[CALL TO ORDER ]
[00:00:09]
UM, DID WE HAVE ANY CITIZEN COMMUNICATION? WE DO NOT.
UM, SO, UH, GONNA OFFICIALLY CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER DECEMBER, 2023.
AS I SAID, MY COMPUTER'S REALLY SLOW THIS EVENING, SO I'M GONNA COUNT ON JACQUELINE FOR A FEW MINUTES.
UM, NEXT ON THE AGENDA WOULD BE
[1. Approval of the minutes from the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities November 3, 2023, regular meeting. ]
APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.WERE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? OR, IF NOT, I'LL ACCEPT A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MEETING MINUTES FROM OUR LAST MEETING.
MOTION, ELIZABETH MEYER, SECONDED.
ANY QUESTIONS? ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
OPPOSED? HEARING NONE MINUTES HAVE BEEN ADOPTED.
[2. Discussion and updates on the Joint Inclusion Committee (JIC). (Jeremy Garza and Alejandra Mireles) ]
READ OFF THE FIRST, UM, THE NEXT SECTION OF THE AGENDA, PLEASE.DISCUSSION AND UPDATES FROM THE JOINT INCLUSION COMMITTEE.
SO IF YOU DON'T HAVE JEREMY OR ALEJANDRA, UH, GENERAL, UH, COMMISSIONER POWELL, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING YOU COULD REPORT ON? HI, I'M SO SORRY.
I DON'T, I MISSED MY MEETING ON WEDNESDAY AND, UH, NO, I, I'VE GOT NOTHING.
I JUST GOT PERMISSION TO TURN MY MIC ON.
UM, I ALSO ACTUALLY WAS, UH, WASN'T PRESENT, UH, THIS PAST WEDNESDAY.
IT WAS, UH, IN AN ALL WEEK TRAINING, AND ALEJANDRA WAS THERE, THOUGH, UM, BUT SHE WASN'T AVAILABLE TO BE ON THE CALL WITH Y'ALL.
UM, BUT I DID GET THE MEETING MINUTES, UM, FROM, UH, UM, FROM THE MEETING, AND I DIDN'T HEAR, UM, THAT, UM, THE COMMISSION IS, UH, CONTINUING TO WORK, UM, UM, ESPECIALLY ON THE, ON THE BUDGET.
UM, JUST REMINDING ALL OF THE, THE COMMISSIONS, UM, THAT, UM, BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS ARE DUE MARCH 30TH, DECEMBER.
AND SO THAT JUST MEANS THAT JUST A COUPLE MONTHS AWAY NEEDING TO HAVE THOSE SUBMITTED.
AND SO IF YOUR WORK GROUPS HAVEN'T INFORMED YET, OR HAD THOSE IDEAS OF WANTING TO COME TOGETHER TO THINK ABOUT WHAT WE LIKE TO RECOMMEND THIS YEAR, UM, WHICH JUST A BIG RECOMMENDATION.
BUT THAT'S, THAT'S THE BIGGEST UPDATE FOR SURE.
I KNOW THAT THERE'S SOME OTHER UPDATES IN REGARDS TO OTHER COMMISSIONS SHARING ABOUT THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE STUDIES, UM, AS WELL AS, UH, SOME RECOMMENDATIONS COMING FROM THE HISPANIC LATINO REGARDING, UH, LEADERSHIP APPOINTMENTS IN THE CITY.
UM, BUT BEYOND THAT, THOSE ARE THE BIG UPDATES FROM NOW.
AND IF Y'ALL NEED ANY SUPPORT, UM, WITH YOUR BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS, PLEASE KNOW THAT ALEJANDRA AND I ARE HERE AS A RESOURCE, SO PLEASE EMAIL ME.
UM, AND WE'RE HAPPY TO SUPPORT IN ANY WAY THEY MAY NEED.
JEREMY, DID ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? HEARING NONE, JACQUELYN, IF YOU COULD MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ITEM, PLEASE.
MY COMPUTER IS NOT WORKING WITH ME TODAY.
[3. Discussion and updates from the COTA Disability Access Taskforce liaison. (Donna Betts) ]
NUMBER THREE IS DISCUSSION AND UPDATES FROM THE CODE OF DISABILITY ACCESS TASK FORCE LIAISON.THAT IS DONNA BETS WHO IS ABSENT TODAY.
WE CAN TABLE THAT TO NEXT MEETING, UNLESS THERE'S ANY OBJECTION, HEARING NONE WILL TABLE TO THE NEXT MEETING.
[4. Discussion and presentation on housing accessibility for people with disabilities. (Stephanie Thomas, President, Accessible Housing Austin! (AHA!), Trey Nichols, Executive Director, Accessible Housing Austin! (AHA!) and Jamey May, Community Development Officer, City of Austin Housing Department) (Pete Salazar) ]
OKAY.WE HAVE DISCUSSION AND PRESENTATION ON HOUSING ACCESSIBILITY FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
YEAH, I MEAN, YOU'RE WELCOME TO START IF HI.
HELLO, STEPHANIE THOMAS, CAN YOU HEAR ME? IF YOU COULD SPEAK INTO THE MIC, PLEASE.
HI, MY NAME'S STEPHANIE THOMAS, AND, UM, I'M THE EXECUTIVE,
[00:05:01]
UH, I THINK I'M THE PRESIDENT OF ACCESSIBLE HOUSING AUSTIN.AND OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TREY NICHOLS, IS ON THE PHONE.
AND, UH, I BELIEVE JEREMY MAY WITH THE CITY IS ALSO ON THE PHONE.
THIS IS JAMIE MAY WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
I'M THE, UH, HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT OFFICER WITH THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT.
UM, AND, UH, I BELIEVE THERE WAS A REQUEST FROM THIS COMMITTEE TO, UH, TO HAVE A OVERVIEW OF HOUSING, UH, IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN TO, UH, KIND OF DISCUSS HOW, UH, THIS COMMITTEE AND THE POPULATION THAT IT SERVES AND REPRESENTS, UH, INTERACT WITH THAT HOUSING MARKET.
I'VE INVITED, UH, UM, UH, STEPHANIE AND TREY, UH, TO JOIN ME TO HELP ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE, UM, WHERE I AM UNABLE TO, UH, TO PROVIDE INFORMATION.
UH, STEPHANIE HAS A LONG EXPERIENCE WITH, UH, THE, UM, THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING AUSTIN, UH, AND, UH, THE DEVELOPMENTS THAT THEY HAVE, UH, PURSUED OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS.
UH, SO SHE'S GOT REAL WORLD, UH, EXPERIENCE AND THE SCARS TO PROVE IT.
UH, AND, UH, WE ARE HAPPY TO, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS, BUT I DO WANT TO JUST SAY THAT THIS IS PROBABLY GONNA BE A VERY HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW OF THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, THE SERVICES WE PROVIDE, UM, AND, UH, SOME OF THE, SOME OF THE PROGRESS AND PRODUCTION THAT WE'VE SEEN OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS.
UH, WITH THAT, STEPHANIE, IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO, TO ADD OR TREY, WELL, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT ACCESSIBLE HOUSING AUSTIN IS A, UM, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
I MEAN, A, WE'RE AT CHODO, WHICH IS A HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION, AND WE'RE A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION.
AND, UM, WE HAVE A MIXTURE OF, OF, UH, DUPLEXES, SINGLE FAMILY.
AND MOST RECENTLY, WE BUILT AN APARTMENT BUILDING, WHICH IS WHAT JAMIE WAS REFERRING TO WHEN HE SAID THE SCARS.
AND, UM, SO, UH, WE, WE WANTED TO TALK ABOUT THAT.
AND I ALSO WAS HOPING TO SHARE A FEW, UM, THOUGHTS ABOUT, UM, SOME OF THE CITY PROGRAMS AND ABOUT, UM, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT I HOPE THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN WORKING ON IN THE FUTURE RELATED TO HOUSING.
WELL, WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING ABOUT IT, SO CONTINUE ON, PLEASE.
UM, AND DO I HAVE CONTROL? WE'LL GO TO THE, WE'LL GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
UM, AND JUST AS AN OVERVIEW, UH, WE'RE GONNA BE LOOKING AT OUR DEPARTMENT, THE STRATEGIC HOUSING BLUEPRINT, WHAT THE AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION IS LOOKING AT OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING PRODUCTION, AND IDENTIFYING SOME OF THE RESOURCES THAT OUR DEPARTMENT PROVIDES.
SO, THE MISSION OF THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT IS TO THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT PARTNERS WITH THE COMMUNITY TO SHARE A MORE EQUITABLE AUSTIN AND TO PREVENT THE DISPLACEMENT OF PEOPLE AND SERVICES THROUGH THE INVESTMENT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING RESOURCES.
SO THAT REALLY CAPTURES THE TWO MAIN PRODUCTION AREAS OF OUR DEPARTMENT.
WE HAVE OUR REAL ESTATE AND HOUSING DEVELOPMENT SIDE, AND THEN WE HAVE OUR DISPLACEMENT PREVENTION SIDE.
WE KNOW THAT, UH, AUSTIN IS EXPENSIVE.
WE ALSO KNOW THAT IT'S ONLY GETTING MORE EXPENSIVE, AND INDIVIDUALS AND HOUSEHOLDS WHO HAVE LIVED HERE FOR, UH, GENERATIONS, UM, ARE BEING PRICED OUT.
UH, SO OUR, WE'VE, UH, UM, HIGHLIGHTED THAT FOCUS IN OUR DEPARTMENT AND WITHIN OUR MISSION STATEMENT TO, TO PREVENT THE DISPLACEMENT OF PEOPLE AND SERVICES, UH, THROUGH THE INVESTMENT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING RESOURCES.
RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE 84 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES IN OUR DEPARTMENT, AND THAT INCLUDES OUR FINANCE DEPARTMENT, OUR ADMIN, OUR ADMINISTRATION, UM, ALL OF OUR STAFF.
UM, AND WE HAVE A VERY LOW VACANCY RATE.
WE ARE STILL HIRING, BUT WE DO HAVE, UH, SOME, UH, UM, WE HAVE, UH, SOME AVAILABLE POSITIONS, UH, THAT ARE, THAT ARE POSTED NOW.
JUST LOOKING AT A, AT THE, UH, OVERALL DIS, UH, PROGRAMS THAT ARE PROVIDED, UH, BY OUR DIVISION, I'D LIKE TO FOCUS REALLY ON THE, ON THE MIDDLE TWO, UH, STRATEGIC DISPLACEMENT PREVENTION AND PROGRAM DELIVERY AND REAL ESTATE SERVICES.
UH, UNDER DISPLACEMENT PREVENTION, WE HAVE CAPACITY BUILDING FOR LOCAL, OH, CAN WE GO BACK ONE, OH, UH, UNDER, UH, DISPLACEMENT PREVENTION, WE HAVE CRISIS RESPONSE.
WE HAVE, UH, CAPACITY BUILDING FOR, UH, FOR SMALL NONPROFITS.
