REPORT TO THE HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
March 13, 2019
FROM: JENNIFER CLARK, Director
Development and Resource Management Department
THROUGH: KELLI FURTADO, Assistant Director
Development and Resource Management Department
KAREN JENKS, Administrative Manager
Housing and Community Development Division
BY: ALDI DODDS, Senior Management Analyst
Housing and Community Development Division
SUBJECT
Title
Fiscal Year 2019-2020 (FY 2020), Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG), Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS/HIV (HOPWA), and Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Applicant Presentations, Ranking of Applications by Commissioners, and Approval of a Recommendation to the Mayor and City Council for allocating federal entitlement funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) related to the FY 2020 Annual Action Plan.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the Housing and Community Development Commission (HCDC) hear applicant presentations related to FY 2020 ESG, HOPWA, and CDBG funding requests. Staff further recommends that the HCDC:
1. Determine the overall application funding and ranking recommendations; and
2. Approve staff’s submission of HCDC’s recommended ESG, HOPWA, and CDBG activities/projects and funding recommendations to the Mayor and City Council for consideration, and for inclusion in the FY 2020 Draft Annual Action Plan.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Fresno (City) is the annual recipient of federal entitlement program funds from HUD. As a condition of receiving these funds, the City is required to prepare an Annual Action Plan detailing program expenditures and the benefit to low- and moderate- income persons.
One of the steps in developing the Annual Action Plan is for HCDC to: 1) review applications submitted for funding, and 2) provide funding recommendations to the Mayor and City Council.
BACKGROUND
The City is the annual recipient of federal entitlement funds from the HUD. These funds are provided through the CDBG, HOME Investment Partnership (HOME), ESG and HOPWA programs. As a condition of receiving these funds, the City is required to prepare an Annual Action Plan detailing the uses of the federal dollars and the benefits to low- and moderate- income persons.
Citizen Participation
City staff began preparation of the FY 2020 Annual Action Plan by conducting Community Workshops on January 3, 2019, and January 7, 2019. The workshops provided basic information on the CDBG, HOME, ESG and HOPWA programs; the citizen participation process; and the steps and anticipated timeline for identifying and selecting activities for FY 2020 funding. These two workshops were followed by a Community Needs Public Hearing at HCDC’s January 9, 2019, meeting. The process continued with the release of the Consolidated Notice of Funding Availability and Information Guide on January 18, 2019. Applications requesting ESG, HOPWA, and CDBG funding were due on February 14, 2019. Applicants are scheduled to make oral presentations during the March 13, 2019, HCDC meeting.
FY 2020 Federal Entitlement Funding
Because HUD has not yet announced the annual allocation, the City cannot predict its annual allocation amounts. However, the City’s estimated allocation amount expected to be received for FY 2020 entitlement funding is listed below:
− CDBG: $6,904,510
− HOME $3,180,063
− ESG: $569,903
− HOPWA: $499,903
Scoring and Funding Recommendation Process
Applicants who submitted funding requests for ESG, HOPWA, and CDBG funding have been invited to present the merits of their respective projects to HCDC on March 13, 2019. Prior to the March 13, 2019 meeting, City staff reviewed and evaluated the applications, determined threshold eligibility and provided a score of up to 100 points based on the qualifying criteria. A Funding Request Book of submitted applications was published as part of the March 13, 2019, meeting agenda (Exhibit B). During the March 13, 2019, meeting, HCDC will provide ESG, HOPWA, and CDBG funding recommendations to the Mayor and City Council as part of the Annual Action Plan process.
Attachments:
Exhibit A - Schedule of Applicant Presentations
Exhibit B - 2019-2020 Funding Requests Book