Local Sustainability Matching Fund ApplicationTO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Local Sustainability Matching Fund Grant Application
DATE: October 31, 2012
Sustainable Community Coordinator Cori Burbach is recommending City Council
approval of a $55,000 Local Sustainability Matching Fund grant application to support
the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative. The $55,000 grant funds will support Green and
Healthy Homes Initiative Coordinator and Home Advocate staff at the Community
Foundation, printing, meeting and administration costs, and support for the integration
of data systems to ensure that multiple agencies can share data in an effective and
confidential way. The required $55,000 match will come from the Community
Foundation of Greater Dubuque.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
Michael C. Van Milligen
MCVM:jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Teri Goodmann, Assistant City Manager
Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
THE CITY OF
Dui
Masterpiece on the Mississippi
TO: Michael Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
DATE: October 29, 2012
SUBJECT: Local Sustainability Matching Fund Grant Application
Dubuque
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INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this memo is to submit for Council approval an application to the Local Sustainability Matching Fund a grant
application in the amount of $55,000 to support the Green &Healthy Homes Intiative.
BACKGROUND
In 2011, the Funders' Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities (TFN) and the Urban Sustainability Directors
Network (USDN) joined together to launch a Local Sustainability Matching Fund initiated with leadership support from the
Kendeda Fund, New York Community Trust, Summit Foundation, and Surdna Foundation. I am one of a selection committee
of foundation staff and urban sustainability directors who review the applications for the Matching Fund. The purpose of the
Matching Fund is to catalyze partnerships between local government sustainability directors and local, place -based
foundations to advance important community -based sustainability initiatives. The Matching Fund is intended both to support
significant urban sustainability projects and to build bridges between public sector sustainability leaders and local
foundations. The Fund will provide matching investments from national foundations on a competitive basis to build
partnerships between sustainability directors and local place -based foundations to advance discrete sustainability initiatives
that demonstrate broad -based community support and engagement.
DISCUSSION
In partnership with the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, the City of Dubuque submitted the attached application
to support the Green &Healthy Homes Initiative.
In order to support sustainable neighborhoods with safe and healthy homes for our low to moderate - income children and
families, this application will support full implementation of the GHHI model in Dubuque. This includes:
a.Improved data sharing among GHHI partners and the City Sustainability Office through the implementation of an
Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) Data system. ETO will provide a multi - organization platform that supports the
collection and reporting of data driven outcomes.
b.Building stronger, deeper relationships between the GHHI partners and throughout City of Dubuque departments
by supporting a GHHI Coordinator who will work in partnership with the City Sustainability Coordinator.
c.Fully implement GHHI best practices by leveraging the resources of mukiple City of Dubuque departments through
the community.
d.Ensure the long term sustainability of the GHHI model by ensuring it becomes a top priority of the Mayor, City
Council, City Manager and private and nonprofit partner leadership.
Key activities include expansion of the GHHI Network, creation of a "home intervention manual ", establishment of common
data sharing procedures and systems, establishment of a GHHI volunteer network, and the creation and implementation of
green jobs training to fill identified contractor gaps in skill and knowledge.
The $55,000 grant funds would support GHHI Coordinator and Home Advocate staff at the Community Foundation, printing,
meeting and administrative costs, and support for the integration of data systems to ensure that multiple agencies can share
data in an effective and confidential way. As required by the grant guidelines, the $55,000 match would come from CFGD
funds committed to this initiative.
RECOMMENDATION
I respectfully request Mayor and City Council approval of the attached grant application to the Local Sustainability Matching
Fund, submitted in partnership with the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque.
cc:
Nancy Van Milligen, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
Alvin Nash, Housing & Community Development Director
Mary Rose Corrigan, Public Health Specialist
Application to The Funders' Network Local Sustainability Matching Fund
10.1.12
Appl icants:
Nancy Van Milligen, President & CEO, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
Cori Burbach, Sustainability Coordinator, City of Dubuque
Primary Contact Person:
Nancy Van Milligen, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
Roshek Building, Suite 195
700 Locust Street
Dubuque, Iowa 52001
nancyvanma!dbgfoundation.orq
563 - 588 -2700
Proposed grant recipient: Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
Amount requested: $55,000
Local match: $55,000
Total project budget: $110,000 (plus leveraged funds; see full proposal)
Project title: Dubuque Green & Healthy Homes Initiative
Purpose of project:
GHHI offers integrated health, lead hazards reduction, energy and weatherization interventions
in low- income homes, creating safer and healthier families, stronger communities and improved
economic opportunities.
