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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 03/19/2019 - ITEMS RELATING TO THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING BOARD ANDAgenda Item 7 Item # 7 Page 1 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY March 19, 2019 City Council ITEM WITHDRAWN FROM CONSIDERATION STAFF Adam Molzer, Grant & Community Partnership Coordinator Sue Beck-Ferkiss, Social Policy and Housing Programs Ingrid Decker, Legal SUBJECT Items Relating to the Affordable Housing Board and the Community Development Block Grant Commission. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A. First Reading of Ordinance No. 048, 2019, Amending Chapter 2, Article III, Division 11 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins Regarding the Community Development Block Grant Commission. B. First Reading of Ordinance No. 049, 2019, Amending Chapter 2, Article III, Division 2 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins Regarding the Affordable Housing Board. The purpose of this item is to amend the Code of the City of Fort Collins to update the authorized duties, functions and name of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Commission, as well as the membership requirements and authorized duties and functions of the Affordable Housing Board. These Code updates will specifically address the advisory roles of the CDBG Commission and Affordable Housing Board to include City staff and other entities. Additionally, the CDBG Commission would be renamed to the Social Investment Commission, and its authority to make funding recommendations would be modernized to include the diverse funding sources within its grant making purview. The Affordable Housing Board’s membership requirements would be amended to express a preference for having at least one member who lives or has lived in affordable housing. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinances on First Reading. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION A. Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Commission The CDBG Commission was originally created by City ordinance in 1990. The functions of the CDBG Commission, as documented in the City Code, are written the same today as they were 29 years ago. In that time the CDBG Commission’s role has evolved to now advise additional parties beyond City Council, including City staff, on matters pertaining to human services issues of concern to the City. This Code amendment will reflect this broadened advisory role that the Commission serves. Additionally, the CDBG Commission functions currently described in the City’s Municipal Code direct special attention towards 5 specific low- and moderate- income neighborhoods in Fort Collins, with the intention of promoting CDBG programming in those areas. The proposed amendment to the Code removes the reference to the targeted neighborhoods. The reason for removing this language is to more accurately reflect today’s reality of human services programming in the community. Since 1990, residents with low- and moderate- incomes have Agenda Item 7 Item # 7 Page 2 become more broadly dispersed across the community as the City has grown. Also, the nonprofit agencies that partner with the City of Fort Collins to address the needs of low- and moderate- income residents have adapted their business models to serve residents community-wide and less geographically concentrated. Similarly, the proposed Code changes would keep the provision that membership on the Commission include persons of low and moderate income, but would remove the requirement that those members be residents of “slum and blighted areas” or of “strategy areas” identified by the City. These are not terms the City generally applies to specific residential areas and, again, does not reflect the reality of how low and moderate income families are dispersed throughout the community. Other proposed changes would recognize that the CDBG Commission’s annual grant award recommendations provided to City Council include diverse funding sources not detailed in the current Code. Presently, only federal CDBG funds are identified, and this Code edit will update the funding sources to include federal HOME funds, City funds for Human Services, and the City’s Affordable Housing Fund. The name of the CDBG Commission has similarly matured beyond the original role and structure defined in the Code. In 2018, CDBG dollars comprised only 17% of the funding granted to local nonprofit partner agencies addressing human service needs in our community. The majority of the dollars awarded through grants (83%) were sourced from the City’s General Fund and KFCG Fund. On average, only 38% of core funding for affordable housing projects is sourced from CDBG dollars. To better convey the modern grant-making role of the Commission and its alignment with the Social component of the Triple Bottom Line, if the Council adopts the Ordinance, the Commission would be renamed as the Social Investment Commission. B. Affordable Housing Board The Affordable Housing Board (AHB) was originally created by City ordinance in 1993. The functions of the AHB, as documented in Section 2-83 of the City Code, are written the same today as they were 26 years ago. Much like the CDBG Commission, the Affordable Housing Board’s role has evolved to now advise and make recommendations to additional parties beyond City Council, including City staff and other boards and commissions, on matters concerning the expenditure of City and federal affordable housing dollars. The proposed Code amendment will reflect this broadened advisory role that the AHB serves. Current AHB members also express a preference for having at least one member of the Board be someone who lives or has previously lived in affordable housing, if possible. The proposed change to Section 2-82 adds that preference, while also softening the previous membership language that required AHB members to have expertise in affordable housing to make it a preference and a factor to consider, but not a mandate. BOARD / COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION At its regular meeting on March 7, 2019 the Affordable Housing Board considered the proposed changes to its membership requirements and functions and voted to recommend that the City Council approve the proposed Code amendments. Due to weather, the March 13, 2019 Community Development Block Grant Commission was cancelled and has been rescheduled for April 3. The Commission’s recommendation will be provided to Council for Second Reading, April 16. -1- ORDINANCE NO. 048, 2019 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AMENDING CHAPTER 2, ARTICLE III, DIVISION 11 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS REGARDING THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT COMMISSION WHEREAS, in 1990 the City Council passed Ordinance No. 098, 1990, establishing the Community Development Block Grant Commission (the “Commission”) and defining the Commission’s membership and functions; and WHEREAS, the Commission was originally created to provide advice and recommendations to the City Council regarding the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program; and WHEREAS, in the intervening years the Commission’s activities and functions have evolved, but the description of its functions in the City Code have never been updated; and WHEREAS, City staff has recommended that Chapter 2, Article III, Division 11 of the City Code regarding the Commission be amended to do the following: • Change the name of the Commission to the “Social Investment Commission,” to recognize that it makes recommendations on funding from other sources of federal and local funding besides CDBG funds; • Remove the requirement that low- and moderate-income residents of the Commission be from “slum and blight areas” or “neighborhood strategy areas”; • Remove the direction that the Commission provide special attention to “neighborhood strategy areas”; • Allow the Commission to advise the City Council and City staff on matters related not just to CDBG funding, but also on funding from the federal HOME program, and the City’s Human Service Program and Affordable Housing Fund moneys, and on all matters pertaining to human services issues of concern to the City; and WHEREAS, due to the weather, the Commission’s regular meeting on March 13, 2019, was postponed until April 3, at which time the Commission is expected to vote on a recommendation to the City Council regarding the proposed amendments to the City Code; and WHEREAS, the City Council finds the proposed changes reflect the Council’s intent for the role and functions of the Commission, and desires to amend the Code accordingly. