IN THIS ISSUE News- HUD Feedback Session Upcoming Events - December 18 - Holiday Networking Event Advocacy Update - Advocacy Manager Position - Applications Due Dec. 4 What's Working Members in the News Housing Colorado Resources Community Events and News Our Members and Supporters
HOUSERS FROM ACROSS THE STATE PARTICIPATE IN HUD
FEEDBACK SESSION
HUD Region 8 helda special, half-day session on Friday Nov. 13
to secure feedback on the agency's FY2010-FY2015 HUD Strategic Plan and
Transformation Initiative.This feedback
session grows out of HUD Secretary Donovan’s expressed desire to transform the
Department into a high performing, responsive organization dedicated to not
only advancing national housing objectives, but also addressing broader
economic, social and energy needs.The Denver
Regional Feedback Session was one of only eight field meetings where external
stakeholders were asked to help shape this plan that will serve as the
foundation for HUD’s transformation and a road map for the future.(Other regions included:San Francisco,
St. Louis, Tampa,
Detroit, Boston, Washington, DC and Ft.Worth.)The session was led byDavid Stevens, Assistant Secretary for
Housing/FHA Commissioner and Peter Grace, Senior Adviser to the Secretary and
Director of HUD’s new Office of Strategic Planning and management.
The over 150 housing
providers who attended from around the state provided feedback and solutions on
the proposed mission/vision and broke into small groups to comment on the goals
and objectives, listed at the end.The
session closed with a vote on the Top 10 things HUD can do to transform the way
it does business.And the winners are in
order of votes cast:
Consult with stakeholders to draw up list of the
most counter productive rules and set up a SWAT team to rewrite each of
them
Give more waiver authority to field offices,
PHAs, and localities
Listening to local perspectives
Hold bureaucracy-busting workshops (where HUD
leaders announce the changes they have already made and ask those
attending to volunteer more rules, processes, and reports for elimination,
automation, or streamlining – best practices could be shared via the web
Consolidate programs and reduce duplicate
requirements around programs
Create accountability of HUD staff to grantee
performance and targets
Adjust Davis-Beacon thresholds; weekly
reporting, etc.
Profile more flexibility, discretionary grant
money to encourage more comprehensive community planning, coordination
Improve consistency and quality of all
evaluation programs (audits, inspection, etc) to have clear outcome0based results and consistent standards
(possibly certify auditors)
Develop a real-time, 311-like customer service
hot-line that gets the calls answered quickly and consistently
You can still weigh in by
emailing your answers to the following questions to transformation@hud.gov.
Does the draft mission
statement give you a clear understanding of HUD’s purpose?
Does the vision statement
and its tenets paint a clear picture of what HUD wants to be?
Does the vision statement
align with what you think HUD should be?
Do these goals and sub-goals
capture the problems you think HUD should be addressing? Is anything missing?
Are there elements you think are important to express that are not sufficiently
represented?
You will also have the
opportunity to add your feedback in real-time through a more interactive
process on HUD’s strategic planning website, scheduled to launch shortly. (We will provide you with this information
just as soon as it becomes available.)
Draft Mission
Statement
Invest in quality, affordable homes and build strong,
safe, healthy communities for all
Draft Vision Statement
Our vision is to improve lives and strengthen
communities to deliver on America’s
dreams
For Residents: We will improve lives by creating affordable homes in
safe, healthy communities, and by protecting the rights and affirming the
values of a diverse society
For Partners: We will be a flexible, reliable problem solver and a
valued source of innovation
For Employees: We will be a great place to work where employees are
mission-driven, results-oriented, innovative, and collaborative
For the Public: We will be a good neighbor, building sustainable
communities that create value and investing public money responsibly to deliver
results that matter
Draft Goals and Sub-Goals
Goal 1: Repair the nation’s economy and housing
market
1A: End the foreclosure crisis
1B: Protect consumers when they buy a home
1C: Re-create a strong housing finance system
1D: Promote affordable, financially sustainable and
appropriate housing options, including homeownership
Goal 2: Promote affordable rental housing
2A: Expand the supply of quality affordable rental
housing
2B: Preserve the existing supply of
Federally-assisted quality affordable rental housing
2C: Increase rental housing affordability across a
broad range of incomes while reducing the number of families and individuals with severe housing needs
Goal 3: Utilize housing as a platform for improving
quality of life
3A: Improve educational and early childhood
development outcomes for those living in HUD-assisted housing
3B: Improve health outcomes for those living in
HUD-assisted and HUD regulated housing
3C: Increase economic security and self-sufficiency
for those living in HUD-assisted housing
3D: Provide housing and social stability for the
homeless and those at risk of being homeless
Goal 4: Build inclusive and sustainable communities
of opportunity
4A: Excel in disaster preparedness, resiliency and
recovery
4B: Improve the health and economic self-sufficiency
of all community residents, while reducing the impact of communities
on the environment
4C: Ensure diverse, equitable and fair communities
for all
4E: Advance strong local and regional public and
private organizations
Goal 5: Transform the way HUD does business
UPCOMING LUNCHEONS:
Next Housing Colorado Luncheon:
Holiday Networking Luncheon
Friday, December 18, 2009 11:30am-1:30pm Join us for networking, holiday cheer and special recognition of our volunteers, departing board members, and retiring Director, Alana Smart. Lakewood Country Club Sponsor: KeyBank You can register and pay for the luncheons with a credit card by clicking here. Register early as the Holiday Luncheon will sell out! Note: Due to limited capacity, the Holiday Luncheon is available only to current members of Housing Colorado. Click here to learn more about membership.