WE'VE ALSO GOT, UH, PLANNING POLICY AND RESEARCH WHERE WE WANT TO, UH, LOOK AT HOW WE CAN SERVE, UH, DIFFERENT POPULATIONS AND OVERALL COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, UM, IN, UH, PROGRAM DELIVERY.
AS I MENTIONED, WE HAVE, UH, OUR, WE HAVE REAL ESTATE SERVICES, SUCH AS ACQUIRING PROPERTIES, DEVELOPING PROPERTIES, UM, PROVIDING, UH, GROUND LEASES ON PROPERTIES.
WE ALSO HAVE OUR FINANCIAL SERVICES, UH, UM, UH, DIVISION WITHIN THE PROGRAM, DELIVERING REAL ESTATE SERVICES, UH, WHERE WE PROVIDE GAP FINANCING FOR DEVELOPING, UH, FOR DEVELOPERS OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
[00:10:01]
ALL OF THE DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVES, UM, AND, UH, DEVELOPER, UH, UM, UH, DEVELOPER INCENTIVE PROGRAMS SUCH AS DENSITY, BONUS PROGRAMS, SMART HOUSING AND AFFORDABILITY UNLOCKED.UH, AND THAT IS A, A LARGE, A VERY LARGE AND SIGNIFICANT SOURCE OF OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING GENERATION IN THE CITY.
I IN, UH, THIS YEAR, THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR, UH, WE HAVE ABOUT $75.8 MILLION.
AND I WANT TO, UH, BRING THIS UP, UH, JUST TO SHOW THAT, UH, THIS IS, UH, FOR OUR TURS, WHICH IS A-H-P-D-A HOUSING PRESERVATION DISTRICT TAX INCREMENT REINVESTMENT ZONE.
UM, ON THE EAST SIDE, UH, THIS IS ALSO OUR GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS.
UH, SO IN, UH, SEP IN NOVEMBER OF LAST YEAR, UH, THE CITIZENS APPROVED A, UH, UH, $350 MILLION, UH, UH, GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND PACKAGE, UH, FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF, UH, AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
UM, IT INCLUDES, UH, PROJECT CONNECT, UH, GRANT FUNDS, UM, AND OUR GENERAL FUNDS.
SO IN ORDER TO PAY OUR STAFF, IN ORDER TO DO ALL THE THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO, INCLUDING, UH, PROVIDING RESOURCES FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS AHA, UM, WE HAVE $75.8 MILLION IN FUNDS.
UM, AND I DO WANNA CORRECT MYSELF, THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE OUR GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, THAT GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND.
WE HAVE IDENTIFIED, I BELIEVE, $60 MILLION, UH, TO, UH, TO SPEND THIS YEAR ON AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
SO IN TOTAL, IT'S ABOUT $135 MILLION THAT WE ARE MANAGING THIS FISCAL YEAR.
SO, THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC HOUSING BLUEPRINT, UM, IS A DOCUMENT THAT WAS ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IN 2017.
IT PROVIDES A PATHWAY FOR US TO ACHIEVE PARITY AND TO, UH, TO RESOLVE SOME OF THE HOUSING CRISES THAT WE SEE IN THE CITY.
UM, THE BIGGEST ISSUE WITH HOUSING THAT, UH, EVERYONE KNOWS IS DEMAND HAS OUTPA OUTPACED SUPPLY.
IT IS A SUPPLY AND DEMAND ISSUE.
UM, AND, UH, WHAT THIS DOCUMENT SAYS IS WE ARE MISSING ABOUT 135,000, UM, UNITS ACROSS THE ENTIRE IN INCOME SPECTRUM.
THAT WAS, UH, UH, SIX YEARS AGO NOW.
UH, SO I CAN TELL YOU THAT NUMBER HAS CHANGED.
WE HAVE BEEN BUILDING SIGNIFICANTLY.
UM, HOWEVER, UH, DEMAND STILL PERSISTS.
UM, SO WE ARE LOOKING TO, UH, RE UH, UH, REVIEW THIS DOCUMENT AND UPDATE IT FOR, UH, FOR THE NEXT GENERATION.
UH, WHAT THIS DOCUMENT, UH, SAYS, IT'S A 10 YEAR PLAN, UH, TO DEVELOP, UH, AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
AND, UH, UH, SINCE WE ONLY CAN CONTROL, WE ONLY CAN INVEST IN AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
IT IS A, UH, IT IS A PLAN TO INVEST IN AND DEVELOP, UH, AFFORDABLE HOUSING THROUGHOUT THE CITY IN ALL 10 DISTRICTS, UH, TO CREATE 60,000 UNITS, UH, THAT ARE AFFORDABLE TO HOUSEHOLDS EARNING BELOW 80% OF THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME.
AND THERE'S A SLIDE AT THE END WHERE YOU CAN SEE WHAT THOSE NUMBERS WOULD LOOK LIKE.
UM, AND WE'RE ALSO TRYING TO ALIGN THIS PLAN WITH ALL OF OUR OTHER PLANS, SUCH AS IMAGINE AUSTIN, UM, AND OTHER HIGH OPPORTUNITY AREAS.
UM, ULTIMATELY, WE ARE LOOKING TO SERVE THE POPULATION OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN, WHERE, AND, UH, ONE OF THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS IS, UH, THOSE OF US, UH, EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
UM, SO WE ARE CALLED ON TO CREATE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING AND UNITS FOR INDIVIDUALS EXITING HOMELESSNESS, UM, AS PART OF OUR INVENTORY.
IN 2017, UH, THIS WAS ADOPTED, UH, WITH A VERY AMBITIOUS GOAL OF 60,000 AFFORDABLE UNITS.
60,000 UNITS OVER 10 YEARS IS, UH, 6,000 UNITS.
UM, AND IF EACH UNIT COSTS APPROXIMATELY $250,000 TO DEVELOP, UH, YOU CAN SEE HOW THOSE NUMBERS START TO ADD UP REALLY QUICKLY.
UM, THE, WHAT WE HAVE, UH, IDENTIFIED HERE ARE SOME TOOLS TO ACHIEVE THAT 60,000 AFFORDABLE UNITS IN 10 YEARS.
UH, THE LARGEST BLOCK HERE, UH, IS, UH, TAX INCREMENT FINANCING, HOMESTEAD PRESERVATION DISTRICT.
UH, THESE ARE ALL, UH, UH, TOOLS THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE THAT ARE NOT UNDER THE CONTROL, PER SE, OF THE AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION.
UM, THE, UH, DEVELOP PLAN UNIT DEVELOPMENTS, EXPANDED DENSITY, BONUS PROGRAMS, AND SMART HOUSING WITH EXTENDED AFFORDABILITY PERIODS.
THESE TOOLS, UH, ALL, UH, REQUIRE THE DEVELOPER, UH, TO PROVIDE THAT, UH, THAT HOUSING.
[00:15:01]
IN THESE UNITS.UH, THE AREAS BELOW THAT ARE LISTING OUT ALL OF OUR DIFFERENT FUNDING SOURCES, SUCH AS, UH, THE 2013 AFFORDABLE HOUSING BOND PROGRAM.
UH, WHAT ARE FEDERAL FUNDS? WHAT IS NOT SHOWN HERE IS, UH, THE 2022 AFFORDABLE HOUSING BOND PROGRAM, WHICH HAS BEEN, UH, A, HAS BEEN INVESTED WISELY OVER THE LAST YEAR, UM, AND AGGRESSIVELY.
UH, CURRENTLY WE HAVE, AND I'LL GET TO ONE OF OUR PROGRAMS, UH, IN A MOMENT.
UH, ACTUALLY, I'LL JUST SAY THAT, UM, SORRY.
SO THIS IS JUST TO SHOW YOU THAT WE ARE NOT THE ONLY PLAYER IN TOWN, BUT WE DO NEED, UH, WE ARE PLAYING A LARGE ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND SINCE WE HAVE A STRATEGY, A 10 YEAR STRATEGY, WE HAVE PARTNERED WITH HOUSING WORKS TO PROVIDE US WITH A, UH, ANNUAL SCORECARD.
NOW, UH, IT TAKES A MINUTE TO, TO PROCESS THE NUMBERS AND TO MAKE EVERYTHING, UH, UH, IS MAKE SURE EVERYTHING IS CORRECT AND COUNT, UH, ALL THE UNITS.
UM, SO WE JUST RELEASED OUR 2022 BLUEPRINT SCORECARD.
THE NUMBERS ARE A BIT DIFFERENT, UM, BUT THIS IS THE PREVIOUS YEAR.
UM, AS YOU CAN TELL, AS YOU CAN SEE, DISTRICT 10, DISTRICT SIX, UM, THESE AND DISTRICT EIGHT, THESE ARE AREAS WHERE WE HAVE NOT HAD AS MUCH, UH, SUCCESS IN INCENTIVIZING AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, PRIMARILY 'CAUSE THESE AREAS ARE, UH, HAVE DIFFICULT TO DEVELOP TERRAIN, UM, AND, UH, THE, THE BUILDINGS GET BUILT WHERE THE LAND IS AVAILABLE.
UH, BUT AS YOU GO, AS YOU CAN ALSO SEE DISTRICTS, UH, 1, 2, 3, UH, 1, 2, 4, UH, NINE, UH, THESE ARE AREAS WHERE WE ARE, UH, BUILDING AGGRESSIVELY WHERE WE ARE, UH, TRYING TO ACHIEVE THOSE GOALS.
UM, JUST AS A POINT OF REFERENCE, UH, IN 2018 THROUGH TWENTY TWENTY ONE, NINE HUNDRED AND THIRTEEN UNITS WERE BUILT IN DISTRICT NINE.
HOWEVER, THAT IS OUT OF A, UH, OUT OF AN ASSIGNMENT OF CONSTRUCTING OVER 3,600 UNITS.
SO WHEN WE SAY IT'S AN AMBITIOUS GOAL, WE SAY IT'S A VERY AMBITIOUS GOAL.
AND THIS IS ONLY COUNTING THOSE UNITS THAT ARE, UH, I'M SORRY, 303 OF THOSE UNITS ARE UNDER CON OR ADDITIONAL UNITS ARE UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
THIS IS ONLY COUNTING THOSE UNITS THAT WE KNOW ABOUT THAT ARE, UH, OFFICIALLY RESTRICTED AS OPPOSED TO THOSE NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNITS.
SO, I MENTIONED THE, UH, UH, THE, IN THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME, UH, FOR ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
YOU CAN SEE HERE THAT A HOUSEHOLD OF FOUR, UH, EARNING, UH, LESS THAN $93,450, UH, WOULD QUALIFY AS AN 80%, UH, MFI HOUSEHOLD.
UH, THAT MEANS THAT, UH, THAT HOUSEHOLD WOULD, IF THEY HAVE A MORTGAGE, UH, READY, UH, THEN, UH, THEY WOULD QUALIFY FOR OUR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST.