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and findings contained in the recitals set forth above. -2- Section 2. That Article 11 of Division III of Chapter 2 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended as follows: Division 11 Community Development Block Grant Social Investment Commission Sec. 2-181. - Creation. There shall be and is hereby created a The Community Development Block Grant Commission created pursuant to Ordinance No. 98, 1990, shall hereafter be named the Social Investment Commission, and shall be hereafter referred to in this Division as the “Commission.” Sec. 2-182. - Membership; term. (a) The Commission shall consist of nine (9) members appointed by the City Council, including persons of low and moderate income who are residents of slum and blight areas and/or are residents of the low- and moderate-income neighborhood strategy areas that have been identified by the City. ... Sec. 2-183. - Functions. The duties and functions of the Commission shall be: (1) To advise the City Council and City staff on matters pertaining to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnership (HOME) Programs; (2) To promote the CDBG Program within the City with special attention to the three (3) low- and moderate-income neighborhood strategy areas of Holy Family, Laurel School, and Buckingham, Alta Vista and Andersonville (B.A.V.A.) To advise the City Council and City staff on all matters pertaining to human services issues of concern to the City; (3) To assess the community development needs of low- and moderate-income individuals and families and suggest programs to meet those needs; (4) To provide recommendations to the City Council and City staff concerning the expenditure of federal and City funds for human services and affordable housing, including CDBG and HOME funds received from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and City Human Service Program and Affordable Housing Fund moneys; (5) To perform such other duties and functions and have such other powers as may be provided by ordinance of the City Council. … -3- Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 19th day of March, A.D. 2019, and to be presented for final passage on the 16th day of April, A.D. 2019. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 16th day of April, A.D. 2019. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk -1- ORDINANCE NO. 049, 2019 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AMENDING CHAPTER 2, ARTICLE III, DIVISION 2 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS REGARDING THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING BOARD WHEREAS, in 1993 the City Council approved Ordinance No. 084, 1993, creating the Affordable Housing Board (the “Board”) and defining the Board’s membership and functions, currently codified in Division 2 of Article III of Chapter 2 of the City Code; and WHEREAS, although the activities and functions of the Board have evolved over time, the Boards functions in the City Code have never been updated; and WHEREAS, City staff has recommended that Section 2-83 of the City Code, defining the functions of the Board, be amended to do the following: • Allow the Board to advise not just the City Council but also City staff on matters pertaining to affordable housing; • Advise and make recommendations on the City’s expenditure of funds for affordable housing; • Coordinate with other organizations and entities outside the City organization whose actions may affect affordable housing in the community; and WHEREAS, City staff has also recommended that Section 2-82 of the City Code, regarding membership on the Board, be amended to add a preference for including at least one current or former residents of affordable housing on the Board; and WHEREAS, the proposed amendments would also recognize a change in the name of the Community Development Block Grant Commission to the Social Investment Commission, which the City Council is considering by separate ordinance; and WHEREAS, at its regular meeting on March 7, 2019, the Board voted to recommend that the City Council approve the proposed amendments to Sections 2-82 and 2-83; and WHEREAS, the City Council finds the proposed changes reflect the Council’s intent for the role and functions of the Board, and desires to amend the Code accordingly. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and findings contained in the recitals set forth above. Section 2. That Section 2-82(a) of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended as follows: -2- Sec. 2-82. - Membership; term. (a) The Board shall consist of seven (7) members appointed by the City Council, which members shall possess expertise in affordable housing issues, including, without limitation, issues pertaining to development, finance, lending, charitable and low-income services and general community services. … (c) In connection with the solicitation, consideration and appointment of members to the Board, the City Council may consider and give preference to an applicant’s experience or training in, or familiarity with, affordable housing issues including, without limitation, issues pertaining to development, finance, lending, charitable and low- income services and general community services. It is also desirable that at least one Board member be a current or former resident of affordable housing. Section 3. That Section 2-83 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended as follows: Sec. 2-83. Functions. The duties and functions of the Board shall be: (1) To advise the City Council and City staff on all matters pertaining to affordable housing issues of concern to the City; (2) To advise and make recommendations to City staff, the Social Investment Commission and the City Council concerning the expenditure of City Affordable Housing Fund moneys; (23)To aid and guide the development of City-wide affordable housing programs to address currently existing and potential affordable housing issues; (34) To promote citizen participation and public education on City-wide affordable housing issues; (45) To be aware of and coordinate with the various other City boards, and commissions and authorities, City departments, and other organizations and entities whose actions may affect affordable housing in the community; and (56) To perform other such duties and functions and have other powers as provided by the City Council. -3- Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 19th day of March, A.D. 2019, and to be presented for final passage on the 16th day of April, A.D. 2019. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 16th day of April, A.D. 2019. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk