CDBG Program Advisory Committee

CITY OF HENDERSON COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) PROGRAM ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Wednesday, October 23, 2019 I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Gustavo Ramos called the Community Development Block Grant Program Advisory Committee meeting to order at 9:09 a.m., in the Council Chambers Conference Room, 240 Water Street, Henderson, Nevada. II. CONFIRMATION OF POSTING AND ROLL CALL Brittany Markarian, Engagement and Programs Administrator, confirmed the Community Development Block Grant Program Advisory Committee meeting had been noticed in compliance with the Open Meeting Law by posting the Agenda three working days prior to the meeting at City Hall, the Multigenerational Center, the Whitney Ranch Recreation Center, Fire Station No. 86, the Nevada Public Notice Website, the City of Henderson Website, and by mailing and emailing a copy of the Agenda to everyone appearing thereon on the Agenda Master Mailing List and Email List. PRESENT: Chairman Gustavo Ramos David Beason Gary Thompson Gina Venglass ABSENT: Bella Meese (excused) Brian Maddox (excused) David Paull (excused) STAFF: Andre Dixon, Deputy City Clerk Brittany Markarian, Engagement and Programs Administrator Zachary Redmond, Assistant City Attorney III Senta Robinson, Housing and Grants Coordinator Andrew Roether, Planning Manager GUESTS: Ricki Barlow Rebecca Coutinho, Planner II Heather Virtuoso, Engagement and Program Specialist Gilbert Medina, Community Development Grant Specialist Cassidy Wilson, Southern Nevada Home Builders Association CDBG Program Advisory Committee Page 2 of 7 Wednesday, October 23, 2019 – Minutes III. PUBLIC COMMENT There were no public comments presented. IV. ACCEPTANCE OF AGENDA (Motion) Mr. Beason introduced a motion to accept the agenda as presented. The vote favoring approval was unanimous. Chairman Ramos declared the motion carried. V. NEW BUSINESS NB-1 MINUTES CDBG PROGRAM ADVISORY COMMITTEE AUGUST 28, 2019 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program Advisory Committee Meeting minutes of August 28, 2019. (Motion) Ms. Venglass introduced a motion to adopt the CDBG Program Advisory Committee Meeting minutes of August 28, 2019, as presented. The vote favoring approval was unanimous. Chairman Ramos declared the motion carried. NB-2 ETHICS AND OPEN MEETING LAW TRAINING The Henderson City Attorney’s Office will discuss upcoming ethics and open meeting law training. Zachary Redmond, Assistant City Attorney III, informed the Committee members that they will be receiving an email from City staff notifying them of an upcoming City-lead training aimed at updating and refreshing board and commission members on the Open Meeting Law and ethical standards. Mr. Redmond stated the email will contain a link to RSVP for the training; however, if any Committee member is unable to attend, to please inform the City staff. CDBG Program Advisory Committee Page 3 of 7 Wednesday, October 23, 2019 – Minutes NB-3 2020-2021 CDBG APPLICATIONS AND SCORING Staff will provide the 2020-2021 Community Development Block Grant applications and scoring to the PAC and discuss the selection process. Senta Robinson, Housing and Grants Coordinator, stated the Community Development and Services Department hosted two technical assistance workshops on September 25, 2019, and October 8, 2019. She said the workshops were held to answer prospective grant applicants’ questions and to express to them the importance of programs aligning with the City of Henderson’s Strategic Plan and the CDBG Consolidated Plan. Ms. Robinson stated the 2020-2021 Community Development Block Grant application submission period ran from September 16, 2019, to October 10, 2019, and that eleven applications were received. She said all applications were submitted electronically through the Zoom Grants online application management system, and staff has prescreened applications to ensure eligibility and compliance with CDBG requirements. Ms. Robinson then read summaries of the eleven applications received. The applications, Committee members’ accompanying questions, and the accompanying answers given went as followed: Andson Foundation Inc. – Andson Academics. There were no questions regarding this application. Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada – ACT Preparation Program. Q: Can we get clarification for their scheduled timeline listed on question 14 of their application because their timeline appears to exceed a year? A: Staff will reach out to the applicant for clarification and provide updates to the Committee members at the December 18, 2019, meeting. Club Christ – Launching Leaders. There were no questions regarding this application. Giving Life Ministries – Emergency Assistance Program. There were no questions regarding this application. CDBG Program Advisory Committee Page 4 of 7 Wednesday, October 23, 2019 – Minutes Goodwill of Southern Nevada – Henderson Employment Program. Q: How many people and for how many hours per week will this program assist? A: Staff will reach out to the applicant for clarification and provide updates to the Committee members at the December 18, 2019, meeting. Q: Can we get clarification on the mobile aspect of the program, does that mean they go to potential users or do they have to come to them? A: Staff will reach out to the applicant for clarification and provide updates to the Committee members at the December 18, 2019, meeting. HELP of Southern Nevada – Shannon West Homeless Youth Center. Q: How do they monitor or clarify how many homeless youths are coming from Henderson? A: Staff will reach out to the applicant for clarification and provide updates to the Committee members at the December 18, 2019, meeting. Q: How do we verify that this is not a duplication of services the City is already contributing to regionally? A: Staff will research this matter further and provide updates to the Committee members at the December 18, 2019, meeting. HopeLink of Southern Nevada – Homeless Prevention. There were no questions regarding this application. Iron Shapes Iron Mentoring, Inc. – Iron Shapes Iron Mentoring. Q: Can we get clarification for their answer on question 30 of their application? A: Staff will reach out to the applicant for clarification and provide updates to the Committee members at the December 18, 2019, meeting. Jobs for Nevada Graduates, Inc. Program at Basic High School. There