Mary Shepherd Home Citizens' Advisory Committee

Shepherd Home Advisory Committee MINUTES September 20, 2023 5:00 Location: Zoom video and in-person at Shepherd Conference Room Those in Attendance: Phil Cacciolla, Veteran and Chair; Vinnie Loffredo, Vice-Chair; Atty. Ralph Wilson, Retired, Atty. Seb Giuliano, Veteran Larry Riley, Carl Rodenhizer, Columbus House, Phil opened the meeting at 5:00. Occupancy Vacancies remain at four units and we have four prospective tenants. o Applications. There was consensus to have: o Applications to be date stamped when they are started so we can track the time involved in processing. o Post a phone number in the building vestibule for prospective tenants to call and arrange for an application and start the application process. o Accommodations for staff to be accessible to assist prospective tenants with completion of applications and streamline application population when similar information is requesting in both applications. o Committee members are to receive copies of DeMarco’s application and the housing authority application for review. o Staff time to be prioritized to have tenant application completed o Confirm that prospective tenants have visited the facility and have an apartment reserved for them o to have any The two tenant applicants that were in the pipeline for approval by the housing authority are no longer viable candidates. One died at his current residence and another changed their mind. We also had two current tenants died unexpectedly. They were unrelated deaths within a week of each other. Takisha was notified of an issue with one tenant by his barking dog. Takisha was unable to get a response and called emergency personnel to assist with accessing the room. The second tenant was seen the day before but tenants on his floor notified Yanira that his absence the following day was a concern. She and Yanira conducted a wellness check and found him. With these changes that leaves are current vacancies at four. The need to increase the solicitation for new prospects was discussed. Alisha Porto with DeMarco at Liberty Commons made us aware of a veteran oriented Coordinated Access Network meeting. She will notify the group of our vacancies. Financials We discussed tenants who are not staying current with their payments. Carl will make available a service that Columbus House offers to tenants who have difficulty with handling their monies with a rent payee. The rent payee pays the monthly obligations for a tenant. Takisha will be sending out notices to tenants who are not current on the 15th will be getting written notices. But income is staying within budget overall. Expenses are running out of control, especially with maintenance of the air conditioning unit. Facilities HVAC giving us troubles. Exploring options to keep the place cool on a consistent basis. Dimmers have been added to lights in television area. Next meetings Next meeting scheduled for September 13 is canceled and rescheduled for September 30, 2023. The October 11 meeting is canceled and is rescheduled for October 18, 2023. Submitted by, Carl Rodenhizer