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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10 Minutes - Housing Commission 01/06/2021CITY OF PALM DESERT ~~Ti~ - REGULAR PALM DESERT HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES ' . . . WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2021 (VIRTUAL MEETING) 3:30 P.M. CITY OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Buller called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m . II. ROLL CALL Present: Absent: Commissioner Gregory Ballard Commissioner Donna Ault Commissioner Juan Mireles Commissioner Melody Morrison Vice-Chair Dennis Guinaw Chair Jann Buller ls-,o) Apprwed ev HOUSING AUTHORITY ON y. ~ · 1-01--I Also Present: VERIFIED BY:-1,,(;L.~'-,l.;t<:,,,..J/L-,;:S;..;.,Y S""----- . . . Original on file with City Clerk's Office Randy Synder, ln~enm Exe.cut1ve D1rec.to.r A'fe,s :Ht,\tniK JbnafhM f'lestn.hd( @.4 --fln;IJ r:ike_l/ Kathleen Kelly , City Council Member L1a1son woes : I I II') ff, ':] Ryan Stendell , Director of Community Development Nfhe.. Eric Ceja , Principal Planner Jessica Gonzales , Senior Management Analyst Christopher Gerry , Management Analyst Teresa Vakili , RPM Company Nicole Sauviat Criste , Terra Nova Planning & Research , Inc . Melinda Gonzalez , Recording Secretary Ill. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Senior Management Analyst , Jessica Gonzales advised the commission no comments or inquiries were received by email or voicemail , nor were any requests for public participation received for the meeting . MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 2 IV. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES of the Virtual Regular Housing Commission meeting of December 2, 2020. Rec: Approve as presented. Upon a motion by Commissioner Mireles, second by Commissioner Morrison, and a 5-0 vote of the Housing Commission the Consent Calendar was approved as presented (AYES: Ault, Buller, Guinaw, Mireles, and Morrison; NOES: None; ABSENT: Ballard). V. ACTION ITEMS None VI. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Commissioners Reports and Remarks None B. Commission Reports Ms. Gonzales provided introduction to Nicole Sauviat Criste from Terra Nova Planning and Research, Inc. and advised the Commission Ms. Criste would be providing a presentation on the City’s Housing Element Update. Ms. Criste acknowledged the power point presentation shared on screen during the Zoom meeting and also provided as a hard copy to Commissioners with their Agenda. Ms. Criste stated the purpose of the presentation is to solicit the commissions input on the Housing Element. Ms. Criste explained the Housing Element is required in the City’s General Plan and is being updated and prepared for the upcoming planning cycle for 2022 to 2029 as mandated by the State. The Housing Element is required by law and assures the City facilitates the development of housing suitable for residents of all economic and social segments within the community, with particular focus on affordable housing units. Ms. Criste further explained the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) establishes the methodology which determines the Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA) for its jurisdiction. The economic recession which began in 2008 heavily impacted the current cycle 2014 to 2021, resulting in a low allocation of 413 units for the City’s goal. However, the upcoming cycle has a significant increase with an allocation of 2,783 units. The City is required to identify sites which could accommodate the development of the allocated units. The current Housing Element already includes a surplus of identified sites dedicated to the development of affordable housing which will meet the needs of the upcoming MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 3 Housing Element. Ms. Criste shared the City currently has numerous development projects in the works which will help towards meeting the allocated goal number for the upcoming RHNA cycle. Additionally, the City has available land to develop the 1,191 units allocated by RHNA for above moderate income households. With the loss of housing set aside funds granted to the now dissolved Redevelopment Agency, the City is looking for options which not only include City funds, but seek to partner with private developers to help secure funding for the needed units to meet the allocation goal. Ms. Criste referenced the map provided in the presentation and in hard copy, noting it outlined the sites identified within the City limits that meet the demand for the number of units allocated by RHNA for development. Ms. Criste informed the Housing Element process includes community participation and state review. She advised a virtual community workshop will be held on January 21, 2021. A draft document for the Housing Element will be ready for state review by the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) in the spring of 2021. The Housing Element is anticipated to go before City Council during late summer or early fall for adoption, to meet the required deadline of October. Ms. Criste concluded her presentation and invited commissioners to provide input and comments on what they would like to see included in the Housing Element which would help meet the City’s housing needs goal. Chair Buller opened the floor to commissioners for comment. Commissioner Morrison inquired if the planned developments for senior housing will be single story to accommodate seniors who are unable to utilize stairs or an elevator. Ms. Criste advised that the fourteen self-help units will be single story and all developments will be required to meet the mandated ADA requirements. She further stated that all developments that are more than one story will require an elevator and will have accessible ground units to accommodate residents who do not want to use the stairs or elevator. Upon further inquiry by Commissioner Morrison for specific names of the developments with more than one floor, Senior Management Analyst, Jessica Gonzales, advised that many of the developments have not provided a site plan, therefore, how many stories are anticipated for the projects is unavailable at this time. Commissioner Ault observed in the current cycle, while the City met its overall allocated units goal, the number of units per income category where not necessarily met as allocated. She inquired if there are any repercussions for not meeting the goal within its income category. In response, Ms. Criste advised the state has recently implemented legislation which strengths HCD’s authority in the certification of Housing Elements and requires the City to provide an annual report on the progress made towards meeting the allocation goal. Ms. Criste emphasized the City is not responsible for constructing the allocated units, but instead must ensure there is nothing that impedes the process of have these units developed. Councilmember, Kathleen Kelly, further expounded on Ms. Criste’s statement MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 4 adding the City’s legal obligation is to facilitate the development of the allocated units by identifying land and ensuring its zoning is compatible and sufficient to meet the needs of the allocation. The City has done this and is fully compliant with its legal obligations in the current cycle. The actual development of units is the desired tangible result of the efforts made by the City to meet the goal. Director of Community Development, Ryan Stendell, further explained the Housing Element is a planning process that demonstrates to HCD how the prescribed RHNA allocation can be met by the City. City Council establishes policy to assist with effectuating the actual development of units for the RHNA allocation goal. Additionally, Mr. Stendell noted HCD has the authority in extreme cases to seize a City’s land use control if the City is not in compliance, however, to his knowledge HCD has not exercised this use of authority. Commissioner Mireles inquired about the City’s comparison to other Coachella Valley cities for the development of affordable housing. In response, Mr. Stendell stated the City’s standing in comparison to other Coachella Valley cities is dependent on what metric is used to make the comparison. Mr. Stendell referenced a matrix which was shared with Commissioners during a previous Housing Commission meeting which provided a comparison based on the City as an employment center. He advised commissioners a copy of this matrix would be provided to them after the meeting for review of the comparison. Commissioner Mireles inquired about the function of the Coachella Valley Housing Coalition (CVHC) and if it they were only involved in the fourteen self-help units being built. Ms. Criste advised CVHC owns thousands of apartment units throughout the Coachella Valley and is currently part of several local development projects including the City’s self-help project. Commissioner Mireles shared he is concerned about the ongoing issue of homelessness in the City and throughout the Coachella Valley. He inquired as to whether this matter is part of the Housing Element and if there is a possibility that the City could collaborate with organizations like CVHC to develop units to help with homelessness in the community. Ms. Criste replied homelessness is an issue that is addressed in the Housing Element. She stated the City is actively working on homeless reduction and participates in the homeless program offered by the Coachella Valley Association of Governments (CVAG). Mr. Mireles shared he feels the City needs to research methods used by other cities or possibly other non- conventional means to secure funding to address the issue of homelessness. Commissioner Morrison observed that currently the waitlists for affordable housing units are extensive and it can take years for an individual on the waitlist to be contacted regarding an available unit because of the need. She inquired as to how this wait time could be addressed. Mr. Stendell replied as more units are developed it is expected the waitlist would decrease due to the availability of more units. The loss of redevelopment funds has made the construction of units more challenging. MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 5 City Council is committed to creating policy which encourages the development of these units. However, currently there is not a concrete solution to this issue. Commissioner Morrison inquired as to whether City Council could establish policy which supersedes the published income limits used to establish rental rates, adding that many seniors have been negatively impacted financially by the COVID pandemic or do not receive enough in Social Security benefits to cover the increases in rental rates. Mrs. Gonzales advised the income limits used are established and published by HCD, the same state