THEY WOULD QUALIFY FOR ONE OF OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING, I'M SORRY, ONE OF OUR OWNERSHIP HOUSING, UH, UH, UNITS.
UM, WE HAVE MULTIPLE PROGRAMS THAT ARE LIMITED TO THAT 80% MFI AND BELOW.
UM, OUR RENTAL HOUSING SIDE IS, UH, LIMITED TO 50% OF THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME AND BELOW.
AND YOU CAN SEE, AGAIN, A HOUSEHOLD OF FOUR EARNING LESS THAN $58,400 WOULD QUALIFY FOR ONE OF OUR, UH, 50% AFFORDABLE UNITS.
UH, AND AGAIN, THAT'S RENTAL HOUSING, UM, IN ANY OF OUR, UH, DEVELOPMENTS THAT HAVE, UH, PARTICIPATED IN, UM, OUR RENTAL HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM OR OUR, AH, TO FC PARTNERSHIPS, WE'LL GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
SO, HOW WE MANAGE ALL OF THESE PROGRAMS AND MANAGE THESE FUNDS IS THROUGH THE AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION.
THE AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION IS AN ENTITY CREATED BY THE CITY.
THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
AND IF YOU'VE BEEN TO A, UH, UH, COUNCIL MEETING WHERE THE MAYOR WILL ADJOURN AT ABOUT 10 30 AND CALL ORDER THE AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION, AND THEN YOU'LL SEE ME.
AND THAT'S, UH, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING.
UH, ANNUALLY, WE HAVE A, UH, SERVICE AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
BASICALLY, IT'S JUST A MANAGE THE FUNDS FROM THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT.
AND THESE ARE ALL OF THE FUNDING SOURCES THAT WE USE IN THAT SERVICE AGREEMENT.
NEXT, ADDITIONAL FINANCING, UH, TOOLS THAT WE USE OR, OR ADDITIONAL, UM, FINANCING TOOLS THAT WE, UH, PROMOTE AND MANAGE.
UH, WE'VE GOT OUR PRIVATE ACTIVITY BONDS, WHICH ARE NON-RECOURSE DEBT.
THE CITY WILL WILL ISSUE THESE PRIVATE ACTIVITY BONDS, AND THEN THE DEVELOPER WILL PAY THEM BACK.
UM, THAT'S A MAJOR SOURCE OF DEVELOPMENT FOR LOW-INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT PROPERTIES.
UH, AS I MENTIONED, WE ALSO HAVE OUR GAP FINANCING, UH, WHICH IS OUR RENTAL HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AND OUR OWNERSHIP, HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS. UM,
[00:20:01]
AND THAT'S WHERE OUR, WHERE WE DEPLOY OUR GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS AND SOME OF THOSE OTHER FUNDING SOURCES THAT YOU SAW LISTED.FINALLY, WE HAVE OUR PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMS. AND AGAIN, THIS IS WHERE, UH, AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION WILL BE IN, UH, THE DEVELOPMENT AS OWNER, AS DEVELOPER, AS GROUND LEASE.
SO, AND AS GENERAL PARTNER, UM, BY DOING THAT, WE CAN PRESERVE THAT AFFORDABILITY FOR THE LIFE OF THE PROPERTY AND EVEN BEYOND.
SO, UH, WE DON'T, WE ARE WHAT WE CALL LONG-TERM HOLDERS.
WE'RE GONNA HOLD THAT LAND AS LONG AS WE POSSIBLY CAN.
AND THIS IS HOW WE'VE, UH, UH, DETERMINED TO DISPERSE OUR 2018, UH, GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, $250 MILLION, UH, TO FOUR INVESTMENT AREAS.
THE RENTAL HOUSING, UH, THE OWNERSHIP HOUSING, GOAT REPAIR IS OUR HOME REPAIR PROGRAM.
IT'S A $20,000 GRANT, UH, THAT, UH, INDIVIDUAL HOUSEHOLDS, INDIVIDUAL HOMEOWNERS, UH, CAN APPLY FOR, UH, THROUGH THAT GRANT.
WE CAN PAY FOR NEW WINDOWS, A NEW DOOR.
UH, WHAT DOES THE HOME NEED IN ORDER TO REMAIN HABITABLE AND, UH, IN ORDER FOR THE, UH, FOR THE HOUSEHOLD TO BE, UH, SUCCESSFUL.
UM, AND THEN FINALLY, UH, OUR ACQUISITION AND DEVELOPMENT OR PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMS. SO THOSE ARE THE FOUR AREAS WHERE WE'VE, IN, WHERE WE'VE INVESTED THE 2018 GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS.
THE NEXT SLIDE, THE 2022 GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, FOLLOWED THAT SAME, THOSE SAME FOUR AREAS.
UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, UH, THESE FUNDS MUST BE SPENT OVER THE NEXT SIX YEARS.
UM, AND, UH, WE ARE AWARDING THE DOLLARS.
NOW, IF, UH, I BELIEVE THE NEXT TIME WE'RE GONNA GO TO COUNSEL IS IN LATE FEBRUARY, UH, WHERE WE'LL MAKE ANOTHER AWARD, UM, THE CURRENT BATCH OF APPLICANTS, UH, IT, WE'VE HAD ABOUT 18 DEVELOPMENTS, UH, UNDER REVIEW RIGHT NOW.
UH, IN TOTAL, THE REQUEST FOR, UH, THIS ROUND OF APPLICATIONS IS $110 MILLION.
THE CURRENT REQUEST FOR DEVELOPER ASSISTANCE IS $110 MILLION.
SO WE'RE GONNA SAY NO TO SOME VERY GOOD PROJECTS THAT, THAT, UH, WE JUST DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO, TO SUPPORT.
AND, UH, FINALLY, JUST TO TALK ABOUT OUR HOUSING TRUST FUND, UH, WE'VE GOT SEVERAL PRO PROGRAMS WITHIN THE HOUSING TRUST FUND THAT ARE, UH, UH, NEW AND IMAGINATIVE.
UH, FIRST, UH, IN TERMS OF HOMELESS PREVENTION, I'M GONNA START CLOCKWISE, HOMELESSNESS PREVENTION.
UM, WE HAVE A, UH, WE HAVE CREATED A LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER PROGRAM.
THIS IS TO COMPLIMENT, UH, THE, THE VOUCHERS THAT ARE PROVIDED BY HAKA.
UM, AND, UH, WE HAVE DEDICATED THE, EACH OF THESE VOUCHERS, UH, TO OUR, UH, PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING DEVELOPMENTS, PRIMARILY, UH, IN THE, PRIMARILY THE, UH, THE HOTEL CONVERSION STRATEGY, UM, BUT A FEW OTHER PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING DEVELOPMENTS WITHIN THE CITY.
UH, AND WE HAVE THE, THE MONEY FOR 15 YEAR COMMITMENT.
UH, SECOND, I WANT TO POINT OUT OUR CAPACITY BUILDING PROGRAMS. UM, WE HAVE, WE RECENTLY COMPLETED A SMALL DEVELOPER, UH, TRAINING.
UH, THIS WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO BRING TOGETHER 20 INDIVIDUALS FROM THE CITY, UH, WHO HAD SOME LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE IN DEVELOPMENT.
AND, UH, UH, HAVING THAT, THAT INTRO LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE DOVE INTO THE HARD STUFF.
UH, HOW DO YOU FIND CAPITAL? HOW DO YOU, UH, HOW DO YOU FIND LAND? WHO DO, HOW DO YOU FIND SERVICE PROVIDERS IF YOU'RE GONNA BE, UH, PROVIDING, UH, LOW INCOME HOUSING, OR IF YOU'RE GONNA BE PROVIDING, UH, PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING? UH, SO WE, WE ARE TRYING TO GIVE THESE INDIVIDUALS, UH, ALL OF THE TOOLS THAT THEY NEED, UM, TO BECOME DEVELOPERS, BECAUSE, AGAIN, THE ONLY WAY THAT WE'RE GONNA GET OUT OF THIS MESS IS IF WE BUILD OUR WAY OUT.
UM, AND HAVING MORE BUILDERS, UH, IS, IS THE WAY THAT WE GET DONE, GET IT DONE FASTER.
UM, I'LL GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
I KNOW THAT WE'RE RUNNING AGAINST THE CLOCK.
UM, THE, UH, UH, PROJECT CONNECT ANTI DISPLACEMENT FUNDING.
UH, WE HAVE, WE HAVE USED THAT AT THREE LARGE PROJECT PROGRAM AREAS, UH, FIRST TO PRESERVE, TO ACQUIRE MULTI-FAMILY PROPERTIES.
WE'VE ACQUIRED SEVERAL PROPERTIES, UH, IN THE HYDE PARK AREA, UH, WITH PART IN PARTNERSHIP WITH, UH, SEVERAL DEVELOPERS.
UM, WE ALSO ARE USING IT IN OUR RHDA PROGRAMS. AND, UH, USING, UH, WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY TO IDENTIFY, UM, UH, SOME SOLUTIONS TO, UH, UM, THE HOUSING VULNERABILITIES.
AND JUST TO GO OVER OUR PRODUCTION, UH, JUST IN THE LAST, UH, UH, UH, OR TO GO OVER OWNERSHIP HOUSING
[00:25:01]
PRIMARILY, UH, OUR PARTNERSHIPS HAVE BEEN WITH HABITAT FOR HUMANITY AND SMALLER DEVELOPERS.UM, THE LONGER DEVELOPMENT TIMELINE, SINGLE FAMILY HOMES DO REQUIRE LONGER TIME BECAUSE YOU HAVE MORE WALLS TO PUT UP MORE, UH, MORE BUILDING TO WORK WITH AND MORE LAND TO WORK WITH.
CONVERSELY, RENTAL HOUSING DEVELOPMENT, UH, IS, UH, UH, MOVES A LITTLE BIT FASTER.
UM, OFTEN WE LEVERAGE OUR FUNDS WITH, UH, LOW-INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDITS, OR OTHER FUND FUNDING SOURCES.
UM, BUT IN FOR, UH, OWNERSHIP HOUSING, WHICH, WHICH CAN'T TAKE AS LONG AS FOUR YEARS TO GET THROUGH, UH, OUR RENTAL HOUSING CAN NORMALLY GO AS FAST AS THREE NEXT.
AND WHEN WE TALK ABOUT PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, UH, THE, UH, WE, WE NEED TO, UM, ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT'S NOT JUST THE BUILDING OF THE BUILDING, IT'S ALSO THE SERVICES AND THE OPERATING SUBSIDY IN ORDER TO, UH, IN ORDER TO BUILD AND PRESERVE THESE, THESE HOUSING UNITS FOR THESE INDIVIDUALS.
UM, AS I MENTIONED, WE HAVE OUR, UH, RENTAL, OUR, UH, RENTAL SUBSIDY OR LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER TO COMPLEMENT HAKES.
