Title
Staff Report for a City of San Leandro City Council Resolution Approving and Authorizing the Continued Participation of the City of San Leandro in the Alameda County HOME Consortium for HOME Funds and Authorizing the City Manager to Execute the Necessary Documents to Maintain the Eligibility of the Consortium for HOME Program Funds in Accordance with the National Affordable Housing Act of 1990 (for the Federal Fiscal Years 2021-2023)
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The City of San Leandro receives HOME Investment Partnership Program (HOME) funds through participation in the Alameda County HOME Consortium. The Consortium includes Alameda County cities and the Urban County area. The HOME Consortium Agreement for Federal Fiscal Years 2021-2023 continues the City’s participation in the consortium and establishes Alameda County Housing and Community Development Department (HCD) as the lead agency in the administration of the HOME funds. The current HOME Consortium Agreement expires this year.
Staff recommends that the City adopt a resolution approving the HOME Consortium Agreement between the City of San Leandro and County of Alameda for Federal Fiscal Years 2021-2023.
This action is a procedural item that only provides for the administration of the HOME funds. All proposed HOME expenditures for specific projects will be brought to the City Council for review and approval.
BACKGROUND
HOME is authorized under Title II of the Cranston-Gonzales National Affordable Housing Act (24 CFR Part 92), passed in 1990. It is the largest Federal block grant to State and local governments designed exclusively to create affordable housing for low-income households.
The City has allocated over $5.8 million in federal HOME funds since 1992, including most recently over $900,000 for the 200-unit Marea Alta and La Vereda projects. Program funds are allocated to local government agencies based on a formula that considers the relative inadequacy of each jurisdiction's housing supply, its incidence of poverty, its fiscal distress, and other factors.
Communities that do not qualify for an individual allocation under the formula can join with one or more neighboring localities in a legally binding consortium whose members' combined allocation would meet the threshold for direct funding. As the City of San Leandro does not qualify for an individual direct allocation due to its size, the City participates in the Alameda County HOME Consortium in order to receive federal HOME funds.
Analysis
San Leandro joins with six other cities - Alameda, Fremont, Hayward, Livermore, Pleasanton, and Union City - in Alameda County and the Urban County (consisting of the cities of Albany, Dublin, Emeryville, Newark, Piedmont, and the unincorporated County) in the Alameda County HOME Consortium. An agreement between the City and County of Alameda is required in order for the City to participate.
Alameda County HCD, as the lead HOME Consortium grantee and administrator, retains an annual, pro-rated fee from the annual HOME grant allocated by HUD to help defray the County’s costs to administer the Consortium and perform monitoring, record-keeping, and reporting required by the Act. For FY 2020-2021, the County retained $13,664 as its pro-rata share from the City of San Leandro to assist with County HCD oversight and administration costs. County HCD then allocated $238,792 to San Leandro as its FY2020-2021 annual HOME allocation, of which $225,128 may be awarded by the City for eligible affordable housing projects/activities and $13,664 towards City-related HOME administration costs.
The agreement under City Council consideration tonight will continue the City’s participation in the Consortium and provide for the administration of the HOME Program by Alameda County HCD for Federal Fiscal Years 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Current Agency Policies
The City of San Leandro is currently a member of the Alameda County HOME Consortium.
Previous Actions
The City Council approved the FY 2018-2020 Agreement between the City of San Leandro and County of Alameda for administration of HOME Consortium funds on June 19, 2017. On September 5, 2017, the City Council adopted a revision to the June 17, 2020 resolution per the request of Alameda County.
Applicable General Plan Policies
Chapter 6, Goal 3: New Housing Opportunities - Provide housing opportunities and improve economic access to housing for all segments of the community.
Fiscal Impacts
This agreement will not impact the City’s General Fund because HOME funds are federal discretionary funds.
Budget Authority
Title II of the Cranston-Gonzales National Affordable Housing Act (24 CFR Part 92).
Attachments to Resolution
• HOME Consortium 3 Year Agreement FFY2021-2023
PREPARED BY: Tom Liao, Community Development Director