Advocacy Manager Position - Applications Due December 4
POSITION OVERVIEW:
The Advocacy Manager is
responsible for facilitating the development and implementation of Housing
Colorado’s policy agenda; increasing the visibility of affordable housing as an
important public policy issue; developing strategic partnerships; coordinating
advocacy committees, programs, and events; and promoting the development of a
base of support for affordable housing statewide.
Required
submissions: (Applications will not be reviewed
without all the following)
Cover letter highlighting
requisite qualifications
Resume
Three Professional
References
Relevant Writing Sample,
not to exceed 2 pages: briefing on a policy issue or letter to a policymaker;
op-ed piece or letter-to-the editor on policy matter; testimony before a
policymaking group, etc.
(Please submit materials
electronically in one Word or PDF document).
For a complete job
description and additional information about Housing Colorado, click here: www.HousingColorado.org.
Coalition Launches Fund for Homeless Vets, Denver Post
The Colorado Coalition for the Homeless has launched
a campaign to double a fund to provide housing and services for homeless
veterans.
"Roughly one out of every three homeless adults
are veterans," said Coalition president John
Parvensky. "How can that be? We're seeing more veterans
and their families becoming needy."
The Coalition has gathered $200,000 for the Homeless
Veterans Housing Fund and hopes to raise another $200,000 from the community.
Upon hearing about the new fund, Ted Tyler, chief
executive of ARI Construction Co., a Wheat
Ridge storm-restoration company, stepped forward and
handed Parvensky a check for $1,000.
The money will be dedicated to getting homeless
veterans into housing and helping out those about to lose their housing. The
fund also will be used to help veterans with access to health care,
substance-abuse treatment and counseling.
"We know how to end homelessness," said
Parvensky, as he introduced Omar to a small crowd at a press conference at the
Renaissance Riverfront Lofts.
Omar, an Army veteran, spent 20 years homeless until
he was found last year by an outreach worker. "I was tired," he said.
"The coalition helped me see a doctor and figure out how to get an
apartment, how to get an ID and pay my rent. That really helped me feel like I
was part of the community again."
Use
this link to watch a video about Denver
Gardens, Colorado’s
first Tax Credit Assistance Program recipient, to learn about how CHFA is
putting stimulus funds to work in our state.
More Stimulus Funding at Work: 24 families will have new homes Saturday, Colorado Connection
Twenty-four
Colorado Springs
families will have new homes Saturday thanks in part to a large sum of federal
stimulus money.
Greccio Housing, a local nonprofit
organization that serves low income families, recently purchased an apartment
complex with $2 million in grant money from theFederal Neighborhood
Stabilization Program.
Now it
has leased the apartment homes to low-income families in the city.
The
complex Greccio purchased is known as the Bentley Commons. Originally built in
2006 the homes have been in foreclosure for the past three years.
It's
a project all three organizations said was made possible by the stimulus
money."Without
the stimulus money we probably would not have been interested in buying it, and
probably would not have been able to finance it if we were interested in buying
it," Rich Strycker said.
Strycker
said all of the units in the apartment complex have two bedrooms and two
bathrooms. He said many of the families who are moving in are currently living
below the poverty line.
"We
have some coming from other apartment complexes, some are coming from places
like shelters, places that are not as desirable as these," Strycker said.
As
for rent, Strycker said it will range from $360 per month up to $570 plus
utilities.
