐making this evening. HO‐1 CARE Housing: UFAS Accessibility ‐‐ $127,356 Anita Basham moved the Commission allocate zero funding to HO‐1. The motion died for the lack of a second. Kay Rios moved to fully fund HO‐1. The motion died for the lack of a second. Gordon Coombes moved to allocate zero funding for HO‐1. Margaret Long seconded. Coombes said that with all the other requests before the Commission, there just wasn’t enough money to fund them all. Long agreed. Motion passed 7‐1, with Kay Rios opposed. Zero funding approved. HO‐2 Fort Collins Housing Authority: Administrative Fees for CDDT Program ‐‐ $26,449 Kay Rios moved the Commission allocate zero funding to HO‐2; Holly Carroll seconded. Rios said she agreed with the Affordable Housing Board’s assessment that this is not a “bricks and sticks” request and not within the purview of the Commission. Carroll agreed, and suggested the Authority could find the money in its budget to support the program. Margaret Long also agreed. Rios added that it’s not that the project isn’t important, it’s that the Commission has to look at what is the best use of the taxpayers’ money. The motion was approved unanimously. Zero funding approved. 3 HO‐3 Fort Collins Housing Authority: Tenant‐Based Rental Assistance for CDDT ‐‐ $225,730 Kay Rios moved to allocate zero funding to HO‐3. The motion died for the lack of a second. Kay Rios again moved to allocate zero funding to HO‐3. Catherine Costlow seconded. Rios said she understands the need for the services, but the Commission doesn’t have the money to fund the request. She was also concerned about the amount of resources that would be spent per person. Kristin Stephens pointed out that this is a very vulnerable population, and funding these services now could save spending money on other services on the chronically homeless in the future. Margaret Long agreed, saying those services can become very expensive if case management isn’t provided early. Services can have a multiplier effect. Holly Carroll agreed, saying it’s good to help people stay off the streets. Kay Rios said she understands the need, but she was looking at the overall impact of the program. Jamaal Curry agreed, pointing out that the Commission is very low on funds to allocate and the Commission needs to keep in mind what we can do with what we have. He asked which other projects the Commission could pull money from for this one. Kristin Stephens said she couldn’t recommend any, since the funding for the Village at Redwood was already a third of what is needed. Motion passed 4‐3, with Gordon Coombes abstaining, Holly Carroll, Margaret Long and Anita Basham opposed. Zero funding approved. HO‐4 Fort Collins Housing Authority: Village on Redwood ‐‐ $1,500,000 Catherine Costlow moved the Commission allocate partial funding in the amount of $673,699 to HO‐4; Kristin Stephens seconded. Costlow said the project supports the City’s No. 1 goal of increasing the number of rental units, and there was good leverage of funds in the proposal. Stephens agreed, pointing out that this was the top priority of the Affordable Housing Board. Kay Rios agreed, pointing out that the project had received $720,000 in the last funding cycle. After clarification of funding sources by staff and the unavailability of the $80,954 CHDO set‐aside, Costlow amended her motion to partially fund HO‐4 in the amount of $592,745; Stephens accepted the amendment. 4 The motion passed on a 4‐3 vote, with Jaamal Curry abstaining, Kay Rios, Holly Carroll and Margaret Long opposed. Holly Carroll moved to reduce the funding amount for HO‐4 by $143,311. Margaret Long seconded. Carroll said she would like to use that amount to partially fund HO‐3. Long agreed. Motion failed, 5‐2, with Gordon Coombes abstaining, Holly Carroll and Margaret Long in favor. Partial funding of $592,745 approved. HO‐5 Loveland Housing Development Corp.: LHIP ‐‐ $85,000 Catherine Costlow moved to allocate full funding to HO‐5; Kay Rios seconded. Costlow said there was good justification for preserving existing units and supporting homeowners who may be struggling. The motion passed unanimously. Full funding approved. HO‐6 Neighbor to Neighbor: Coachlight Plaza Windows Phase 2 ‐‐ $43,257 Kay Rios moved to fully fund HO‐6; Jaamal Curry seconded. Rios said the units to be rehabbed are in a state of disrepair and this project will address that. Curry agreed The motion passed unanimously. Full funding approved. Catherine Costlow moved to accept the funding matrix for the 2014 Fall Competitive Process as presented. Kay Rios seconded. Motion passed unanimously. The Deliberations Meeting was adjourned at 6:42 p.m. CDBG Commission Special Meeting 5 The Commission reconvened at 6:48 p.m. for a Special Meeting in Conference Room 1A. In addition to Commissioners, the meeting included Sharon Thomas, Bruce Hendee, Janet Freeman, Tatiana Nelson and Kate Jeracki. Public Comment None Approval of Minutes Anita Basham moved to