REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JENNIFER CLARK, Director
Planning and Development Department
THROUGH: PHIL SKEI, Assistant Director
Planning and Development Department
BY: BRANDON SISK, Senior Management Analyst
Community Development Division
SUBJECT
Title
HEARING to obtain public comments regarding community needs for consideration in the development of the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan, 2025-2026 Annual Action Plan, Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice, and Citizen Participation Plan.
Body
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends the City Council conduct a public hearing to request public input on housing and community development needs, fair housing choice, and citizen participation from interested residents to be included in the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan, 2025-2026 Annual Action Plan, Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice, and the Citizen Participation Plan.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In order to receive its entitlement funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the City of Fresno (City) is required to compose a five-year Consolidated Plan that identifies the community’s needs and goals and includes the first year’s Annual Action Plan that directs how the federal entitlement funds will be programmed to meet the goals. Additionally, the City must conduct an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice and update its Citizen Participation Plan every five years. A minimum of two public hearings are required by HUD to receive input from residents on goals for the use of federal entitlement funds, activities on which residents would like federal entitlement funds spent in support of those goals, barriers residents face when choosing where to live, and how the City must engage residents when creating these, and other, HUD reports.
BACKGROUND
2025-2029 Consolidated Plan
As an entitlement jurisdiction receiving Federal entitlement funds through HUD’s Community Planning and Development Department (CPD), the City is required to prepare a five-year Consolidated Plan detailing the housing and community development needs of its low- to moderate-income residents. The Consolidated Plan includes the overall goals to be achieved through 2029 which align and focus the funding received from CPD including the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME), and Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS Program (HOPWA). To identify the needs and develop the goals, the City must conduct a community-wide dialogue.
In partnership with its consultant Mosaic Community Planning, LLC, staff has undertaken a robust public participation process to gather input from the community on its needs and priorities. The public hearing is a required and necessary element of the process that allows the public an additional opportunity to share the housing and community development needs and goals it would like to achieve through 2029. The activities undertaken over the course of the five-year plan will be required to realize those goals.
2025-2026 Annual Action Plan
In each of the five years of the Consolidated Plan, the City is required to prepare an Annual Action Plan detailing the activities proposed for funding through the CDBG, HOME, ESG, and HOPWA programs that meet the goals outlined in the Consolidated Plan. The 2025-2026 Annual Action Plan covers the period from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, and is the first year of the five-year Consolidated Plan.
Concurrent to the Consolidated Plan engagement process, the City sought to obtain input from residents on the activities they desired to be implemented to realize the Consolidated Plan goals.
Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice
As a requirement of receiving funds under the CDBG, HOME, ESG, and HOPWA programs, the City must periodically conduct an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice to certify the City’s commitment to affirmatively furthering fair housing. The input provided by residents at community needs meetings and this public hearing identifies existing impediments to fair housing choice and provides recommended actions, goals, and timeframes for addressing those impediments.
Citizen Participation Plan Update
Under HUD’s regulations for the Consolidated Plan, the City must adopt a Citizen Participation Plan (CPP) that sets forth the City’s policies and procedures for citizen participation in the planning, execution, and evaluation of the Consolidated Plan, Action Plans, Substantial Amendments, and Consolidated Annual Performance Evaluation Reports. This CPP provides guidelines for the City to provide and encourage public participation by residents, community stakeholders, and grant beneficiaries in the process of drafting, implementing, and evaluating the Consolidated Plan and related documents. The citizen participation process includes outreach, public hearings, community forums, and opportunities for comment.
Citizen Participation
In addition to this required public hearing, residents were consulted at community needs meetings and pop-up events for the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan, 2025-2029 Annual Action Plan, and Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice. The City conducted two virtual and six in-person workshops at different times of the day between October 28 and November 19, 2024, in order to collect input from as many residents as possible. All workshops offered Spanish, Hmong, Punjabi, and American Sign Language interpretation by request. Additionally, the City held two pop-up events at the River Park Farmer’s Market and Victor Village.
In order to reach as many low- and moderate-income residents as possible, the City used social media, email, FAX bus routes, community centers, libraries, community calendars, and newspapers to promote the public participation and comment opportunities. Staff also distributed door hangers to residences within a one-mile radius of Hahn Phan Tilley Elementary School, Maxie L. Parks Community Center, Pinedale Community Center, Teague Elementary School, and Legacy Commons multi-family housing complex to encourage participation in the community needs meetings. In total, more than 5,000 households were canvassed to promote participation.
The City also held nine stakeholder meetings with South Tower Community Land Trust, Resources for Independence Central Valley, CASA of Fresno, and Madera Counties (CASA), Elder Abuse Services, Inc., Fresno County Department of Behavioral Health, Fresno Interdenominational Refugee Ministries (FIRM), Every Neighborhood Partnership, WestCare California, Inc., and the City of Fresno Department of Transportation. Three focus groups were also held through CASA, FIRM, and Fresno County Department of Behavioral Health. Additionally, the City distributed a questionnaire to local units of government and community-based organizations that have participated in prior public consultation efforts for HUD CPD plans to request more detailed information relating to how community needs may have changed over the past year.
Schedule of Key Activities:
• October 20, 2024 - Public Notice published in the Fresno Bee in English and Spanish
• October 21, 2024 - November 5, 2024 - Residential canvassing provided by the City utilizing the City’s One Fresno Youth Jobs Corps Program
• October 21, 2024 - Public Notice distributed to City of Fresno emailing listserv (nearly 50,000 people)
• October 23, 2024 - Social media posts on Facebook and X to promote meetings
• October 28, 2024 at 6 PM - Community Needs Workshop #1 - Teague Elementary School
• October 29, 2024 at 2 PM - Community Needs Workshop #2 - Pinedale Community Center
• October 30, 2024 at 6 PM - Community Needs Workshop #3 - Legacy Commons
• October 31, 2024 - Social media posts on Facebook and X to promote meetings
• November 1, 2024 - Public Notice published in Community Alliance newspaper in English and Spanish
• November 7, 2024 at 10 AM - Virtual Community Needs Workshop #1
• November 12, 2024 at 10 AM - Community Needs Workshop #4 - Maxie L. Parks Community Center
• November 12, 2024 at 6 PM - Community Needs Workshop #5 - Hanh Phan Tilley Elementary School
• November 13, 2024 at 2 PM - Community Needs Workshop #6 - Legacy Commons
• November 19, 2024 at 6 PM - Virtual Community Needs Workshop #2
• December 12, 2024 at 9:25 AM or thereafter - City Council Community Needs Public Hearing
• December 16, 2024 - Consolidated Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) Released
• January 17, 2025 at 5 PM - Applications for Funding Due
• March 3, 2025 - April 3, 2025 - Draft Annual Action Plan public comment period
• May 8, 2025 - City Council Final Public Hearing and Consideration of 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan, 2025-2026 Annual Action Plan, Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice, and Citizen Participation Plan
• May 15, 2025 - All Plans due to HUD
Following the community needs public hearing, the City will prepare a consolidated NOFA to request applications from units of local government and eligible community-based organizations for activities to achieve the goals identified through the public engagement process. The City will provide technical assistance to organizations during the application process to help them understand and address the Federal regulations and requirements for funding. City staff will then analyze applications and score them according to the criteria published with the consolidated NOFA. The City will prepare drafts of the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan, 2025-2026 Annual Action Plan, Citizen Participation Plan, and Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice for public review in March 2025. After a 30-day public review period, the drafts will be brought to City Council to authorize submission to HUD in order to meet the City’s submission deadline of May 15, 2025.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
This is not a project for purposes of CEQA pursuant to CEQA guidelines Section 15378. These plans, strategies and studies are an exempt activity under HUD NEPA Requirements (24 CFR 58.34 (1)).
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference is not applicable because of the use of Federal funding.
FISCAL IMPACT
Completion of the 2025-2029 Consolidated Plan and Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice will qualify the City to receive an estimated $60 million of new entitlement funding over five years, including approximately $12 million in Program Year 2025-2026 pursuant to the completion of the 2025-2026 Annual Action Plan.
Attachment:
Consolidated Plan Public Hearing Presentation