Minutes_Housing Commission 7 23 13MINUTES OF HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING
DATE: 23 July 2013
TIME: 4:00 PM
PLACE: Housing and Community Development Department
350 West 6th Street, Suite 312, Dubuque, IA 52001
Chairperson Holz, following staff assurance of compliance with Iowa Open Meeting Law, called the
meeting to order at 4:02 pm.
Commissioners Present:
Commissioners Excused:
Staff Present:
Public Present:
Jim Holz Judie Root
Amy Eudaley Anna Femandes
Sister Dorothy Schwendinger
Ricardo Woods
Alvin Nash
Janet Walker
Randy Gehl
Pauline Chilton
Joyce Russell
Rick Baumhover
Teresa Drury
Cpl. Scott Koch
Kelly Larson
Lynn Sutton
Trisha Federspiel
Patricia Foster
Robert McDonell
Michael Van Milligan
(By phone)
Kris Neyen
David Wall
Tim & Willetta Trenkle
Review and Certification of Unofficial Minutes of 25 June 2013 Commission Meeting
Vice Chairperson Schwendinger motioned to approve the minutes. Commissioner McDonell
seconded. Commissioner Root abstained. All others present in favor. Motion passed.
Correspondence/Public Input
None
Old Business
None
New Business
Appoint Liaison to Community Development Commission
Chairperson Holz entertained a motion to reappoint Conunissioner Woods to the Community
Development Commission pending City Council approval. Commissioner Root motioned to
approve the reappointment. Vice Chairperson Schwendinger seconded. All others present in
favor. Motion passed.
Discussion of HUD Civil Rights Review
Alvin Nash (Director) recapped last month's discussion of the HUD Civil Rights Review and
then asked Michael Van Milligan (City Manager) to speak on the matter. The City Manager
spoke about the report and the results from HUD that implied the city was intentionally
discriminating against African Americans and he disagreed with this statement. The goal has
always been to create a model housing assistance program. The City Manager indicated that he
made the original recommendations to the Housing Commission regarding "local" preference
points and to reduce the number of vouchers in 2010. Staff notified HUD by mail of the
proposed program changes and received letters back confirming HUD received the reports but,
by HUD acknowledging the reports were received did not mean they were approved. The City
Manager spoke about statistics regarding the Housing department. He also spoke about
participants of several of the programs the department and the city has offered since 2009. The
City Manager apologized for the recommendations he made that resulted in the unintended
consequences that have arisen. Vice Chairperson Schwendinger expressed her concerns with the
deficit. The City Manager talked about the City Council and their support of the program
A member of the public (Tim Trenkle) asked the City Manger about the statistics, the correlation
between the numbers and African Americans, and the results from HUD. The City Manager
spoke on the matter and gave his point of view regarding the statistics and the report from HUD.
Commissioner Root commented on the situation and shared her original intention when voting
on the "local" preference points. A member of the City Council (Lynn Sutton) shared her
opinion on the negative impact put on the term "Section 8 ". Alvin Nash expressed his intent to
move forward with the model program and work towards making the program better for
everyone. Chairperson Holz inquired about the Administrative Plan. Staff explained the plan is
currently being reviewed by HUD and we are waiting on those results.
Information Sharing
Complaints Received
Commissioners received a summary of the complaints the Housing Department has received
since the last meeting along with a copy of Cpl. Koch's crime reports. Cpl. Koch explained what
the crime reports consist of and informed everyone that the report is always 4 weeks behind.
Chairperson Holz entertained a motion to eliminate the complaints received portion and continue
with the crime reports. Chairperson Root motioned to approve the change. Commissioner
McDonell seconded. Motion carried 6 -1 with Vice chairperson Schwendinger voting nay.
Adjournment
There being no further business to come before the Commission, the meeting adjourned at 4:57
pm.
Minutes taken by:
Teresa Drury
Recording Secretary
Respectfully submitted by:
Alvin Nash
Department Director