approve the minutes from the August 2014 meeting as presented; Kristin Stephens seconded. Motion passed with three abstentions. Social Sustainability Department Discussion Bruce Hendee, assistant city manager for the City of Fort Collins, thanked the Commission for the difficult work they do as volunteers on behalf of the City and its citizens. He said that in the wake of the resignation of Mary Achison as the director of the Social Sustainability Department, he would be acting head of the department until an interim could be appointed. He discussed the letter from the Commission that Kay Rios described as a rebuttal to the consultants’ recommendations for changes to the Competitive Process. In light of the concerns raised by the Commission, the City has decided to slow down the process to gather more input, and he assured the Commission that the City’s Human Services mission would not be unfunded. Hendee said he would like to hear the Commission’s thoughts on the process. He added that it has been 15 years since the Commission was created, and the charge and the bylaws have not been updated although the Commission’s role has evolved, in part in response to changes at the federal funding level. He added that the role of the Affordable Housing Board will be reviewed as part of that process as well, but any changes, if they happen, will have to be approved by City Council. The consultants’ recommendations are not ready to be be implemented yet and will very likely be the subject of a Council worksession before they are. Hendee asked about the concept of the Affordable Housing Board being responsible for allocating funding for housing projects. Kay Rios said that was how it was done in the past and gave a brief history of why the CDBG Commission was created to remove the conflicts of interest that arose under that system. She also pointed out that the consultants made that recommendation with very little input from Commissioners and it seems they didn’t really understand the process. 6 Hendee said that he had asked the consultants to review the funding process in an effort to be transparent and increase community engagement. Gordon Coombes said the organizational structure can be improved, but it’s important to have a dialog with the people who are doing the work, who need to have input before any change is proposed. The Commission needs to be part of that discussion. He suggested that someone from the City come and sit through the entire Spring funding cycle, from applications to presentations and deliberations, to understand the role that the Commission plays. Kristin Stephens added that Commissioners take their job seriously and are very thoughtful about what they do and she felt blindsided when she saw the consultants’ recommendations. Hendee said he appreciates the amount of their own time Commissioners spend on reviewing documents. He said he will take their comments to heart and would like to engage in a meaningful way, starting with being on the agenda at future meetings. Tatiana Martin of the Affordable Housing Board said that her board has had similar discussions and would like to sit down with the CDBG Commission to share their thoughts. Gordon Coombes suggested a joint special meeting for a worksession, after the November Commission meeting but before the end of the year. Hendee said staff will find a date that works for everyone. Hendee assured Commissioners that even though there are changes on the horizon, the Social Sustainability Department and its commitment to the triple bottom line will continue. He thanked the Commission once again for its hard work and left the meeting at 7:18 p.m Work Plan, Periodic Review Sharon Thomas reminded Commissioners that annual Work Plan is due in February, and the bylaws need to be updated. All boards and commissions do a periodic review. In 2015 all boards and commissions under the City’s Outcome area of Community and Neighborhood Livability will be conducting a periodic review; the CDBG Commission is in this category. Kay Rios said she would take a look at the bylaws and present a draft update at the November meeting. She asked Commissioners to send her comments via email to incorporate. Staff Reports and Program Updates 7 Sharon Thomas urged everyone to attend the annual Boards and Commissions event on Nov. 6, 5:30‐7 p.m., when Kay Rios will be recognized for her many years of service to the City. RSVP soon. Gordon Coombes announced that he will be stepping down from the Commission at the end of the year, as he has become executive director of Team Fort Collins. That makes three Commissioners who will be leaving – Kay Rios is term limited and Bob Browning announced his intention to leave in September – so Sharon Thomas asked Commissioners to begin recruiting possible new members. Applications are open and available on the City’s website. The next meeting of the Commission is Nov. 13, 6:30 p.m., 215 N. Mason St. Meeting adjourned at 7:46 p.m.