were no questions regarding this application. Rebuilding Together Southern Nevada – Critical Home Repair Program. There were no questions regarding this application. Spread the Word Nevada – Taylor Elementary School Kids to Kids and Books and Buddies. There were no questions regarding this application. CDBG Program Advisory Committee Page 5 of 7 Wednesday, October 23, 2019 – Minutes The following questions were asked in general about the applications: Q: Why were the two largest requests not noted on the CDBG Agency Requests Fiscal Year 2020-2021 sheet? A: The Goodwill of Southern Nevada Henderson Employment Program and the Rebuilding Together Southern Nevada Critical Home Repair Program were listed on page two because the two programs’ combined request would exceed the available funds; therefore, staff is researching if these two could qualify under an Economic Development and Services Department funded grant to allow for more programs under consideration. Both programs are still included in the voting deliberation. Q: Were there any applications that were denied at submittal? A: No. The 11 applications presented were all the applications received. Q: How many of these programs have been funded by CDBG in the past? A: Seven of the organizations listed on the CDBG Agency Request Synopsis spreadsheet have received prior funding from CDBG. Q: How many of these applicants reported a recapture or return on their application? A: Two or three of the applicants reported a recapture or return of program funding on their application. A discussion ensued regarding application requests where the bulk of the requested funds are to cover staff costs. Andrew Roether, Planning Manager, requested the Committee members review the applications in Zoom Grants to determine their individual rankings and funding recommendations. He stated at the December 18, 2019, CDBG meeting, staff will provide their feedback on the applications to the Committee to discuss and determine what recommendations to present to the City Council. NB-4 UPDATE ON CONSOLIDATED PLAN OUTREACH Staff will present updates on consolidated plan outreach efforts. Brittany Markarian, Engagement and Programs Administrator, recapped the Committee on the Community Development and Services Department’s consolidated plan outreach efforts to-date. CDBG Program Advisory Committee Page 6 of 7 Wednesday, October 23, 2019 – Minutes Ms. Markarian discussed the August 22, 2019, Community Development and Services Department’s Drake Street Open House event and the targeted intercept survey efforts. Ms. Markarian briefed the Committee on some preliminary findings; however, clarified that she will present the Committee a more finalized summation of survey results at the December 18, 2019, CDBG meeting. Following an inquiry by Mr. Thompson regarding whether the data collected will be used to help shape the five-year consolidated plan moving forward, Ms. Markarian said that the collected data, along with the changing demographics of the city, will help set future goals. Responding to a question by Mr. Beason regarding whether mental illness or addiction was mentioned as a concern, Ms. Markarian stated they were not specifically highlighted due to the survey only listing programs prescribed by the Housing and Urban Development (HUD); however, there could be some possible crossover in the services mentioned for homelessness assistance. NB-5 UPDATE ON PROPOSED PUBLIC FACILITIES AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS Staff will provide a brief summary of the 2020-2024 public facility and capital improvement projects. Senta Robinson, Housing and Grants Coordinator, stated the Community Development and Services Department has received a low number of future public facility and capital improvement project requests. She said she will contact other City departments to inquire whether they plan on submitting proposals or complete streets requests for the 2020-2021 funding cycle. Ms. Robinson provided updates to the ongoing Pittman Infrastructure Revitalization project, which the Committee previously approved under the 2018-2019 funding cycle. Ms. Robinson stated staff is also considering adding a community garden to the project. A discussion ensued regarding the three funding phases of the Pittman Infrastructure Revitalization project. Referring to the backup material titled Fiscal Year 2018-2019 CDBG Public Facilities Improvements, Mr. Thompson inquired where the difference came from for Phase 3 between the CDBG PAC recommended amount of $202,890.00 versus the Council Approved Allocation of $218,660.00. Responding to Mr. Thompson’s inquiry, Ms. Robinson stated she will research the reasoning to clarify the difference in amounts and provide an answer at a later time. CDBG Program Advisory Committee Page 7 of 7 Wednesday, October 23, 2019 – Minutes Andrew Roether, Planning Manager, stated a staff member from the Public Works Department will speak at the December CDBG meeting to inform the Committee of potential future projects. Mr. Beason inquired whether staff has instructed the Public Works Department to refrain from requesting public facility and capital improvement projects to come out of CDBG funds. Ms. Robinson said she will provide clarification to the Committee at the December meeting. Responding to a question by Chairman Ramos regarding clarification on past grant application presentations, Mr. Beason stated applicants used to give presentations before the Committee members; however, this year, staff agreed to remove the presentation portion. Mr. Beason encouraged the Committee members to consider visiting the applicants’ sites if they are unfamiliar with the program and services requesting funding support. VI. CHAIRMAN\MEMBER COMMENTS Senta Robinson, Housing and Grants Coordinator, requested the Committee members verify or update their contact information through the Contact Henderson webpage. Brittany Markarian, Engagement and Programs Administrator, stated the upcoming Ethics and Open Meeting Law training will be held on November 20, 2019, at 4:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers. VII. SET NEXT MEETING The next meeting was set for December 18, 2019. VIII. PUBLIC COMMENT There were no public comments presented. IX. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Committee, Chairman Ramos adjourned the meeting at 10:29 a.m. Respectfully submitted, __________________________ Andre Dixon, Deputy City Clerk