Project goals, strategy and key activities:
In order to support sustainable neighborhoods with safe and healthy homes for our low to
moderate - income children and families, we will fully implement the GHHI model in Dubuque
This includes:
a. Improved data sharing among GHHI partners and the City Sustainability Office
through the implementation of an Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) Data system. ETO will
provide a multi- organization platform that supports the collection and reporting of
data driven outcomes.
b. Building stronger, deeper relationships between the GHHI partners and throughout
City of Dubuque departments by supporting a GHHI Coordinator who will work in
partnership with the City Sustainability Coordinator.
c. Fully implement GHHI best practices by leveraging the resources of multiple City of
Dubuque departments through the community.
d. Ensure the long term sustainability of the GHHI model by ensuring it becomes a top
priority of the Mayor, City Council, City Manager and private and nonprofit partner
leadership.
Key activities include expansion of the GHHI Network, creation of a "home intervention manual ",
establishment of common data sharing procedures and systems, establishment of a GHHI
volunteer network, and the creation and implementation of green jobs training to fill identified
contractor gaps in skill and knowledge.
A. Background rationale for project.
Dubuque's new Green and Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) offers integrated health, safety,
lead hazards reduction, energy efficiency and weatherization interventions in low- to moderate -
income homes. The result is safer and healthier children and families, stronger communities and
improved economic opportunities.
Creating greener, safer, and healthier homes leads to more stable housing, a higher quality of
life and better health, mental health and social and economic outcomes for parents and their
children, as well as a sustainable pathway to higher - quality "green jobs" and small- business
ownership opportunities for residents of economically distressed communities.
GHHI brings together funding sources, erases bureaucratic boundaries and addresses all of the
problems of a family home at one time. By aligning and coordinating various resources, we use
a single intervention process to fix the challenges in each housing unit, while ensuring the work
is safe for both residents and workers.
GHHI Dubuque will blaze the trail for other small communities around the country. Our goal is
to be a model for cities with a population less than 100,000. With this in mind, the model is
being fully documented by the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque who gathered
partners and funded LEAN Principle Training for the participating agencies in the program's pilot
year. The result was the development of an efficient process that ensures all outcomes of the
GHHI are beneficial to clients and their households and an efficient use of limited public and
private funding sources.
Since the LEAN training, original partners including City of Dubuque Housing Department Lead
Abatement and Healthy Homes Programs as well as Operation New View Weatherization
Programs have begun to practice the new process identified and also to align additional
resources to support GHHI. These include Visiting Nurses home visits, volunteers to assist
families with yard cleaning and other odd jobs, as well workshops for families to learn about
healthy lifestyles, cooking, financial literacy and more.
Now with our process planning complete, we are ready to fully implement the GHHI model in
our community. To ensure successful and sustainable implementation of the model in Dubuque
we must integrate the GHHI vision, values and core strategies into the infrastructure of the
community and initiative partners.
This will require significant partnership between the City of Dubuque Sustainability Coordinator,
the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque and our community partners. It will require
strengthened relationships and improved data sharing among all existing and new GHHI
partners.
The Green and Healthy Home Initiative is an important, innovative effort to end generations of
chronic disinvestment in low income communities. The evidence is clear and compelling that
unsafe and unhealthy housing leads to wealth depletion, housing instability, and increased risk
of housing based illness. As with any issue this complex, the need for a collaborative approach
is evident. Strengthening the connections between partners and engaging new relationships
will be a critical outcome from this project grant.