department who approves the City’s Housing Element. The income limits they establish are a derivative of last year’s analysis of where we stood economically as a county. HCD also provides the format used to calculate the rental rates in addition to the income used to determine the individual income categories. It is anticipated in the upcoming year income limits will decrease providing an overall adjustment to these calculations, as a result of the economic impact of the pandemic. Currently, the impacts of the pandemic are being address on an individual basis. Landlords are making concessions and other arrangements to address residents who have experienced hardships due to job loss and other negative effects from the pandemic. Mrs. Gonzales stressed it is important that individuals who are experiencing these hardships communicate with their landlord because there are options available to help their situation. Councilmember Kelly, advised commissioners City Council is committed to facilitating the development of affordable housing for all ages and household sizes. She shared that a subcommittee has been appointed to work with staff to find ways to incentivize the construction of affordable units in the City, an assertive measure not taken by every city. Chair Buller inquired as to how the RHNA allocation for the City is determined. Councilmember Kelly explained the state determines and allocates a large number of units to the southern California region. The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), our regional planning body, determines the methodology which establishes the allocation number for its jurisdiction for each RHNA cycle. The methodology reflects the established regional planning goals, including input from represented cities as well as other factors such as transportation availability, employment opportunities, resource availability and desirability for residency near recreation and educational opportunities. Ms. Criste reiterated with the loss of Redevelopment Agency funding it has been extremely challenging for cities to find a way to fund the construction of affordable housing units. She noted there have been efforts to pass legislation which would reinstate a funding source to assist with the creation of affordable housing, however, nothing has been implemented. Currently, projects that are being undertaken by developers are done so using multiple sources of funding. However, funding sources that are available for developers to apply for are extremely MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 6 competitive and often times numerous projects across the Valley are vying for the same funding. Chair Buller posed that the City can influence development of affordable housing by reaching out to developers and negotiating. Ms. Criste confirmed this statement, adding that some of the current projects are entirely affordable units, while other projects offer a portion of the units as affordable. Chair Buller inquired as to whether an income category had been assigned to the fourteen self-help units. Mrs. Gonzales replied these units have been designated for low and very low income households. Chair Buller shared that over the years she has noticed many empty commercial store fronts and asked if the City could take action to repurpose these locations for a different use. She further inquired as to whether there has been a successful model for container housing and if this option has been considered locally. In reply, Ms. Criste stated a project similar to this option has been implemented in a pilot program in the Sacramento area. Mr. Stendell added there has been some discussion regarding this option, and noted there is one project in San Bernardino County in Yucca Valley, which includes a prefab portion. The City’s zoning codes do allow for units of this size and scope, however, developers have not approached the City with this type of project. Councilmember Kelly advised the CVAG homelessness committee has observed that efforts toward permanent housing have greater success when they are integrated with existing housing. This surrounds the individual in an environment which models successful housing and offers peer incentive. Statistics have shown the integration of people into regular housing with wraparound services, offers the greatest chance for success. Therefore, the direction of regional homelessness funding has not been toward creating a concentration of people, but rather integrated housing throughout the community with wraparounds services offered to those who need them. Chair Buller reintroduced her initial question regarding empty commercial store fronts. In reply, Mr. Stendell advised the City’s general plan and zoning code do allow for mixed use. Through the development process, it is possible to change the use of empty commercial buildings, although it may be discouraged in some areas due to suitability. Chair Buller invited additional questions from commissioners to which there were none. Chair Buller proceeded with the next item on the Agenda, an informational update on the City’s Homeless Assistance Program presented by city staff, Management Analyst, Christopher Gerry. Mr. Gerry provided a quick review of the programs history noting the partnership between the City and the Riverside County Mental Health program provides two outreach workers dedicated to providing services to homeless in the community. The goal is stable housing