Affordable Housing Trust Fund

City of MASSACHUSETTS www.cityofmalden.org Gary Christenson, Mayor Malden Affordable Housing Trust Fund Meeting Minutes November 16, 2022 – 5:00 PM Trustees Mayor Gary Christenson Steve Finn Angie Liou Catherine Price Roxanne Reddington-Wilde Brian Slater Ward 6 Councillor Stephen Winslow New Business: 1. Call to Order Mayor Christenson called the meeting to order at 5:02 PM. Mayor Christenson read the following remote meeting notice into the record: On July 16, 2022, Governor Baker signed into law An Act Extending Certain COVID-19 Measures Adopted During the State of Emergency. This Act includes an extension, until March 31, 2023, of the remote meeting provisions of his March 12, 2020, Executive Order Suspending Certain Provisions of the Open Meeting Law. This meeting will be conducted via remote participation. This meeting will not include in person attendance by members of the public but all effort will be made to permit public attendance, in the manner specified below, via remote access by internet, and telephone. Public access will also be provided by posting draft minutes, and/or a transcript, recording, or record of the meeting on the City of Malden website at cityofmalden.org as soon as practicable after the meeting. Additional information/guidelines for the public can be found here: https://www.mass.gov/service-details/updated-guidance-on-holding-meetings-pursuant- to-the-act-extending-certain-covid-19-measures Kristina Tseng called the roll • Trustees Present: Mayor Christenson, Steve Finn, Angie Liou, Catherine Price, Roxanne Reddington-Wilde, and Councillor Winslow • Others Present: Kristina Tseng, Housing Program Coordinator, OSPCD 2. Approval of Meeting Minutes from October 19, 2022 On a motion by Councillor Winslow and seconded by Ms. Reddington-Wilde, the minutes from the October 19, 2022 meeting were approved unanimously. 215 Pleasant Street, Fourth Floor, Malden, MA 02148  Phone: 781-397-7000 Ext. 2001 info@cityofmalden.org Strong Past…Proud Future City of Malden, MA 3. Finance Report Ms. Tseng gave an update on the Trust’s finances on behalf of Mr. Grover. The current balance is $959,467.91, inclusive of interest earned in October of $1,111.56. The only reported expense for October is for the salary at $616.67 per month. Rates are still low in the money market but have increased. As of October 31, 2022, the Trust was earning 175 basis points. With the current basis points at 175, we can anticipate about $17,000.00 in interest per annum. 4. Administration Updates a. CPC Application Ms. Tseng provided an update on the CPC application following the CPC meeting on October 19th. The OSPCD requested $300,000 in CPA funds on behalf of the AHTF, which includes this year’s funding allocation in addition to the remaining funds from prior years. The CPC has additional funds this year because they didn’t spend the entire allocation in prior years. The Committee has not made a decision on the application since they have additional questions regarding the Trust’s projects; however, they agreed to hold a public hearing for the Trust’s application on January 18th to discuss those questions. This year’s request is structured as a pilot year for managing the CPC’s housing allocation; when the application reopens next fall, there will be discussions with the CPC to make an ongoing arrangement. The goal of the proposal is a partnership with the CPC to oversee the housing allocation with the broader goal of a streamlined one-stop process for affordable housing developers to apply to use CPA funds through the Trust to subsidize development costs. 5. Mayor’s Affordable Housing Program Updates a. Mayor’s Office of Housing Stability Ms. Tseng talked about the efforts at Office of Housing Stability (OHS), which is funded with ARPA funds and operated by Housing Families Inc., a third-party nonprofit in Malden. OHS became fully staffed early November. Their outreach success rate by mail is about 15%, which is similar to pre-pandemic levels. However, they reach many of those other clients through their Lawyer for the Day Program through court. Over the past month, they were able to stabilize 10 households with rental assistance. Currently, they are working on setting up monthly drop-in hours with the Library and Senior Center. This winter, through coordination with National Grid and other local non-profits, OHS is also the point of contact for utility assistance for Malden residents. When city officials are contacted for housing related inquiries by residents, they can refer them to the OHS at housingstability@cityofmalden.org. b. Development Projects Ms. Tseng provided the current development projects update. • 213 Main Street (formerly Salvation Army): The developers, ACDC, have been working on the conceptual study and test fit. The test fit is about 20 units— 7-1BD, 11-2BD, and 2-3BD with 18 parking spaces including one handicap spot. There are currently delays on the project due to the slope of the land. However, ACDC and the architects are working on a draft presentation to share with city staff. The community meeting will take place Thursday, December 1st, 2022 at 6pm via Zoom. • 54 Eastern Avenue: This project is developed jointly by Bread of Life and Metro North Housing. Construction financing closed earlier this month and construction is now underway. The development team estimates the project will be completed in early 2024. The 215 Pleasant Street, Malden, MA 02148  Phone: 781-397-7000 Ext. 2001 info@cityofmalden.org Strong Past…Proud Future City of Malden, MA finished development will include a new food pantry and office space for Bread of Life with 14 affordable units for formerly homeless individuals. c. Neighborhood Hub Ms. Tseng gave the update for the Neighborhood Hub Program. The Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) was published over a week ago on the City’s website. In accordance with procurement guidelines, it is also on CommBuys and the Central Register and advertised in the Malden Advocate every week from November 4th, 2022 to December 2nd, 2022. Prospective applicants will request applications and submit their questions to Ms. Tseng. Questions regarding the applications are due December 1st, 2022 and an addendum with the questions and answers will be provided for all applicants. Applications must be submitted Monday, December 12th, 2022. The $2,000,000 ARPA funding will be mainly used for acquisition costs. Additionally, the Hub is looking to apply to MassHousing’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program for rehabilitation funding. Currently, the Hub is working on the internal policy guidelines for the program and have begun discussions of the guidelines for the Resident Selection Plan and preferences with the ARPA Housing Subcommittee. 6. Policy Discussion Ms. Tseng provided the updates for policy discussions. • Metro Mayor’s Coalition: Ms. Tseng highlighted some of the housing discussions during the last Metro Mayor’s Coalition meeting, which took place on October 26th, 2022. o Evictions/ Rental Assistance: Many communities stated RAFT’s new policy of requiring a Notice to Quit at the time of application defeats the purpose of eviction prevention. It was explained this measure was taken as funds are depleting. However, there is still a significant need for rental assistance. Other communities discussed the struggle with securing utility funding for residents. o State Funding: As a response to funding discussions, some communities questioned where the ARPA funds were and the goals of having the incoming administration make ARPA funds and other state funds more flexible and accessible. o Housing Production Plan: Collectively, the Metro Mayor’s Coalition is behind on their Housing Production goals. MAPC noted that as important as production is, there also needs to be policy changes to help low-income households. • Policies & Procedures: Ms. Tseng said she sent out a copy of the draft of the funding policies and procedures to the Trust yesterday. She said she will be sending out an updated draft before every meeting. The Trustees will be able to provide their suggestions and feedback. 7. Adjournment Ms. Liou made a motion to adjourn and was seconded by Ms. Reddington-Wilde. All Trustees voted in favor and the meeting was adjourned at 5:23 PM. 215 Pleasant Street, Malden, MA 02148  Phone: 781-397-7000 Ext. 2001 info@cityofmalden.org Strong Past…Proud Future