B. Project Goals and Purpose
In order to support sustainable neighborhoods with safe and healthy homes for our low income
children and families, we will fully implement the GHHI model in Dubuque. This includes:
a. Improved data sharing among GHHI partners and the City Sustainability Office through the
implementation of an Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) Data system. ETO will provide a multi -
organization platform that supports the collection and reporting of data driven outcomes.
b. Building stronger deeper relationships between the GHHI partners and throughout City of
Dubuque departments by supporting a GHHI Coordinator who will work in partnership with
the City Sustainability Coordinator.
c. Fully implement GHHI best practices by leveraging the resources of multiple City of
Dubuque departments through the community.
d. Ensure the long term sustainability of the GHHI model by ensuring it becomes a top
priority of the Mayor, City Council, City Manager and private and nonprofit partner
leadership.
C. Detailed Work Plan
The Sustainability Coordinator will work closely with Community Foundation program staff,
leads from GHHI partners, and new partners through meetings, workshops and learning
opportunities to ensure we develop a strong GHHI network with the resources to achieve our
objectives.
a. Network Development- develop a common approach for all GHHI partners including a
"home intervention manual" that describes the process and approach that incorporates
LEAN principles and other best practice models. This will strengthen partnerships, clarify
roles, and identify data sharing solutions to ensure documentation of GHHI outcomes.
i. GHHI process- institutionalize our GHHI process to ensure it is easy for new and
existing partners to "plug in" when they are needed. This includes the process
GHHI partners use to assess, intervene and provide ongoing support in the
home, as well as the continuing process for partners to work together in support
of the GHH initiative.
ii. Create a "home intervention manual " - that describes the process to ensure
improved consistency and to make it easy for partners to see their role(s).
iii. Identify and collect data sharing solutions that are easy for partners to use and
show the impact of the GHHI model. The integration of output, outcome, and
performance measurement data will help to measure community -wide, holistic
impacts of the program (e.g. decreased asthma rates, decrease in school
truancy, creation of green and healthy neighborhoods through systematic energy
efficiency weatherization programs) instead of the traditional "siloed" metrics
most communities are familiar with (e.g. energy savings per home, number of
homes renovated for lead safety, number of outreach programs conducted by the
Visiting Nurses Association)
b. Resource Development- build a set of networks that strengthen GHHI's ability to connect
resources to families and homes in need;
i. volunteer network- that helps reduce costs of interventions while increasing
community awareness and engagement in our most in need neighborhoods;
ii. specialized partner network- that identifies and engages nonprofit and other
providers who can offer needed services that fall outside of the typical GHHI
intervention (e.g. counseling services for hoarding, or legal services); and
iii. professional training- for contractors to support more green sector jobs and
learning opportunities for households to ensure improvements are maintained
following home interventions.
D. Intended outcomes and impacts
a. Strengthened partnerships that result in a system of government and NGO providers who
work effectively together to:
i. Make homes /neighborhoods safe — lead and other hazards removed.
ii. Make homes /neighborhoods efficient — reduced energy and maintenance costs.
iii. Make homes /neighborhoods healthy— reduced medical costs, reduced absence.
from work/school, healthier children and families.
b. Improved data sharing that clearly identifies the impact of GHHI's holistic approach to
healthy home interventions on homes and neighborhoods.
i. Improved understanding of the impact housing has on health.
ii. Improved data regarding the impact on energy efficiency.
iii. Improved understanding of the impact of GHHI on household income and
ensuring stable families.
E. Plans for evaluating success and tracking /demonstrating impact.
a. Use of Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) system and "before and after" assessments of each
home to collect data that describes;
i. Home interventions — including lead and other hazard removal, energy efficiency
improvements, healthy home improvements, etc.
ii. Children and family interventions- including services provided to support health,
education, financial literacy, basic needs and other services.
iii. Long -term impacts — follow -up assessments to ensure that sustainable behavior
change is accomplished and the home remains safe, healthy and efficient.
b. Measurement of supports and partners engaged in GHHI including:
i. GHHI partners serving identified needs of households /neighborhoods.
ii. GHHI partners sharing data.
iii. Volunteers engaged in meaningful activities that support GHHI.
iv. Contractors trained and engaged in GHHI projects.
c. Increased support and engagement from elected officials and high level management in
the City of Dubuque and other partners.
d. Quarterly monitoring of work plan to ensure we are on target to achieve the objectives, as
well as follow up with GHHI partners at monthly meetings.
