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Minutes Housing Comm. 8 22 06 , MINUTES OF HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING DATE: TIME: PLACE: 22 August 2006 4p.m. Housing and Community Development Department Chairperson Kapler called the meeting to order at 4:06 p.m. following staff assurance of compliance with Iowa Open Meeting Law. Commissioners Present: Dave Kapler Char Eddy John Plein Dorothy Culbertson Harry Neustadt Dorothy Schwendinger, OSF Jim Holz Commissioners Absent: Angie Mozena Bill Helling Staff Present: David Harris Janet Walker Cpl. Chris Gorrell Tusdee Blus Public Present: Michelle Mihalakis Catherine Bamer-Parish Review and Certification of Minutes of 25 Julv 2006 Commission Meetina Commissioner Schwendinger motioned to approve the 25 July 2006 meeting minutes as submitted. Commissioner Eddy seconded. Roll call. All present in favor. Motion passed. Old Business Housing Element - Comprehensive Plan The Commission reviewed the memorandum from David Harris and discussed revisions added by Planning Department staff based on community meetings. Another draft will be prepared by staff and forwarded for Commission review next month. New Business Request from Catherine Barner for Hearing Teresa Hartman was present to review the case for the Commission. She stated that Catherine had called to let us know the hearing would not be necessary, but was informed that we would still need to proceed with it. She did not attend, and staff proposed termination. Ms. Barner stated that she could not get hospital documentation to support her claim that she was unable to attend due to the fact she had to go to the hospital at the time of the hearing . Teresa then provided additional suggestions to Ms. Barner for possible items she could provide for proof of the hospital visit. Commissioner Eddy motioned to grant the appeal subject to her providing adequate documentation (written documentation or a call from her doctor) within ten days. Commissioner Schwendinger seconded. Roll call. All present in favor. Motion passed. Proposed Voucher Payment Standards At the present time, Section 8 is under-spending, and our future funding depends on our current spending. Therefore, staff recommended increasing the voucher payment standards (VPS) to 110% of the fair market rate (FMR). Commissioner Holz motioned to approve the increase of VPS to 110% of FMR. Commissioner Culbertson seconded. Roll call. All present in favor. Motion passed. Request from ICHH for Support of Reauthorization of McKinney-Vento Act Chairperson Kapler provided an overview, stating that we are being asked to show our support of the reauthorization of the act by Congress. He also noted that some of the funding for Michelle Mihalakis' Salvia House project will come from this source. Commissioner Schwendinger motioned to approve the Commission's support for the reauthorization. Commissioner Plein seconded. Roll call. All present in favor. Motion passed. Section 8 Management Assessment Program Report for FY2006 Chairperson Kapler and David Harris reviewed the document and signed it for submission. Information Sharina Introduction: Jodi Heim, Section 8 Program Secretary David introduced Jodi to the Commission. Congressional Staff Visit David spoke about the annual visit by Harkin, Nussle and Grassley staff to Dubuque, and provided some of the information that was prepared for their visit, specifically regarding the Washington Neighborhood and the Block Grant funding cuts. Also noted was the HEART homes project. Unified Development Code Citizen Advisory Committee David noted the memo from Laura Carstens, Planning Services Manager, regarding the preparation of a Unified Development Code. David inquired as to the pOSSible interest Commission members may have in participating on one of the committees and directed them to contact Laura if they are. Iowa Housing Conference David will be speaking at the conference, which will be held on September 19th and 20th. Miscellaneous David stated that 4 persons applied for the 3 open positions on the Housing Commission. The incumbents, Commissioners Holz and Culbertson, were re-elected. Commissioner Grant's position is still open. Rachel Savage and Linda Frommelt have applied for this position. Commissioner Plein was reappointed as the Section 8 representative to the City Council. HUD has released a disbursement schedule for the balance of the fiscal year. In September HAP was cut by 2/3. In November it was virtually eliminated. According to our field office, this reflects unspent monies. The concern is that the administrative fees have also been eliminated. HUD has not yet finalized the budget at this time. David noted a HUD correspondence received regarding the denial of portability. We do not have the ability to deny portability based on whether or not the receiving housing authority is absorbing the voucher. We must base our decision on funding issues only. Our administrative plan must be changed to address this in the September meeting. David discussed project-based vouchers (PBV). He stated that SRO projects are eligible. He told the Commission they must determine what the target populations would be for PBV assistance. They also must determine how much of the budget to commit and length of commitment. Michelle Mihalakis reviewed her SRO plan - a 9 bed facility for women with substance abuse problems that have been in treatment. An RFP will be required for her project. Michelle gave a brief description of her ideas for Salvia House. Commissioner Schwendinger provided a response from Todd Swift, Habitat for Humanity, regarding a potential project in the Washington neighborhood. Adiournment There being no further business to come before the Commission, Commissioner Holz motioned to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Eddy seconded. Motion passed by acclamation. Meeting was adjourned at 5:07 p.m. Minutes taken by: :Lu/ee 8k Tusdee Blus Assisted Housing Secretary ~,"bm;1Ied by, David Harris Department Director