with wraparound services. Mr. Gerry shared some of the success stories from the use of the homeless program. MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 7 In the first sixteen months the program has made contact with 239 different individuals, engaging with them over 4,500 times to provide services. Many of these individuals are passing through the City or are in the City temporarily. Often, it takes many encounters and continual contact with an individual to build a relationship to help them to take steps toward stable housing. The outreach team has reached out to 19 individuals to conduct an in depth survey that prioritizes for county services. Using a comprehensive method of review the team is able to create a regional priority list based who is most in need of services. An important step in the process is getting individual’s document ready for housing. This is a challenging phase of the process and includes assisting individuals with obtaining vital records such as identification documents, social security cards, and other necessary resource documents. Currently, the outreach workers have provided seven individual’s with home connection which are permanent supportive housing vouchers which helps provide a direct pathway to stable housing. Seventeen individuals have taken the next step and are participating in substance abuse treatment services or have entered a behavioral health clinic. The outreach team has placed individuals in emergency housing forty two times, this includes eight to ten individuals who have stayed in motels for two to three months, and thirteen individuals who were connected with the shelter system. The shelter system is important because it not only provides emergency housing but also offers supportive onsite services. The outreach team coordinated for five to seven individuals to participate in bridge housing which provides temporary housing before their placement in permanent housing and nine individuals have been placed in stable housing and provided wraparound services. The relationships built with these individuals are the result of efforts made by a network of people including the outreach team, law enforcement, city staff from the housing division and code enforcement and community partners like CVAG. Mr. Gerry concluded his presentation and invited comments or questions. Commissioner Mireles commended Mr. Gerry for his efforts with the homeless program. Chair Buller moved on to the next agenda item, the summary of City Council and Housing Authority Actions. Senior Management Analyst, Jessica Gonzales provided an oral summary to the Commission advising the Authority Board approved the one action item, adopting the Housing Commission meeting schedule for 2021, during the City Council and Housing Authority Board meeting held December 10, 2020. C. RPM Company Monthly Reports for October 2020 RPM Company Vice President, Teresa Vakili, acknowledged the RPM reports provided to commissioners for the month of October 2020. Ms. Vakili reported currently the occupancy rate is at 98% for Authority properties with eight communities currently at 100% occupancy. She stated RPM staff has completed MINUTES REGULAR HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING – VIRTUAL JANUARY 6, 2021 8 77 re-certifications and contacted 514 individuals on the interest waitlist in the reporting month. From October 2020 to the current date there have been 38 move- ins and 30 move-outs for the Authority properties collectively. Ms. Vakili invited comments or questions. In response to inquiry by Commissioner Morrison, Ms. Vakili stated the waitlist is still quite lengthy and the current wait time is over two years. She stated RPM is contacting all waitlist individuals to obtain current and accurate income and information. The pandemic has altered many income levels so when staff reaches out to an individual who reported themselves at a certain income level they are finding out that is no longer accurate and due to income restrictions they are unable to rent the unit to that individual. Ms. Vakili stated they are continually working on the waitlist noting it is still a two to five year wait. In reply to Commissioner Morrison’s comment noting there is still a five year waitlist, Mrs. Gonzales clarified the time frame for the waitlist varies from two to five years as it is dependent on what income level, household size and property is being considered. Ms. Vakili acknowledged the Housing Authority Properties Projects report for the month of November 2020. She reported 361 service requests were completed in the reporting month. Ms. Vakili shared the Southern California Gas Co. project, replacing eleven boilers at One Quail Place Apartments is scheduled to be completed on January 14, 2021. D. Update on the Home Improvement Program ACTIVITY November 2020 Inquiries (Calls, Walk-Ins, Emails): 0 Applications Provided: 0 Applications Received: 0 Applications being processed: 0 Eligible (Possibly meets criteria): 2 Ineligible (Does not meet criteria): 0 Energy Savings Assistance Programs Referrals: 0 (JHC Construction – SCE/Gas Co) Mrs. Gonzales provided a summary of the Home Improvement Program activity for Novem ber 2020. She reported the two applications which are being processed are the same noted in the previous month. VII. ADJOURNMENT With Commission concurrence, Chair Buller adjourned the meeting at 4:41 p.m. Melinda Gonzalez Melinda Gonzalez, Recording Secretary