F. Key staff or Implementation partners
City of Dubuque Sustainability Coordinator- Cori Burbach
Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque
• Eric Dregne, VP of Programs- co- coordinator of GHHI
• Hollie Ohnesorge, GHHI Home Advocate
City of Dubuque Housing and Community Development Dept
• Alvin Nash, Director — co- coordinator of GHHI
• Kim Glaser, Healthy Homes coordinator
• Kevin Hirsch, Lead Grant coordinator
City of Dubuque Health Department
• Mary Rose Corrigan, Director
Operation NewView, Community Action Agency
• Tom Stoval, Director
• Mike Strader, Weatherization Program
Habitat for Humanity
Visiting Nurses Association
Northeast Iowa Community College Green Jobs Training Program
G. Link to Officially- Adopted Sustainability Plan.
In 2008, the City of Dubuque adopted the Sustainable Dubuque plan, which includes 11
sustainability principles housed under a three -part model that includes economic prosperity,
environmental integrity, and social /cultural vibrancy. In 2011, the City, University of Iowa and its
partners worked to develop a set of performance indicators that help to measure progress
towards achieving those goals. The progress report can be found here:
http://www.citvofdubugue.org/DocumentCenter/HomeNiew/15189.
H. Key Selection Criteria.
1. Advancement of the officially- adopted local sustainability plan. As the Sustainable
Dubuque plan is a holistic, comprehensive approach to sustainability for individuals and the
community at large, the GHHI initiative is a holistic approach to improving the quality of life for
Dubuque residents. Specifically, GHHI addresses the principles of Smart Energy Use by
creating more energy- efficient homes, Green Buildings by creating healthier and safer homes
for individuals and families, Healthy Air by creating decreasing lead poisoning and other indoor
air toxins in order to reduce asthma and other negative health effects, Resource Management
by teaching residents about recycling and less toxic cleaning practices, Regional Economy by
providing green jobs training opportunities and prospects for those who complete the training to
be gainfully employed, and Community Knowledge by providing a variety of education
opportunities to participants to increase their self- sufficiency. Please see the performance
indicator report noted above to review corresponding metrics.
2. Collaborative process between sustainability director and local foundation in
developing the proposal. Previously, the GHHI Initiative has largely been a pilot program led
by the City Housing Department in order to fulfill the requirements of two grants received from
the US Housing & Urban Development program, with facilitation support provided by the
Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque (CFGD). In order to develop this proposal, City
Housing and Health department staff met with CFGD staff and the Sustainability Coordinator in
order to review the successes of the current pilot, complete strategic planning to identify
opportunities and goals for the expansion of the program, identify new partnerships, and create
a workplan to satisfy the requirements of this grant application.
3. Evidence of thoughtful and pragmatic work plan with means to demonstrate impact. In
2011 -12, GHHI was launched as a pilot program, with a majority of the work being completed by
the City's Housing and Health departments, the CFGD, and Operation New View: Community
Action Agency. These stakeholders have worked together over the past year to share
information about how their respective programs operate, including information regarding
federal funding requirements, intake processes, data collection, and homeowner support
services. Staff completed LEAN training to identify ways in which the various processes could
be streamlined in order to make the process homeowner - centered.
Now, the initial partners are ready to reach out to additional public and private non - partners in
order to provide even more holistic services to residents. Currently- engaged program staff have
met with the Sustainability Coordinator and CFGD staff to identify a process to expand the
partnership in the next year to additional City departments and non - profits. By growing the
Initiative strategically, the partnership will be able to grow the capacity of the partnership and the
reach into the community.