UM, AND WE WORK CLOSELY WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, UH, TO IDENTIFY, UH, SERVICES, UH, PROVIDE SERVICE PROVIDERS, UH, FOR ALL OF OUR PROPERTIES.
AND THESE, THESE CHARTS JUST KINDA SHOW YOU, UH, OUR OVERALL PRODUCTION.
AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'VE GOT, UH, WE HAVE BEEN INVESTING HEAVILY, UM, AND IT HAS, UH, ACCELERATED IN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS WITH THE, UH, GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS PRIMARILY.
UM, AND THEN THE TWO SMALLER CHARTS ON THE SIDE.
THE BLUE IS OUR CURRENT OCCUPANTS, OUR CURRENT OCCUPIED INVENTORY, AND THE ORANGE IS, UH, OUR PRODUCTION PIPELINE.
SO, AS YOU CAN SEE, UH, WE IN, WE WILL, UH, POTENTIALLY ASSUMING, YOU KNOW, GOD WILLING AND THE CREEK DON'T RISE, UH, WE COULD DOUBLE OUR INVENTORY OF RENTAL HOUSING, UM, AND TRIPLE OUR INVENTORY OF, UH, OWNERSHIP HOUSING WITHIN THE NEXT YEAR OR TWO.
NEXT, UM, WE'LL GO TO THE NEXT ONE.
WELL, UM, WHEN WE SPEAK ABOUT OUR, UH, ACQUISITIONS, WE ARE ACQUIRING PROPERTIES THROUGHOUT THE CITY, UM, NOT JUST IN THE ED SIDE, BUT WE'RE LOOKING AT DISTRICT EIGHT, DISTRICT SIX.
AND, UH, ONCE WE ACQUIRE THESE, WE WILL GO THROUGH A SOLICITATION PROCESS TO IDENTIFY A DEVELOPER PARTNER SO THAT WE CAN BUILD, UH, AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, AND AS MUCH OF IT AS WE POSSIBLY CAN.
AND THESE ARE JUST, UH, SOME OF OUR, UM, UH, SOME OF OUR RECENT ACQUISITIONS, RECENT, UH, UH, PARTNERSHIPS, UH, THAT, UH, OUR, OUR REAL ESTATE TEAM HAS CONDUCTED.
NEXT, JUST TO GO, UH, GO INTO ONE
THIS SHOULD BE OPENING ANY MINUTE.
UM, IT IS 101 UNITS DEDICATED TO THE CONTINUUM OF CARE, AND THOSE UNITS DO HAVE VOUCHERS ATTACHED, PROJECT-BASED VOUCHERS, AND THEN 70 UNITS THAT WILL BE, UH, UH, IDENT OR IDENTIFIED, UH, FOR RESIDENTS, UH, BY CARITAS.
UM, IT IS 100% AFFORDABLE, AND IT IS, UH, DESIGNED WITH THE POPULATION IN MIND.
IT IS, UH, WE ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS PROPERTY, AND WE CAN'T WAIT FOR IT TO OPEN.
NEXT, AS I MENTIONED, WE ALSO HAVE MULTIPLE DENSITY BONUS PROGRAMS. I'M NOT GONNA GO INTO ALL OF THESE
THEY ARE, THERE ARE TOO MANY, AND THEY ARE TOO DIVERSE.
UM, BUT, UH, WE DO HAVE PROGRAMS THAT PROVIDE THESE INCENTIVES FOR DEVELOPERS TO BUILD MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
NEXT, AND THEN FOR SINGLE FAMILY HOMES, UH, WE DO HAVE MULTIPLE PROGRAMS. UH, AGAIN, THE OWNERSHIP, HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE, OUR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST, UH, AND OUR DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE.
THESE ARE AREAS TO BRING IN MORE, UM, UH, HOMEOWNERS INTO, OR MORE AUSTIN HOUSEHOLDS INTO THE HOMEOWNER OWNERSHIP MARKET.
UM, CURRENTLY, OUR DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE PROVIDES $40,000 OF, UH, DOWN PAYMENT, UH, FOR AN INCOME ELIGIBLE HOUSEHOLD.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE OUR REPAIR PROGRAMS, AND THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT FIRST.
UH, OUR ARCHITECTURAL BARRIER REMOVAL PROGRAM IS, UH, PROGRAM DESIGNED FOR HOUSEHOLDS.
WE BOTH HAVE BOTH RENTER AND OWNERSHIP.
UH, SO IT IS HOUSEHOLDS, UH, THAT REQUIRE SOME SORT OF ARCHITECTURAL BARRIER, UH, TO BE REMOVED.
SO IF YOU HAVE STEPS AND YOU NEED A RAMP, UM, WE CAN HELP PAY FOR THAT.
IF YOU, UH, IF YOU NEED GRAB BARS IN THE BATHROOM OR WIDENING A HALLWAY, UH, WE CAN HELP PAY FOR THAT.
SO THESE ARE PROGRAMS THAT HAVE
[00:30:01]
FUNDING ATTACHED THAT, UH, UM, INDIVIDUAL HOUSEHOLDS CAN, CAN APPLY FOR.AND, UH, ALL THEY WOULD'VE TO DO IS CONTACT OUR OFFICE, LOOK IT UP ON THE INTERNET, UM, AND, UH, UH, GET IN THE QUEUE.
NEXT, OUR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST, JUST TO, UH, TO CROW ABOUT THAT FOR A SECOND.
WE'VE GOT 15 OCCUPIED HOMES IN OUR, IN OUR COMMUNITY LAND TRUST.
WE'VE GOT TWICE AS MANY IN THE PIPELINE, UM, MEANING THAT WE ARE, UH, REHABILITATING THEM.
AND, UH, WE ARE GOING TO BE SELLING THEM, UH, THROUGH OUR LOTTERY SYSTEM.
UH, WE ARE, WE ARE EXCITED TO SEE THIS, UH, CONTINUING TO GROW, AND WE HOPE IT, IT, UH, JUST ACCELERATES EVEN FASTER.
NEXT, AGAIN, THESE ARE SOME OF OUR HOME REPAIR PROGRAMS, UH, PROVIDE, UH, UH, A LOW COST LOAN OR GRANT, UH, FOR, UH, UH, FOR, UH, LOW INCOME HOMEOWNERS.
UH, DEPENDING ON THE, THE, THE WORK NECESSARY, UH, WE CAN GO ALL THE WAY UP TO A, UH, A, A LOAN THAT CAN REPLACE THE ENTIRE HOUSE.
IF THE HOUSE IS TOO FAR GONE, UM, WE CAN REBUILD IT ENTIRELY, UH, NEXT.
AND, UH, THE LAST THING THAT I REALLY WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT FOR, UH, FOR EVERYONE HERE IS OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING ONLINE SEARCH TOOL.
UH, THIS IS A TOOL THAT, THAT HAS BEEN AROUND FOR, UH, A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, THIS COUPLE OF YEARS.
UH, BUT IT PROVIDES A LISTING OF ALL OF THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING OF THE, THE CAPITAL, A AFFORDABLE, MEANING IT HAS A RESTRICTIVE COVENANT, OR IT IS REGULATED IN SOME WAY, UH, AND WITHIN THE CITY.
AND, UH, YOU CAN SEARCH THE MAP, YOU CAN, UH, UH, PROVIDE YOUR HOUSEHOLD'S INCOME, UH, HOW MANY PEOPLE IN YOUR HOUSEHOLD SO THAT YOU'RE NOT TRYING TO PUT SEVEN PEOPLE INTO A TWO BEDROOM APARTMENT.
UM, BUT IT ALSO HAS THE, UH, UH, WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE TOGGLE, UH, WHICH GIVES, WHICH, UH, GIVES INDIVIDUALS, OR IT LIMITS THE, UH, UH, THE NUMBER OF RESPONSES THAT YOU WOULD RECEIVE, UH, ONCE YOU DO THE SEARCH.
UM, I'LL JUST SKIP TO THE NEXT ONE.
UH, I JUST WANNA GET, I KNOW I'M, I'M RUNNING LONG.
UM, AND, UH, IN OUR, IN OUR PROJECT CONNECT WITH OUR DISPLACEMENT, UH, TEAM, WE HAVE MADE MULTIPLE INVESTMENTS AROUND, UH, THE CITY WITH NONPROFITS.
UH, AND YOU CAN SEE THE, THE SERVICES BEING PROVIDED, TENANT, TENANT STABILIZATION, HOMEOWNER PRESERVATION, ECONOMIC MOBILITY, AND THESE ARE PRIORITIES FOR THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT TO ENSURE THAT, AGAIN, WE, WE RETAIN THE POPULATION THAT WE HAVE, AND WE INVITE THOSE WHO HAVE LEFT.
UM, WE DO A LOT IN THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, AND, UH, WE ARE, UH, WE'RE BUSY, BUT WE'RE, WE'RE, UH, NEVER TOO BUSY TO, TO, TO CELEBRATE AND TALK, UH, TALK ABOUT HOUSING WITH EVERYBODY WHO NEEDS TO, OR WHO WOULD, ANYBODY WHO WOULD LIKE TO.
I HAVE, I'LL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
SO YOU TALKED ABOUT PSH AND YOU SHOWED A GRAPH OF THE AMOUNT OF PSH.
IS, DOES THAT INCLUDE THE APARTMENTS THAT THE CITY OF AUSTIN PURCHASED? I BELIEVE THERE WERE FOUR FORMER HOTELS.
AND, UM, IF IT DOES, WHO HAS OVERSIGHT ON THOSE RUNNING OF THOSE PROPERTIES? RIGHT.
THE, UH, THE HOTELS, UM, WERE INCLUDED AS PART OF THE COUNT ON, ON THE PIPELINE, UH, SINCE THEY'RE NOT OPEN YET.
UM, WE ACTUALLY HAVE A TOTAL OF FIVE, UH, IN, UH, IN THAT SERVICE AREA, TWO OF WHICH ARE, UM, UH, BRIDGE SHELTERS.
SO SOUTH BRIDGE, IT'S THE OLD ROADWAY INN, UH, ON WOODWARD AND I 35.
AND THEN NORTH BRIDGE, IT'S THE, UH, I BELIEVE THAT WAS A, UH, COUNTRY INN, UM, ON ST.
SO THOSE ARE BRIDGE SHELTERS, AND THOSE ARE MANAGED BY AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH.
UH, THE THREE OTHERS THAT WE'VE GOT, UH, PECAN GARDENS IN, UH, UH, UP ON, UP NEAR LAKELINE, WE'VE GOT, UH, BA BUNGALOWS, UH, WHICH IS ON NORTH MOPAC.
AND WE'VE GOT, UH, BALCONES TERRACE, WHICH IS, UH, RIGHT ACROSS FROM THE DOMAIN.
UH, PECAN GARDENS IS MANAGED BY FAMILY ELDER CARE, BUT IT IS OWNED BY THE CITY.
UH, SO WE HAVE A SERVICE CONTRACT WITH PECAN GARDENS.