The
remaining land on the property will most likely be developed in the future.
Strycker
said he hopes Bentley Commons will become a cornerstone in the surrounding
community.
Mapleton Mobile Home Park - National Model, Thistle Communities
Mapleton Mobile Home Park (MMHP) continues to be a national model for resident
self-governance. Purchased by Thistle from the City of Boulder in 2004, this
island of affordability in central Boulder received a Community Leadership
Initiative (CLI) grant from NeighborWorks last summer.
The grant
funded a survey which helped resident leadership define the most important needs
of the community. The issue that received the most votes was the need to fix the
various water leaks in the park. The Mapleton Homeowners Association pays the
water bill for the entire park and water is 15 percent of the budget. Using
money remaining from the CLI grant, the leaks are being fixed.
Another
benefit from the survey process was the increased involvement of the park's
homeowners. According to the survey report, "In the past seven months, more
people have been involved than in the past three years. More gardens are
established... and there have been lots of home and yard improvements throughout
the community. We think this is an outcome indirectly resulting from the
survey."
Housing Colorado's Housing Facts Update
Housing Colorado'sFacts Update is a supplement to our 2009 Facts Book.
Housing Colorado will distribute the Housing Facts Update to our
members, legislators, policy makers and media in an ongoing effort to
elevate awareness of the need of affordable housing across the state. Click here to download a copy.
Did you know:
Despite a weak economy, rents have
increased slightly over the last three years in Colorado’s metro regions and statewide
vacancies in subsidized housing remained comparatively low at 6.4%.
In 2008, 236,150, or 40.6% of renters, paid
more than 35% of their income (median income of $32,496) for housing.Colorado has only one county – Grand – where
tenants earning 30% of the Area Median Income ($21,619 statewide) can afford a
studio apartment.
Colorado ranked 4th in the U.S.
for the number of children living in rent-burdened households and 15th in the
nation for the worst rate of child homelessness.
In the last year, there has been a 20% rise
in homeless families seeking assistance due to foreclosures, evictions, job
losses, and medical crisis.
Click here
to download a copy of the 2009 Facts Book featuring our Colorado Report Card
tracking key housing indicators over 4 years.
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act - Housing Guide
Housing Colorado has
developed a guide to the ARRA funding resources highlighting new
programs and opportunities, nuances for existing programs, upcoming
deadlines and funding distribution processes. Our goal is to assist
you in assessing your organization's eligibility for funding,
connecting you to existing resources and alerting you to
opportunities for training and input.
ARRA Updates:
The Department of Housing
and Urban Development (HUD) has recently posted several resources to help
communities implement their Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program
(HPRP) programs. Homelessness
Resource Exchange
First-time Homebuyer Tax Credit Extended:
Extends the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit of up to $8,000 to first-time home buyers until April 30, 2010.
Expands the credit to grant up to $6,500 credit to current home owners
purchasing a new or existing home between November 7, 2009 and April
30, 2010.
Your best source for up to the
minute information is the administering agencies. Links to several electronic
alerts are listed here.
Neighborhood Stabilization Program I
2009 NSP I Housing Opportunity Guide:
Please visit our web site herefor the latest
information about local NSP programs under the Housing and Economic
Recovery Act. If you have suggestions for improving
this guide, please share them with us.
NSP I Updates: Training materials from both the 8/31 all-day training, and the 9/14 "Day in the
Life" training on the newly updated DOLA, DOH NSP Website here: http://www.dola.colorado.gov/cdh/NSP.htm For more information, please contact
Alison O'Kelly, NSP Specialist at CDOH at alison.okelly@state.co.us, or
303-866-3409.
EVENTS:
CONFERENCES:
Camp Colorado - Habitat for Humanity of Colorado - May 5-8, 2010
www.habitatcolorado.org 2010 Housing Colorado NOW! Conference - October 12-15 Save the dates:
October 12-15, 2010 in Vail!
ONLINE EVENTS:
ARCHIVES: Foreclosure Response Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s new podcast series, Foreclosure
Response. In this podcast, Dan Immergluck of the Georgia Institute
of Technology discusses how different metropolitan areas have been affected by
bank-owned properties, what happens once these homes go into foreclosure, and
what can be done to return these homes to productive use.