Data collection and sharing will be key to proving the value of the Initiative, identifying
benchmarks for success, tracking community impact, and identifying additional partners that are
needed at the table. This collection and analysis will be a key component of work over the next
year. It will be the responsibility of the Home Advocate and key partners to use this information
to make a strong case for private sector support of the program in the future. Additionally,
identifying efficiencies in the system and communicating these efficiencies to the appropriate
state and federal funders offers the opportunity to shift funds currently used for administrative
support to impact more homes in the future.
4. Involvement of a cross - section of the community. GHHI partners have involved various
human service and health- focused non - profits and additional City departments in the planning of
this program expansion. Northeast Iowa Community College has also played a key role as the
partnership identifies gaps in contractor training that will need to be addressed in order to meet
the expanded demand created by the program. Finally, partners have begun to consider a plan
to engage private sector businesses who have already been engaged in Dubuque's
sustainability efforts. These businesses will be contacted to determine ability to provide
volunteers to the Initiative as well as private - sector funding to fill gaps created by differences in
federal funding programs.
By involving the Sustainability Coordinator in the expansion efforts, the GHHI team will be
reaching out to the Sustainable Dubuque Collaboration, a community leadership team staffed by
the Coordinator. The Collaboration consists of business leaders, government and college
representation, non - profit groups, and citizens who play a key leadership role in the ongoing
Sustainable Dubuque initiative. The purpose of the Collaboration is to identify and help to
implement community sustainability priorities, provide outreach and education to raise the
awareness level of citizens and businesses, and collect data to measure the community impact
of programs such as GHHI. The Collaboration will help the GHHI team to identify additional
partners and clients throughout the Dubuque community.
5. New relationship between sustainability director and place -based funder(s). The City of
Dubuque and Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque have partnered together in the past
on successful community initiatives. However, this will be a new opportunity for the
Sustainability Coordinator and CFGD staff to create a community -wide GHHI program.
Additionally, the inclusion of partners including Operation New View, Habitat for Humanity, and
the Visiting Nurses Association represents a new relationship and opportunity to build
community -wide sustainability capacity.
6. Addressing one of TFN & USDN's sustainability priorities. Most directly, this initiative
meets the priority of Funding Sustainability Offices and Their Initiatives. The data collected
through the ETO will also directly feed the Sustainable Dubuque Indicators project, addressing
the priority of Sustainability Indicators.
7. Leveraged funding beyond matching requirements. In addition to the required match,
which is provided by the CFGD, the City will be dedicating $2.71 million in funding from two
separate HUD grants to the implementation of the GHHI. These funds are available through
March 2014. Additional committed funds include weatherization funds received by Operation
New View. Finally, in -kind leverage including 7.8 FTE at CFGD, City of Dubuque Housing,
Healthy, and Sustainability Offices, and Operation New View will support this program.
Budget
The grant funding will be critical support to ensure improved coordination of partners.
GHHI Coordinator Staff -
Is a Community Foundation supported position that will work closely
with Sustainability Coordinator, leads from GHHI partners, and new
partners through meetings, workshops and learning opportunities
to ensure we develop a strong GHHI network with the resources
to achieve our objectives.
Home Advocate Staff -
A Community Foundation supported position that works directly with
households and informs GHHI team of household needs to improve
the process and policies as well as to connect resources to the initiative.
Printing /Marketing /Meetings -
Support, supplies and tools to engage GHHI stakeholders and
identify /attract new partners and resources to the initiative.
$25,000
$10,000
$5,000
Office /Rent /Administration - $5,000
Supports administrative and other costs of the initiative.
Data System Support -
More effective data collection through a patch between partner
systems and the GHHI ETO System will ensure better
understanding, more efficient use of resources, improved
communication between partners and improved outcomes
in GHHI homes and neighborhoods.
$10,000
Sub Total: $55,000
Match
The Green and Healthy Homes Initiative will provide $55,000 to match the total amount of the
grant with funds from the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque.
No grant or match funding will support any City staff positions.
G H HI Coordinator Staff- $10,000
Home Advocate Staff- $25,000
Data System Support Match- $15,000
Printing /Marketing /Meetings- $5,000
Sub Total: $55,000
Total: $110,000