WE HAVE A MANAGEMENT CONTRACT, UH, I'M SORRY, WITH, UH, FAMILY ELDER CARE.
UH, AND THEY ARE, UH, THEY ARE MANAGING THAT FACILITY FOR US.
THE, UH, UH, BOTH THE, BOTH THE REHABILITATION AND THE OPERATION, UH, ALCON'S TERRACE HAS A SIMILAR, UH, RELATIONSHIP, UH, AND THAT IS BEING MANAGED BY, UH, UH, FOUNDATION COMMUNITIES
[00:35:01]
AND BUNGALOWS HAS A SIMILAR RELATIONSHIP WHEREIN THEY ARE BEING MANAGED BY, UH, INTEGRAL CARE.AND THE SECOND PART OF MY QUESTION IS, AS FAR AS IT COMES TO RENTALS, DO WE KNOW WHAT THE AVERAGE RENTAL COST IS FOR THOSE THAT ARE FIXED INCOMES LIKE, UH, COMMUNITY HOUSING THAT PREDOMINANTLY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WOULD HAVE ACCESS TO OR TRADITIONALLY HAVE ACCESS TO AS LIKE A GROUP HOME KIND OF SETTING? ARE WE KEEPING TRACK OF THAT NUMBER? OR IS THERE ANY WAY, IS THERE ANY GRANTS THAT PEOPLE APPLY FOR THAT WE CAN GET THAT NUMBER, SO TO SPEAK? RIGHT.
UM, SO IN TERMS OF, IN TERMS OF WHAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY PAY, PAY ON THE MARKET, UM, WE WOULD NOT HAVE THAT INFORMATION ONLY BECAUSE WE DON'T TRACK MARKET TRENDS.
WE DON'T TRACK, WE ONLY LOOK AT AFFORDABLE HOUSING THAT IS RESTRICTED, AND OUR RENTS ARE, UH, DETERMINED BY HUD, ESSENTIALLY, UH, WE, WE INVEST IN OUR LOW INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT PROPERTIES.
UH, SO THEY HAVE TO FOLLOW, UH, THE HUD UH, REGULATIONS THAT SAY, THIS IS THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF RENT THAT A HOUSEHOLD EARNING 50% MFI CAN PAY.
SO OTHER THAN THE HUD GRANTS, WE DON'T HAVE, WE DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES HAVE BEEN DISPLACED IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN BECAUSE WE DON'T TRACK IT.
IS THAT CORRECT? UM, WELL, I'M, AND I'M SORRY.
I THINK THAT THAT WAS A, UH, I, MAYBE I MISUNDERSTANDING THE, THE FIRST PART OF YOUR QUESTION, UM, BECAUSE PART OF IT, PART OF THAT LED THIS TO THIS DISCUSSION WAS THAT THERE WAS A LACK OF HOUSING THAT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WOULD NORMALLY GO INTO, UH, ROOMMATES TOGETHER OR GET INTO SOME KIND OF GROUP HOME, BUT THE AVERAGE COST OF THOSE APARTMENTS OR ENTITIES ARE HIGHER THAN THE FIXED INCOME THAT GETS DISTRIBUTED FROM SSI OR WHATEVER INCOME SOURCE THEY USE.
AND I WAS WONDERING IF ANYBODY WITHIN THE CITY IS TRACKING THAT, BUT YOU JUST SAID YOU DON'T TRACK MARKET TRENDS, SO THAT'S A NUMBER DO NOT KNOW.
SO THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT WOULD NOT TRACK, WOULD NOT TRACK MARKET RATE INFORMATION.
UM, WE, UH, WE MANAGE THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
UM, SO, BUT, UM, I BELIEVE THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT MAY HAVE SOME INFORMATION ON THAT.
UM, IT'S, UH, OUR DEMOGRAPHER, UH, THE CITY DEMOGRAPHER, UH, HAS RELEASED SEVERAL REPORTS.
UM, BUT I, I CAN PROBABLY PUT YOU IN CONTACT WITH SOMEONE THAT WOULD HAVE A BETTER HANDLE ON, UH, THAT SPECIFIC PIECE BE ONLY BECAUSE IT'S, UH, UM, IT'S, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY PART OF OUR INVENTORY.
UM, AND IT'S MORE OF A, UH, MORE OF A POLICY RESEARCH QUESTION.
BECAUSE THAT SPEAKS TO THE GAPS.
BUT THAT SPEAKS TO THE CRUX OF THE ISSUE, BECAUSE ALL THESE PROGRAMS ARE GREAT IF YOU HAVE ESTABLISHED HOUSING, BUT IF YOU DON'T HAVE HOUSING, AND IF YOU'RE MOVING INTO AUSTIN AND YOU'RE A PERSON WITH DISABILITIES, YOU'RE ON A FIXED INCOME, THOSE GAPS STILL EXIST REGARDLESS.
AND I THINK WE'RE TRYING TO GET A HOLD OF WHAT THAT NUMBER ACTUALLY IS, OR WHAT THAT LACK OF AFFORDABILITY IS IF IT EXISTS.
UM, NOW WE DO KNOW HOW MANY AFFORDABLE, UH, RESTRICTED, AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNITS, UH, ARE IN OUR INVENTORY.
SO WE CAN PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION.
THAT WOULD BE, UH, UM, BUT THAT WOULD BE JUST THOSE THAT ARE CAPPED AT THAT INCOME LEVEL.
UM, AND IF THAT INCOME LEVEL DOESN'T MATCH UP WITH SS, I, THEN I, UH, NOT HARDLY.
WELL, IF YOU COULD SEND THAT TO OUR, OUR REP REPRESENTATIVES WHO GET DISTRIBUTED TO US, SO WE CAN ACTUALLY LOOK AT WHAT THOSE NUMBERS.
SO LET ME JUST MAKE SURE THAT I AM UNDERSTANDING THIS RIGHT.
WHEN YOU SAY AFFORDABLE HOUSING, HOW AFFORDABLE IT IS, IS DEPENDENT ON THE ALGORITHM THAT HUD PRODUCES AS FAR AS LIKE INCOME LEVELS.
SO Y'ALL ARE REALLY LOOKING AT DIFFERENT LEVELS OF INCOME AND THE PROPORTION OF HOUSING AVAILABLE AT THOSE DIFFERENT LEVELS.
THAT'S A, THAT'S A VERY GOOD IMPORTANT POINT.
UM, BECAUSE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT AFFORDABLE HOUSING, IT CAN GET CONFUSING BECAUSE THERE'S MULTIPLE FORMS OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING I MENTIONED, UH, NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, MOMENT AGO.
AND IT, CAPITAL A INCOME RESTRICTED.
UM, AND THAT'S WHAT WE DEAL WITH.
UH, WE, WE DO, UH, UH, WORK, WE WORK TO ACQUIRE SOME OF THE, UH, UH, NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO PRESERVE IT IN THAT WAY.
UM, UH, BUT FOR THE INCOME RESTRICTED HOUSING THAT WE HAVE, UH, THAT WE MANAGE AND THAT WE INVEST, THAT WE, UH, INCENTIVIZE, UH, YES, UH, THE FORMULA IS DETERMINED BY HUD, AND WE USE THAT PRIMARILY BECAUSE THE MAJORITY OF OUR INVESTMENTS ALSO HAVE FEDERAL FINANCING.
SO THEY HAVE TO FOLLOW THAT ANYWAY.
[00:40:01]
UM, AND BY HAVING THAT STANDARD, UH, APPLIED TO ANYTHING THAT DOESN'T HAVE FEDERAL FUNDS MAKES ADMINISTRATION OF THESE, UH, UH, UH, THESE PROGRAMS MUCH EASIER.UH, SO IT IS, IT IS, UH, UH, YEAH.
UM, BUT I WOULD JUST, I'D JUST LIKE TO ADD THAT I THINK THAT'S A REALLY, UM, IMPORTANT POINT THAT YOU'RE BRINGING UP BECAUSE, UM, 30% OF MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME FOR AUSTIN, THERE WAS A CHART THAT HE SHOWED THAT SHOWS THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME LEVELS FOR AUSTIN.
AND YOU CAN GET THAT CHART, IT'S ON THE INTERNET, OR HE CAN, IT'S PROBABLY INCLUDED WITH HIS HANDOUTS.
BUT ANYWAY, UM, 30% FOR ONE PERSON IS $24,500.
SO I MEAN, THAT'S, THAT'S PRETTY HIGH FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
UM, 80% OF FAMILY INCOME, OF MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME IN AUSTIN IS $65,450.
SO THAT COMES OUT TO ABOUT A FOUR, FIVE AND A HALF THOUSAND DOLLARS A MONTH INCOME.
THAT'S WHAT A LOT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS POINTED AT, IS AT THAT 80% LEVEL.
THE REASON WHY IT'S SO HIGH IS BECAUSE LOW INCOME PEOPLE HAVE BEEN FORCED OUT OF AUSTIN.
AND SO THE INCOMES IN AUSTIN ARE VERY HIGH.
SO EVEN OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROGRAMS TARGET A MUCH HIGHER LEVEL THAN WHAT MOST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES ACTUALLY LIVE AT.
AND SO THAT IS REALLY A BIG, HUGE PROBLEM WITH THE WAY THAT, I MEAN, IT'S NOT JUST AUSTIN, IT'S THE WHOLE COUNTRY THAT DOES THIS, BUT WITH OUR VERY HIGH INCOME, UM, THAT'S A VERY BIG PROBLEM ABOUT AFFORDABILITY FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
AND IF YOU WANNA KNOW THE NUMBER ONE, I MEAN, YOU, I I, FROM WHAT SOME OF YOUR EARLIER COMMENTS, I THINK YOU ALREADY KNOW THIS, BUT THE NUMBER ONE ACCESSIBILITY PROBLEM IN AUSTIN IS AFFORDABILITY.
THAT'S, THAT'S JUST REALLY, UM, I THINK I, THAT'S ONE THING THAT I WOULD LOVE FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE TO REALLY FOCUS ON WITH THE CITY AND TO DRILL IN ON BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S A HUGE PROBLEM.
AND THE WITH 30% BEING THE LOWEST LEVEL THAT THEY TARGET, YOU KNOW, IT JUST DOESN'T TRICKLE THAT FAR, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING? SO, UM, I'M REALLY, REALLY EXCITED THAT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THIS SUBJECT AND THAT YOU'RE, UM, HONING IN ON IT.
WELL, AND ALSO, UM, PEOPLE WITH, WITH DISABILITIES WHO ARE ON A FIXED INCOME LIKE SOCIAL SECURITY, THERE ARE VERY STRICT GUIDELINES ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY THEY CAN HAVE SAVED OR HOW MUCH ASSETS THEY CAN HAVE.
AND I THINK THAT REALLY, REALLY IMPACTS, UM, THEIR ABILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN HOUSING AND THINGS LIKE HOME OWNERSHIP EXACTLY.
