Housing Commission

Falls Church Housing Commission Public Hearing - CDBG/HOME Grants Minutes Tuesday, October 15, 2013 Commission Members Present: Don Brobst, M.T. Gutmanis, Steve Sprague, Tori McKinney, and Julio Idrobo Staff: Dana Lewis, Susan Richter Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 6:55 pm by Chairman Sprague. Approval of Minutes: Minutes of October 8, 2013 meetings were distributed and changes were made. The minutes will be approved at the Commission’s November 12, 2013 meeting. Old Business: Dana Lewis prepared the Commission’s response to the South Washington Street plans and she will send to all Commissioners. Presentation of one HOME application: 1. Transition Housing for Homeless Families – Request $20,000 HOME Presenter: Christopher Fay, Executive Director, Homestretch HOME funding is requested to provide housing rental assistance and services to four to five homeless families. Self-sufficiency, financial stability and permanent affordable housing will be achieved in 24 months. The families in the Homestretch program that need a lot of attention are housed in the City so Homestretch can keep close access to them. The object is move families from crisis to self-sufficiency. The average participant is a single mother with two-three children, have been victims of domestic violence, lived in shelters, have no income, may have no job or only a part time job and have no belongings. Homestretch provides for the women, housing for the families, life skills training, work on helping them obtain employment, provide credit and budget counseling. They also when needed provide counseling pertaining to domestic violence and substance abuse. They also have ESOL instructions and have education programs for the youth and teens. Homestretch started a day care center over a year ago and the children of the families are able to use this center so they can maintain employment. Questions from Commissioners: When did Teamstretch start? This program has added a lot in the past year. They wanted to make it four nights a week and include spring break and summer. Has there been any shift in clients over the years and are they still mostly female? Yes this is till the case and in addition the Rapid Rehousing program has syphoned off some of the highest functioning clients. When the Commission visited Homestretch a couple of years ago someone just purchased a home, has there been any more success? Ten percent of the graduating classes have become homeowners. The participants put aside 10% of their income for debts, use IRS refunds for settlements and funds for building a savings account. They are paying off their own debts. You presented a good proposal; do you still have a study program with George Mason? The participants can apply to this program and other programs in the City such as homeownership and how to manage a budget. You have four units in the City how long does the funding last? The funding doesn’t cover a whole year and Homestretch will use other funds to pay the rent. Are you in danger of becoming or seeing a trend of intake from other states? They are not seeing this trend yet. A lot of change is coming to this section of the City, how will they manage this? Will call on others in the City to advocate for us if they are going to get pushed out. Homestretch has no reason to leave the area. The families that are coming to this program they become City residents then they move out of the City. Not always true, they have families that are referred to them by local nonprofits and there are a lot of jobs locally the participants are employed at. Are you aware of other models like Homestretch? Yes there are other programs like us but no in the state of Virginia. Have you considered scaling up the program? Yes we just completed a two year strategic plan which includes serving more families. END OF PUBLIC HEARING New Business: Discussion of final funding recommendations for FY2015. A lengthy discussion took place regarding the CDBG/HOME grant funding recommendations. The Commission looked at the needs, scores, and debated each proposal’s merit. With less funding available for FY2015, the decision was tough. The Commission reviewed the funds available for public services and nonpublic services versus what was requested. In the event that additional funds become available, the Commissioners recommend allocating the additional amount equally among the proposals based on HUD requirements and the current grant allocations recommended. In the event funds are decreased then this deduction would also be distributed equally in the same manner Available Requested Public Service $8,132 $11,300 Non Public Service $65,007 $92,376 A consensus was reached by the Commissioners on the funding recommendations for each of the programs as follows: Public service proposals (2 proposals received) – $8,132 Available Mount Daniel Family Literacy Program - $7,300 requested Recommended to fund $5,132 for this program. Their score was 18. Falls Church Community Service Council -Emergency Assistance Program – requested $4,000 Recommended to fund $3,000 for this program. Their score was 16.4. Non Public Service Proposals (2 proposals received) - $65,007 available Falls Church Housing Corporation Heating and Cooling Center – Requested 73,000 Recommended to fund $55,000 for this program. Their score was 14.9. Housing and Human Services, City of Falls Church - Home Repair – Requested $19,376 Recommended to fund $10,007. Their score was 16. HOME funds (one proposal received - $21,975 available Homestretch - Transitional Housing for Homeless Families – Requested $20,000 Recommended to fully fund $20,000. Their score was 18.8. The Commission recommends in the future that Homestretch increase the funding request. The remaining Home funds for FY 2015 will be carried over to the next grant year. Other required Funding; Funding is required for CDBG Admonition- Total $10,842. Arlington Administration - $5,421 City of Falls Church CDBG Administration - $5,421  Final Funding Recommendations Recap FY 15 FY 15 FY 15 CDBG CDBG App Housing Commission Applicant/Project Requested Score CDBG Recommend Public Services Falls Church City Public Schools Mt. Daniel Family Literacy 7,300 18 5,132 Falls Church Community Services Council Emergency Monetary Assistance 4,000 16.4 3,000 Total 11,300 8,132 Non-Public Services Housing & Human Services Unit Interior and exterior Home Repair/Rehabilitation 19,376 16.8 10,007 Falls Church Housing Corporation Generator to create emergency heating & cooling center 78,000 14.9 55,000 Housing & Human Services Unit CDBG Administration (required) 5,421 Required 5,421 Arlington County CDBG Administration (required) 5,421 Required 5,421 Total 108,218 75,849 Reminders by Chair Sprage: At the November meeting elections will held for Chair of the Commission Chair Sprague acknowledged and appreciated the help the Commission received from City staff and also the support of the other Commissioners in this process. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 pm. Don Brobst made the motion to adjourn and Tori McKinney seconded. i:\housing commission\minutes 2013\hc_minutes_101513.doc The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation for any type of disability call 703 248-5005, TTY 711