Making it Work - Practical
Information on How to Implement a Stabilization
Plan Each of the webinars addressed a different aspect of implementing a
stabilization plan, including program design, acquisition and disposition strategies, and performance measurement. The Making it Work series is a collaboration between Enterprise Community
Partners, Local Initiatives Support Corporation, the National Housing
Conference, the National Community Stabilization Trust and NeighborWorks
America. http://www.foreclosure-response.org/webinarseries.html
Governor's Excellence in Renewable
Energy Awards - Due December 18
The
Governor's Energy Office is now accepting nominations for the 2009
Governor's Excellence in Renewable Energy Awards. The awards honor
organizations that have made outstanding contributions to protecting the
environment through the promotion, usage, implementation and technology
development of renewable energy in Colorado.
All Coloradans are encouraged to apply.
To be
considered, the nominee must submit a complete award application by noon on
December 18, 2009. For more information,
please click here.
FUNDING:
Mile High United
Way - Community Fund - Due December 29
Mile High United
Way is pleased to announce their Community Impact
Plan, and an open Request for Proposal for all nonprofits working within their
three focus areas of School Readiness, Youth Success and Adult Self Sufficiency
to apply for Fiscal Year 2010/2011 funding through their Community
Fund.
A series of
required pre-proposal conferences have been arranged to help you with this
process. In their Request for Proposal you will find all the details including
the timeline for this process.
The
information and application are available at www.unitedwaydenver.org/rfp. The application deadline
is December 29, 5:00 p.m.
RESEARCH:
Division of Housing - Monthly Update
The Division of Housing will now be publishing a monthly update of housing and
economic statistics that is designed to help the public and our partners better
understand recent trends in the housing economy.
October's issue, now available
online, contains some of the most recently released data on the work force,
on housing prices and on homeownership levels. We'll be sending out the November
issue when it becomes available later this month.
Homeownership subsidies in 2009 - Almost 4 x Those for Rental Housing
A Congressional Budget Office Overview
of Federal Support for Housing calculates that ownership support
was $230 billion, while aid for rental property and tenants was $60 billion.
Visit http://www.cbo.gov/doc.cfm?index=10525.
Family Mobility and Neighborhood
Change, uses a source of data generated as part of the Annie E. Casey
Foundation’s Making Connections (MC) program, tracking households in 10 MC
communities (including Denver) that comprised
both those residents that stayed or moved within the community, as well as those
that left the neighborhood after the first wave of evaluation. The data provide
a rare perspective into changes in neighborhood composition and the people who
stay, as well as on the effects on households that move away from a place-based
intervention site.
New Policy Briefs on Housing and Transportation Policy, Residential
Energy-Efficiency, and Shared Equity/Appreciation Homeownership - Center for Housing Policy
Denver Human Services will begin accepting LEAP (low-income energy
assistance program) applications on November
2. To apply in person, please visit Denver Human Services east office at 2855 Tremont Place
between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
By helping your clients
obtain an MCC, you are putting more money in their pockets and ensuring they are
getting the biggest tax benefits possible from homeownership. The application
process for Mortgage Credit Certificates is very streamlined and it doesn't need
to add any more time to the home buying process.
Hear from CHFA customer
Christine Rucks about her experience with CHFA and our Mortgage Credit
Certificate program. To learn how you can help your clients with Mortgage Credit
Certificates visit our website or participate in an upcoming CHFA Lender or Realtor training.
CHFA Resident Program CHFA has rolled out its REACH Resident Program and has begun to schedule classes
for residents.
Your property may request one REACH resident class a year for every fifty
units you have.
You will work with the REACH Resident Programs Administrator, to
identify class topics which may be beneficial to your community. CHFA can supply
resident surveys if you would like.
Once we have found a topic that would work for your property, Arlene will
schedule an instructor and be present the day of the class to ensure everything
runs smoothly. Please note that classes will take place at your property.
Housing Colorado! is a statewide organization, composed of housing professionals engaged in the full spectrum of affordable housing production and preservation activities, including both rental and home ownership opportunities. Membership spans all sectors: cities; public housing authorities; financial agencies and institutions; for-profit and non-profit developers; realtors; and human service agencies. For more information, visit www.housingcolorado.org.
Our E-news reaches over 3000 housing professionals across the state. Help us showcase your organizations innovative ideas and model accomplishments for creating and preserving affordable housing by submitting an article. E-mail kirsten@housingcolorado.org with your submissions.
Photo Credits: Hope Communities (Sarah Maben), Habitat for Humanity of Colorado and Housing Colorado. If you have a photo you feel exemplifies quality affordable housing and/or services, please consider sharing it with Housing Colorado. We'll do our best to showcase our member's extraordinary accomplishments! Contact kirsten@housingcolorado.org.