WE KNOW IS IMPORTANT, UM, TO FINANCIAL STABILITY.
AND NOT ONLY, ANOTHER THING I WANTED TO MENTION IS THAT, UM, THAT ARCHITECTURE BARRIER REMOVAL PROGRAM, UM, THERE IS A VERY LOW PARTICIPATION RATE RATE IN THE RENTER PART OF THAT PROGRAM.
AND THAT IS A CONCERN THAT I WOULD, AGAIN, HOPE THAT THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE COULD TAKE, UM, SOME TIME WITH, BECAUSE, UM, I THINK THAT IT CAN BE BOOSTED.
I MEAN, THERE'S MILLIONS, LOTS OF PEOPLE IN AUSTIN WHO NEED ACCESSIBLE APARTMENTS THAT DON'T HAVE 'EM.
SO THEY COULD DEFINITELY BENEFIT FROM ARCHITECTURE BARRIER REMOVAL, BUT I'M NOT REALLY SURE WHAT THE PROBLEM IS, BUT IT'S VERY LOW.
AT ONE POINT, I HAD SUGGESTED TO THE CITY THAT THEY, UH, MAYBE TRY TO GET THE LANDLORDS TO USE THE ARCHITECTURE BARRIER REMOVAL PROGRAM BECAUSE, WELL, JUST SO YOU KNOW, LIKE THE AUSTIN TENANTS COUNCIL USED TO DO A REPORT ON THE PERCENTAGE OF DISCRIMINATION, UM, THAT THEY, UH, IN VARIOUS TYPES OF DISCRIMINATION THAT THEY INVESTIGATE.
AND THE HIGHEST LEVEL FOR YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR, BY LARGE PORTIONS, WAS, UH, DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
AND I THINK THAT YOU WILL FIND THAT MAYBE ONE OF THE REASONS WHY RENTERS ARE A LITTLE LEERY OF USING AN ARCHITECTURE BARRIER REMOVAL GRANT, IT WOULD BE BECAUSE, UM, OR ASSISTANCE IS BECAUSE OF A RETRIBUTION FROM THE LANDLORDS.
UM, I THINK ALSO THERE'S A LACK OF AWARENESS OF THE PROGRAM, BUT I MEAN, I THINK THAT'S A VERY
[00:45:01]
BIG PROBLEM.AND I THINK THAT, UM, THE, THIS PERCENTAGE OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN OUR CITY IS A HUGE PROBLEM AS WELL.
SO, UM, I, THAT WAS ANOTHER THING I WANTED TO MENTION TO YOU GUYS, BECAUSE I THINK IT'S, IT'S, UH, REALLY, UM, IT'S, IT'S A HIDDEN PROBLEM UNLESS WE BRING IT OUT AND MAKE A, MAKE A BIG DEAL ABOUT IT, DISABILITY JUST SLIDES AWAY UNDER THE RUG UNLESS WE MAKE A BIG NOISE ABOUT IT.
AND THERE'S NOT THAT MUCH GOING ON IN TERMS OF MAKING NOISE ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW.
AND, UH, SO I REALLY HOPE THAT YOU CAN TAKE YOUR ROLE WITHIN THE CITY TO, TO MAKE SOME NOISE AND TO, TO PUSH FOR, FOR BETTER CONDITIONS AND BRING UP SOME OF THESE ISSUES.
I MEAN, YOU HAD MENTIONED ABOUT THE GROUP HOMES EARLIER.
I THINK I, I'M SORRY, BUT THE PRINT IS REALLY SMALL.
I THINK YOUR NAME'S PETE, UM, AND YOU COMMISSION SHELTER.
YOU, YOU HAD MENTIONED EARLIER ABOUT THE, UM, THE GROUP HOMES, BUT ANOTHER BIG ISSUE THAT MAY COME UP WITH THIS, UM, LAND USE, UM, THING THAT THEY JUST DID LAST NIGHT, A HOME HOME THING, IS THAT THEY'RE UN UNCAPPING THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT CAN BE IN A HOUSE.
AND SO PREVIOUSLY THERE WAS A VERY, I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS NOW, BUT I KNOW THAT PREVIOUSLY THERE WAS A REALLY BIG PROBLEM ABOUT BOARD AND CARE HOMES WHERE LARGE NUMBERS OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, OFTEN PEOPLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH DISABILITIES WERE JUST KIND OF CRAMMED INTO A HOUSE AND GOT MINIMAL, IF ANY SERVICES AT ALL, YET THEIR ENTIRE CHECK WAS TAKEN.
AND SO, UM, I THINK THAT ONE THING THAT WE NEED TO GUARD AGAINST, I MEAN, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE THAT THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS, BUT, UH, IF WE DON'T GUARD AGAINST IT, I MEAN, I THINK THERE'S A GOOD CHANCE OF THAT BECAUSE HOUSING IS SO LIMITED AND PEOPLE'S INCOMES ARE SO LIMITED.
SO I REALLY HOPE THAT, UM, THAT, THAT, AGAIN, THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE WILL TAKE, UM, KEEP AN EYE ON THAT AS WELL.
UM, WE'RE GOING TO BE SPEAKING TO THIS LATER ON THE, ANOTHER PART OF THE MEETING, BUT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TOWN HALLS THAT WE'RE GONNA, WELL, WE'RE GONNA VOTE ON TO HAVE TOWN HALLS IN QUESTIONNAIRES COMING UP FOR THE, FOR THE JANUARY AND FEBRUARY, SO WE CAN TAKE THAT, UH, INFORMATION BACK FOR THE LARGE BUDGET.
SO THAT WOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO SPEAK ON THESE ISSUES LIKE YOU MADE US AWARE OF TODAY.
UM, ANOTHER TWO THING I WANNA MAKE YOU AWARE OF THAT IS A REALLY COOL TOOL THAT'S COMING ALONG FOR, FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IS THAT AFTER 50 YEARS SINCE THE SECTION 5 0 4 REGULATIONS WERE FIRST, UM, PUT OUT, AND THEY APPLY TO ALL THE HOUSING THAT GETS FEDERAL FUNDING.
AND AS JAMIE MENTIONED, A LOT OF THE HOUSING, IF NOT ALL OF THE HOUSING, THAT THE CITY THAT DEVELOPS GETS FEDERAL FUNDS, AT LEAST IN PART.
SO THEY'RE ALL COVERED BY 5 0 4.
THOSE REGULATIONS ARE BEING REWRITTEN BY THE H HUD.
AND SO, UM, AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE ACTUALLY REALLY SEEM TO BE INTERESTED IN DOING SOME REALLY COOL STUFF.
AND SO, UM, THEY JUST WENT THROUGH A ROUND WHERE THEY WERE ASKING QUESTIONS OF THE PUBLIC THAT'S CLOSED, BUT NOW THEY'LL BE WRITING DRAFT REGULATIONS AND THEN PE Y'ALL AS A ORGANIZATION OR AS INDIVIDUALS, CAN COMMENT ON THOSE RULES.
YOU CAN TALK ABOUT IF THEY'RE, IF YOU SEE GAPS OR IF YOU SEE THINGS THAT YOU REALLY LIKE OR WHATEVER, THEY'LL BE COMING OUT.
I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHEN, BUT I'LL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO LET Y'ALL KNOW WHEN THEY ARE.
BUT THAT'S ANOTHER TOOL THAT'S VERY MUCH AVAILABLE TO YOU IN ADDITION TO FAIR HOUSING, WHICH EVERYBODY TALKS ABOUT FAIR HOUSING, AND IT'S A GREAT LAW, BUT IT'S NOT THE ONLY LAW.
AND 5 0 4 IS ACTUALLY A LITTLE BIT STRONGER THAN FAIR HOUSING IN TERMS OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR ACCESSIBILITY AND FOR PROGRAM ACCESS.
UM, WHICH IS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, SORT OF MAYBE THE NON-PHYSICAL ACCESSIBILITY OF HOUSING, UM, LIKE, UH, POLICIES THAT THE HOUSING PEOPLE MAY HAVE, UM, THAT DISCRIMINATE AGAINST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND SO FORTH.
SO I REALLY URGE YOU TO KEEP YOUR EYE OPEN FOR THAT AND TO, UM, TO REALLY THINK ABOUT THAT.
AND, AND MAYBE, UH, IN YOUR FORUMS YOU CAN, YOU CAN HAVE SOME, UH, DISCUSSION ABOUT THAT AS WELL.
AND THE OTHER THING IS, IS THAT, UM, ANOTHER ORGANIZATION THAT I WORK WITH ADAPT, UM, MANY YEAR, YEARS AGO NOW, BUT WE, UH, FILED A COMPLAINT AGAINST THE CITY FOR FAILURE TO ENFORCE THE ACCESSIBILITY RULES THAT THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE ENFORCING AND THEY WEREN'T ENFORCING.
UM, NOW I BELIEVE THEY DO A BETTER JOB, BUT I, I, I AM CONCERNED ABOUT SOME SLIPPAGE.
SO I HOPE THAT Y'ALL, UM, KEEP AN EYE ON THAT TOO.
BUT, UM, WHEN, WHEN WE FILED THAT COMPLAINT, IT WAS A BIG BATTLE, BUT IT, UH, IT CAME, CAME TO THE END WITH A VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE
[00:50:01]
AGREEMENT, UM, THAT, UH, THE CITY AND, UH, ADAPT AND, UM, HUD ALL AGREED ON.AND PART OF IT WAS FOR THAT WE WOULD DEVELOP SOME, UH, INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS ABOUT DI DISABILITY RIGHTS FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
AND I'D BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SHARE THAT WITH Y'ALL.
AND, UM, POSSIBLY THAT MIGHT BE A RESOURCE THAT YOU COULD PROVIDE AT THE TOWN HALLS IF YOU LIKE THEM OR, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN EDIT THEM.
WE DON'T REALLY HAVE A VERY STRONG, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, OWNERSHIP FEELING ABOUT 'EM.
UH, BUT WE'D LOVE TO SHARE THEM WITH YOU AND GET THEM OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY.
'CAUSE WE'D LOVE TO GET MORE HOUSING ADVOCATES OUT THERE.
WE, WE HAVE TO VOTE ON THIS RIGHT NOW FOR THIS MEETING.
BUT ONCE THAT'S ESTABLISHED, YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO COME PARTICIPATE IN ALL THE TOWN HALL MEETINGS THAT WE'RE, HAVE INCLUDED THE ONES THAT ARE VIRTUAL AND WE CAN GET THIS INFORMATION OUT TO THE PUBLIC.
AND, UM, UNFORTUNATELY WE NEED TO MOVE ON.
WE HAVE OTHER ITEMS ON THE AGENDA.
WE'RE PRETTY FAR, PRETTY LATE, BUT WE WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
UM, FOR THOSE ITEMS YOU SAID YOU WERE WILLING TO SHARE, WE WOULD DEFINITELY, UM, IF YOU COULD SHARE WITH OUR LIAISON SO WE CAN DISTRIBUTE IT AMONGST OUR COMMISSION.
WE DEFINITELY WOULD LIKE TO LOOK OVER THAT AND, UM, FORMULATE A GAME PLAN OF HOW WE, AS A COMMISSION WOULD LIKE TO PROCEED.
BUT, UH, FIRST OF ALL, I JUST WANNA THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION PROVIDED.
AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR, UM, ENCOURAGEMENT FOR US TO WORK TOWARDS MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING BECAUSE DUE TO FIXED INCOME, DUE TO COST OF LIVING, INFLATION, ALL OF THAT, SO MANY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES ARE AFFECTED.
AND, UM, MAJORITY OF AUSTIN'S UNAFFORDABLE.
AND I'D LIKE TO THANK YOU AND INVITE ANY AND ALL OF YOU TO COME AND VISIT, UH, THE APARTMENTS THAT WE BUILT ON, UH, BRIARCLIFF BRIARCLIFF APARTMENTS.
UM, AND, UH, WE'D LOVE TO SHOW THEM TO YOU.
THEY'RE, WE'RE KIND OF PROUD OF THEM.
SO WE'RE MOVING ON TO DISCUSSION
[5. Discussion and action on report from the Safety and Accessibility for People with Disabilities on Austin’s Public Transportation System Workgroup’s activities including a review and approval of a transportation questionnaire, and discussion and approval of holding town halls. (Vice Chair Meyer) ]
AND ACTION ITEM NUMBER FIVE, DISCUSSION AND ACTION ON REPORT FROM THE SAFETY AND ACCESSIBILITY FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES ON AUSTIN'S PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS WORK GROUP ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING THE REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF TRANSPORTATION QUESTIONNAIRE AND DISCUSSION AND APPROVAL OF HOLDING TOWN HALLS.SO, UM, THE SUBCOMMITTEE, WE'VE HAD TWO MEETINGS TOGETHER AND WE HAVE DEVELOPED A, UM, A QUESTIONNAIRE AND WE HAVE IT IN ENGLISH AND ALSO IN SPANISH.
UM, AND BASICALLY JUST ASK PEOPLE ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE WRITING, UM, USING PUBLIC TRANSIT.
AND IT ASKS THEM ABOUT HOW SAFE THEY FEEL, HOW OFTEN THEY USE IT, WHAT KIND, HOW, WHERE THEY'RE GOING, UM, THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM, EVERY, IT WAS ALSO THE QUESTIONNAIRE ITSELF WAS ATTACHED TO, UM, THE EMAIL WITH THE AGENDA THIS MONTH.
UM, SO DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE QUESTIONNAIRE ITSELF? UNFORTUNATELY, I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET INTO IT.
I'VE BEEN KIND OF LOCKED OUTTA MY CITY EMAIL, SO I NEED TO, I WOULD LIKE TO LOOK AT THAT.
UM, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING I'D, YOU KNOW, DEFINITELY APPRECIATE Y'ALL, Y'ALL, YOU BOTH FORMULATING.
'CAUSE WE'RE KIND OF DOWN THE, THE, THE EIGHT BALL, BECAUSE WE NEED TO START HAVING THESE TOWN HALLS IF WE'RE GONNA MEET THE TIMELINE TO PUT A RECOMMENDATION DOWN FOR THE BUDGET FOR ANY OF THE NEW BUDGET, IF THAT'S WHAT'S GOING TO COME OUT OF THE TOWN HALLS, WE WANT TO GIVE OURSELVES THE ABILITY TO DO THAT.
UM, SO IF YOU HAVEN'T LOOKED AT IT, MAYBE, UM, LET ME SEE.
UM, PETE, CAN YOU GET IN, GET INTO IT AND JUST KIND OF BRIEFLY GO OVER WHAT IT, WHAT IT ASKS? LET ME SEE IF I CAN BRING IT UP BECAUSE WE DO REALLY NEED TO VOTE ON IT TONIGHT.
UM, BECAUSE WE WERE DISCUSSING ABOUT HAVING A COUPLE OF TOWN HALLS IN DIFFERENT PLACES IN THE CITY AND, UM, YOU KNOW, HAVING PEOPLE FILL OUT THE QUESTIONNAIRES, BUT ALSO JUST TRYING TO GET A FEEL ABOUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO THE OTHER PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THE CITY, WHAT KIND OF PROBLEMS THEY'RE FACING AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
JUST KIND OF LIKE, UM, MORE OF LIKE A FOCUS GROUP.
AND I CAN READ, I COULD READ A, A LITTLE BIT OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE.
AND IT SAYS DAILY, WEEKLY, MONTHLY, A FEW TIMES A YEAR.
ANOTHER QUESTION IS, WHEN DO YOU TAKE THE BUS? DO YOU GO CHECK ANY THAT APPLY?
[00:55:01]
IT'S GROCERY VOLUNTEER SHOPPING, RECREATIONAL AIRPORT, AMTRAK MEDICAL.SO IT'S, WE'RE, AND THEN, UM, DIFFERENT TYPES OF BUS LINES.
IF YOU TAKE THE BUS, DO YOU SIT, FEEL SAFE, VERY SAFE, UNSAFE, MOSTLY UNSAFE.
AND IT'S JUST QUESTIONNAIRE HOW, BUT IN THE PAST SIX MONTHS, HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WAITING FOR THE BUS TO TRAIN? AND THEN IT'S ALSO TALKING ABOUT SAFETY.
SO IT'S REALLY JUST THE, UH, ASKING THE PUBLIC ON HOW THEY FELT ABOUT THEIR SAFETY AND ANY OF THE NEEDS THAT THEY MAY WANNA FOCUS ON.
SO WE CAN THEN TAKE A LOOK AT THAT AND IT SEPARATES RIDING, RIDING THE BUS OR THE LITTLE TRAIN AND THE BUS STOPS, SO THAT WAY PEOPLE MAY FEEL COMFORTABLE.
IT ALSO ASKS WHAT RI LIKE THE, I THINK IT SAYS, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S THE TOP THREE OR FIVE, UM, LINES, PEOPLE RIDE SO THAT WE CAN TELL LIKE, OH, THESE PEOPLE TEND TO RIDE IN THIS AREA AND THEY FEEL A CERTAIN WAY.
OR YEAH, THESE PEOPLE FEEL SAFE RIDING THE BUS, BUT THEY DON'T FEEL SAFE AT THE BUS STOPS.
UM, SO IT'S PRETTY, I THINK IT'S, HOW MANY QUESTIONS IS IT? IT'S LIKE, LEMME SEE.
IT'S NOT A LONG SURVEY, BUT IT IS SEPARATED OUT SO THAT WE CAN GET REALLY DETAILED AND MEANINGFUL INFORMATION FROM IT.
AND I THINK I'VE, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT'S JUST A STEPPING POINT.
'CAUSE WE'RE GONNA ALLOW PEOPLE OH, THERE IT IS.
GONNA ALLOW THE PEOPLE ABILITY TO SPEAK ON ACCESSIBILITY NEEDS, UH, SAFETY AND ALSO LIKE WE'RE DISCUSSING NOW EVEN HERE HOUSING.
SO WE, BECAUSE THAT'S RECORDED INFORMATION AND THEN WE CAN TAKE THE PUBLIC COMMENT AND REALLY FOCUS IT ON THE RECOMMENDATION IF THAT STATED.
SO I WOULD LIKE US TO HAVE A VOTE SO WE CAN HOLD THESE TOWN HALLS SO WE CAN CAPTURE THE PUBLIC'S VOICE AND WE CAN DO THAT IN A VARIETY OF AREAS OF TOWN.
I KNOW FOR, UH, TEXAS EMPOWERMENT MEN ACADEMY BUILT A NEW SCHOOL THAT'S GONNA COME ONLINE IN JANUARY.
THEY ALREADY VOLUNTEERED TO BE A CENTER FOR THEIR AREA OF TOWN, WHICH IS NORTH EAST AUSTIN.
WHAT HAVE Y'ALL PLANNED AS A METHODOLOGY OF A METHODOLOGY OF CIRCULATION SO THAT WE CAN GET AS MUCH FEEDBACK AS POSSIBLE? UM, WELL THIS IS ACTUALLY A GOOGLE, UH, I THINK IT'S CALLED GOOGLE FORMS. MM-HMM.
I HAVE IT IN GOOGLE FORMS. MM-HMM.
UM, AND THEN WE CAN ALSO JUST PASS IT OUT ELECTRONICALLY WITH GOOGLE FORMS. YOU CAN CREATE QR CODES SO PEOPLE CAN REALLY QUICKLY AND EASILY GET ACCESS TO IT.
UM, WE CAN ALSO PUSH IT OUT TO, UM, LIKE THE, THE JOINT INCLUSION COMMISSION AND UM, OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES.
WE CAN PUSH IT OUT TO, UM, A DAPT AND, OR NOT ADEPT, BUT EASTERSEALS AND MM-HMM.
LIKE POSSIBLE, UM, SUGGESTIONS.
UH, DEFINITELY YOUR OWN PERSONAL NETWORKS AS WELL AS, UM, DIFFERENT DISABILITY ORGANIZATIONS IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
ADAPT, NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND, AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND.
THERE'S, UH, OTHER, UM, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WHO ARE DEAF.
I KNOW THEY PROBABLY HAVE SOME ORGANIZATIONS, I JUST CAN'T THINK OF 'EM AT THE TOP OF MY HEAD.
BUT WE CAN ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, DO, UH, SOME GOOGLE RESEARCH ON DIFFERENT DISABILITY ORGANIZATIONS IN AUSTIN.
UH, MAYBE CHRIS CO REHABILITATION CENTER, EVEN ICAL FOR THE BLIND, JUST, YOU KNOW, SPEAKING FROM MY OWN COMMUNITY.
BUT, UM, JUST, UM, IF WE DO, I, IF WE DO VOTE ON THIS AND APPROVE IT, I DEFINITELY WANNA ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO REACH OUT TO THEIR OWN PERSONAL NETWORKS AND WE CAN WORK, COLLABORATE TOGETHER ON OUR OWN TO CIRCULATE THIS AMONGST OUR, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT NETWORKS IN AUSTIN.
BUT I'M GONNA OPEN THE FLOOR FOR ANY OTHER COMMISSIONER WHO HAS ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS WE CAN EMAIL THROUGH LIKE DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT AVENUES.
BUT ALSO I CAN MAKE A FLYER WITH THAT QR CODE MM-HMM.
DID ANY OTHER COMMISSIONER HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? WELL, THIS IS KRISTIN ELLO.
I HAVE JUST ONE THOUGHT AND I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT WAS DONE ON THIS AND I DEFINITELY MM-HMM,
I, THE ONLY THING I'M WORRIED ABOUT, NOT WORRIED,
[01:00:01]
BUT DO WE WANT TO HAVE A MORE COMPREHENSIVE SURVEY IF WE'RE GOING TO GO TO THESE COMMUNITIES THAT IS TALKING ABOUT OTHER THINGS AS WELL, LIKE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, IN SOME OTHER ISSUES THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT.I MEAN, WE COULD, WE COULD ALWAYS ADD THAT ON, BUT WE JUST NEED TO VOTE ON TO WHETHER OR NOT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TOWN HALLS AND THEN WE CAN SCHEDULE THAT AND HAVE THOSE, SO THOSE QUESTIONNAIRES ADDED TO THAT.
AND I REALLY WOULD SAY THAT THAT'S THE PURPOSE OF THE TOWN HALLS.
YOU WANNA BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN CREATING QUESTIONNAIRES THAT YOU DON'T PUT IN TOO MUCH INFORMATION BECAUSE IF YOU HAVE SO MANY REALLY VAGUE QUESTIONS, IT DOESN'T REALLY TELL YOU MUCH.
AND IF YOU GET DETAILED ON HOUSING AND DETAILED ON TRANSPORTATION AND DETAILED ON OTHER THINGS, THEN THE QUESTIONNAIRE GETS TOO LONG AND THEN YOU HAVE QUESTIONNAIRE FATIGUE AND PEOPLE START JUST NOT REALLY FOCUSING.
SO THAT'S WHY WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HAVING THE TOWN HALLS SO THAT IT WOULD GIVE PEOPLE OPPORTUNITY OR EVEN AS WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH SENDING OUT THESE QUESTIONNAIRES AND WE'RE COMMUNICATING WITH, UM, OUR PERSONAL PEOPLE AND OTHER ORGANIZATIONS MM-HMM.
HEY, IF YOU HAVE OTHER AREAS OF NEED, PLEASE LET US KNOW.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THE TOWN HALLS ARE OPEN.
WE'LL BE MORE LIKE RUN MORE LIKE A FOCUS GROUP, JUST LIKE MORE OPEN, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT YOU NEED.
ANY OTHER COMMISSIONER? HAVE ANY QUESTION? UM, THIS IS COMMISSIONER RAMIREZ.
I WAS JUST, UM, THE SAME WAY THAT WE HAVE STUFF BROKEN UP BETWEEN, UM, THE WAITING FOR THE BUS VERSUS ON THE BUS.
WOULD IT BE HELPFUL? I KNOW, AGAIN, GOTTA KEEP THE SCOPE SMALL TO HAVE A BREAKDOWN IF SOMEONE SELECTS YES THERE, THERE'S AN ACCESSIBILITY ISSUE OF THE KIND OF ACCESSIBILITY ISSUE IF THEY'RE EXPERIENCING WHETHER THAT'S LIKE A DROP DONE MENU OR SOMETHING, SOMETHING LIKE, UM, YEAH.
WHETHER IT'S A, I CAN ON THE BUS, WHETHER IT'S A PHYSICAL ISSUE OR WHETHER IT'S AN ISSUE WITH THE BUS DRIVER, UDAL BEAR AND THAT KIND OF THING.
AND WE COULD PROP THOSE QUESTION, WE CAN PROMPT THOSE QUESTIONS DURING THE TOWN HALL BECAUSE WE CAN HAVE SOMEBODY RUNNING THE TOWN HALL AND THEN BASED ON THE QUESTIONNAIRES THAT WE GET, THOSE CAN BE TOPICS OF CONVERSATION AND THEN PEOPLE CAN BRING IN MORE INFORMATION, YOU KNOW, TO THEIR DISCUSSION ON HOWEVER IT GOES, DEPENDING ON THE AREA OF TOWN AND THE TOWN HALL.
AND I DON'T THINK IT WOULD BE, UM, I MEAN I THINK THAT THAT IS A REALLY VALID POINT THAT YOU BROUGHT UP.
AND SO I CAN ADD LIKE ONE QUESTION ABOUT LIKE WHAT IS THE BIGGEST PROBLEM YOU'RE FACING? YOU KNOW, IS IT SAFETY, IS IT ACCESSIBILITY, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER, OR UM, OR MAYBE JUST HAVE A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN JUST WRITE IN, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEY'RE HAVING.
YOU COULD HAVE AN OPEN-ENDED QUESTION.
I WILL ADD THAT TO THE QUESTIONNAIRE.
'CAUSE I HEARD A STORY THE OTHER DAY, BUT UNFORTUNATELY WE'RE A LITTLE SHORT ON TIME.
UM, BUT THAT'S SOME SOMETHING WE CAN DISCUSS.
I THINK THIS IS A, A WORTHWHILE ENDEAVOR TO VOTE ON.
UM, SO I'LL LEAVE IT UP TO THE COMMISSION 'CAUSE I CANNOT MAKE A MOTION.
SO IF SOMEONE WANTS TO MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THESE TOWN HALLS, PLEASE DO SO.
I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE TOWN HALLS AND THIS SURVEY.
CAN WE GET A SECOND OR I'LL SECOND IF I CAN? YEAH, YOU CAN.
I'M THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN'T VOTE.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
E UH, COMM OR VICE CHAIR MEYER AND COMMISSIONER SALAZAR FOR YOUR HARD WORK.
I APOLOGIZE FOR MISSING THE MEETINGS, BUT I DEFINITELY REALLY WANNA MAKE THE NEXT ONE, SO THANK YOU.
[6. Discussion and possible action to establish a working group to review an amended census for people with new physical or mental challenges and people who are experiencing lifelong physical or mental challenges. ]
OKAY.ITEM NUMBER SIX, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO DE STAB TO ESTABLISH A WORKING GROUP TO REVIEW AN AMENDED CENSUS FOR PEOPLE WITH NEW PHYSICAL OR MENTAL CHALLENGES AND PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPERIENCING LIFELONG PHYSICAL OR MENTAL CHALLENGES.
WHO WAS THE AUTHOR ON THIS, UM, AGENDA TOPIC? THERE WAS MULTIPLE PEOPLE, SO I DIDN'T ASSIGN IT TO JUST ONE.
IT CAME UP IN LAST MONTH'S MEETING DISCUSSION TO ESTABLISH A WORKING GROUP.
WAS THERE SOMEONE ON THIS COMMITTEE WHO WAS HERE ON THIS COMMISSION THAT WANTED THIS ON THE AGENDA? I WASN'T HERE LAST MONTH, SO I, I'M NOT SURE
[01:05:03]
HEARING NONE.WE'LL TABLE THIS TO THE NEXT AGENDA.
JUST UM, AND THEN WE'LL FIND OUT WHO WENT THIS ON THE, AND THEN YOU MEET US AT THE HIGH SCHOOL.
[7. Discussion and possible action to review and/or establish goals for the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities. (Vice Chair Meyer) ]
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO REVIEW AND OR ESTABLISH GOALS FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.OKAY, SO THAT SOUNDS LIKE AN OPEN-ENDED, UM, TOPIC FOR ANY COMMISSIONER.
A MOTION TO VOTE? WE NEED A SECOND.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF A SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
I HEARD TWO PEOPLE ON THE VIRTUAL END.
WHAT'D YOU SAY? UM, ALSO, JENNIFER, CAN WE HAVE YOU, UM, ON CAMERA? YEAH.
THAT LAST PHOTO, I ONLY HEARD VICE CHAIR MEYER AND COMMISSIONER SALAZAR ON THE VOTE.
I, SORRY GUYS, I'M RUNNING OUT THE DOOR TO THE NUTCRACKER.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE EVERYONE HAS THEIR VOICE HEARD AND WE NEED A MAJORITY VOTE.
SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I HEARD EVERYONE CORRECTLY.
HAS BEEN, UH, MOVED, ADOPTED, ALL THAT GOOD STUFF.
[8. Discussion and possible action to determine ad hoc committees based on the goals of the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities. ]
WHICH IS OUR FINAL ITEM DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO DETERMINE AD HOC COMMITTEES BASED ON THE GOALS OF THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.SO CAN WE TABLE THAT UNTIL WE WRITE UP THE GOALS AND THEN WE CAN MAKE A VOTE ON THAT? YES.
YEAH, I THINK THAT WAS THE DISCUSSION.
LAST MEETING IS TO ESTABLISH GOALS AND, UM, THEN CREATE THE COMMITTEES FOR THAT.
SO, UM, I'LL, WE'LL TABLE THAT FOR NEXT MEETING.
CAN WE JUST, UM, JACQUELINE, IF YOU DON'T MIND, JUST READ OFF THE ITEMS THAT WE ARE TABLING TO NEXT MEETING, JUST SO THAT EVERYONE IS AWARE.
NEXT MONTH WE WILL HAVE, UM, UPDATES FROM THE CO OF DISABILITY ACCESS TASK FORCE LIAISON.
IF THEY ARE IN ATTENDANCE, WE WILL DISCUSS, UM, AND HAVE A POSSIBLE ACTION TO ESTABLISH WORKING GROUPS TO REVIEW AND AMEND ASSISTANCE, UM, CENSUS FOR PEOPLE WITH NEW OR PHYSICAL MENTAL CHALLENGES AND PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPERIENCING LIFELONG PHYSICAL OR MENTAL CHALLENGES.
WE'LL ALSO HAVE A DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO REVIEW AND OR ESTABLISH GOALS FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION TO DETERMINE AD HOC COMMITTEES BASED ON THE GOALS OF THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ]
SO IT LOOKS LIKE THE LAST ITEM WOULD BE FEATURE AGENDA ITEMS OTHER THAN WHAT YOU'VE HEARD OR DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY ITEMS THAT THEY WOULD LIKE ON THE NEXT MONTH'S AGENDA? NONE AT THIS TIME.UM, IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING IN BETWEEN NOW AND THEN, UH, BEFORE NEXT MEETING, UM, BEFORE THE TUESDAY OF THE WEEK OF THE MEETING, PLEASE, YOU CAN ALWAYS EMAIL ME.
UNFORTUNATELY, MY OUTLOOK IS WONKY, AS YOU CAN TELL.
I CAN, I WAS UNABLE TO USE MY COMPUTER TONIGHT, BUT I'LL DO MY BEST TO RESPOND.
OR, AS I KNOW, COMMISSIONER SALAZAR AND VICE MEYER WORKED TOGETHER IN, UM, HAVING TWO PEOPLE MOTION TO HAVE IT PUT ONTO THE AGENDA.
JACQUELINE, IF YOU CAN FIND ANOTHER COMMISSIONER TO SUPPORT THE TOPIC YOU WANT, YOU WANT ON THE AGENDA.
JUST ASK ONE MORE TIME IF ANYONE HAS ANYTHING TO ADD FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEM.
HEARING NONE, I'LL ACCEPT A MOTION FOR THE MEETING TO BE ADJOURNED.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR PLEASE SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE.
I WANNA WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY HOLIDAY, A SAFE NEW YEAR.
UM, IF YOU DON'T CELEBRATE, JUST PLEASE STAY SAFE.
UM, STAY WARM IF IT GETS COLD, AND, UM, I LOOK FORWARD TO TALKING TO YOU'ALL NEXT MONTH.