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[CALL TO ORDER]
MORNING EVERYONE.MY NAME IS VANESSA FUENTES, MAYOR PRO TEM AND CHAIR OF THE AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE.
I CALLED TO ORDER THIS MEETING OF THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE.
THE TIME IS 10:00 AM ON WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5TH, 2025, AND WE ARE IN THE CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS WELCOME EVERYONE TO OUR FIRST PUBLIC HEALTH COMMITTEE MEETING OF THE YEAR.
IT IS AN EXCITING TIME FOR US.
I WANNA FIRST AND FOREMOST THANK COUNCIL MEMBER VELASQUEZ FOR HIS, UH, LEADERSHIP ON THIS COMMITTEE, SERVING AS OUR VICE CHAIR OF THESE LAST FEW YEARS.
AND THEN ALSO WELCOME OUR NEW COLLEAGUE, COUNCIL MEMBER, MARK UCHIN FOR, AND WELCOME YOU TO SERVE AS OUR VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THESE NEXT FEW YEARS.
WE ONLY HAVE A FEW ITEMS. UH, JUST TO GO OVER THE, THE RUN OF SHOW, WE'LL HAVE PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS.
THEN WE'LL CONSIDER APPROVING THE MINUTES FROM THE DECEMBER 4TH COMMITTEE MEETING.
AND THEN FROM THERE WE'LL HEAD INTO A DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION RELATED TO THE STRATEGIC GOALS NEEDED TO ADDRESS INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
AND THEN WE'LL BE JOINED BY OUR HOUSING DEPARTMENT FOR DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PIPELINE AND ONGOING NEEDS.
UM, ALSO WANNA RECOGNIZE COUNCIL MEMBER ZOE CADRE AS A MEMBER OF THIS COMMITTEE.
THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING YOUR SERVICE COUNCIL MEMBER RYAN ALTER WILL BE JOINING US HERE SHORTLY.
UM, AS WELL A MEMBER OF OUR COMMITTEE.
ANY QUESTIONS ON THE AGENDA? ALL.
ALRIGHT, WE'LL NOW WELCOME SPEAKERS FROM THE COMMUNITY.
MAY THE CLERK'S OFFICE, PLEASE START US WITH OUR FIRST SPEAKER.
THERE ARE NO SPEAKERS SIGNED UP VERY WELL, THANK YOU.
[Approval of Minutes]
TO THE APPROVAL OF PREVIOUS MEETING MINUTES FOR ITEM NUMBER ONE.CAN I GET A MOTION MOTIONED BY COUNCIL MEMBER CADRE AND SECONDED BY COUNCILMAN VELASQUEZ FOR THE APPROVAL OF THE DECEMBER 4TH, 2024 MEETING MINUTES.
ANY DISCUSSION OR CORRECTION? SEEING NONE.
ANY OBJECTION TO APPROVING THE MEETING MINUTES? SEEING NONE THOSE MEETING MINUTES FROM DECEMBER 4TH, 2024, STAND APPROVED.
[2. Discussion and possible action on the strategic goals the City has and possible steps to address the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness by the Homeless Strategy Office.]
MOVE ON TO OUR NEXT ITEM, WHICH IS DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON THE STRATEGIC GOALS THE CITY HAS AND POSSIBLE STEPS TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.UM, WITH THIS WE'LL WELCOME GARY P*****K.
UM, GARY P*****K, WHO, UH, DOES POLICY AND PLANNING WITH THE HOMELESSNESS STRATEGY OFFICE.
WE APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE AND KICKING OFF THE YEAR WITH A DISCUSSION ON OUR STRATEGIC GOALS.
UM, AND THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBERS FOR INVITING US TODAY.
UM, I'M EXCITED TO TO SHARE THIS WITH YOU AS WE KIND OF KICK OFF A NEW CALENDAR YEAR.
UM, AND AS THE HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICE CONTINUES, OUR EFFORTS, UM, TO, UM, MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR, SOME OF OUR MOST VULNERABLE, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
UM, SO JUST KIND OF A REFRESHER ON THE CITYWIDE STRATEGIC PLAN.
IT WAS ADOPTED WITH THE FISCAL YEAR 2025 BUDGET LAST SUMMER.
UH, AND IT GUIDES DECISION MAKING PROCESSES, UM, FOR THE CITY AND HELPS DRIVE US TOWARD ACHIEVING OUR CITY'S GOALS, UH, BUILDS ON PRIOR EFFORTS THAT WERE ALIGNED WITH THE IMAGINE AUSTIN COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
UM, AND IT'S ORGANIZED AROUND SEVEN STRATEGIC PRIORITIES FOR US IN THE HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICE.
WE FOCUS, UM, ON THE STRATEGY HIGHLIGHTED HERE, KIND OF IN A, I DON'T KNOW WHAT COLOR THAT IS, MOV MAYBE.
UM, IT'S, UH, ON HOMELESSNESS AND HOUSING.
AND IT'S FOCUSED ON DEVELOPING AFFORDABLE HOUSING OPTIONS CITYWIDE AND REDUCING HOMELESSNESS THROUGH STRATEGIC INVESTMENTS AND PARTNERSHIPS.
AN UPDATE TO THESE STRATEGIC GOALS WAS SHARED IN SEPTEMBER OF 2024.
AND SO WE WANTED TO SHARE THEM HERE JUST FOR, AGAIN, KIND OF, UM, A REFRESHER FOR EVERYBODY HERE.
UM, WE'RE FOCUSED IN ON, UH, HOMELESSNESS PREVENTION AND WE, UM, AT THAT TIME HAD JUST RECEIVED AUTHORITY TO NEGOTIATE A CONTRACT FOCUSED ON PREVENTION.
WE HAVE THE HEAL INITIATIVE, WHICH, UH, IS THE, UM, ENCAMPMENT, UM, FOCUSED INITIATIVE OF OUR OFFICE.
AND, UM, TO SUPPORT THAT INITIATIVE, WE, WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY'S CONTINUUM OF CARE, ALSO CALLED THE LEADERSHIP COUNCIL TO DEVELOP SOME POLICIES THAT ALLOW FOR GREATER ACCESS TO THE PERMANENT HOUSING PROGRAMS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND THEN THE LAST ONE IS AROUND STABILITY IN FOR FOLKS WHO ARE HOUSED THROUGH THOSE PROGRAMS. UM, AND WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH ECHO OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO TRACK, UM, RETURNS TO HOMELESSNESS AND, AND OVERALL THE SUCCESS OF THE FOLKS WHO ACCESS AND UTILIZE OUR PROGRAMS.
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SO OUR UPDATES NOW FOCUSED ON JANUARY SINCE, UM, FEBRUARY IS STILL VERY FRESH ON THE PREVENTION SIDE.WE LAUNCHED THE CONTRACT WITH SUNRISE NAVIGATION CENTER, UH, IN OCTOBER TO START THE FISCAL YEAR.
ADDITIONALLY, UM, THE COUNCIL HAS ALLOCATED $2.2 MILLION IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET FOR HOMELESSNESS PREVENTION.
AND IN SUPPORT OF THAT, OUR OFFICE HELD A LISTENING SESSION WITH HOMELESSNESS PREVENTION PROVIDERS, UH, IN MID-JANUARY TO LEARN OF THEIR EXPERIENCES AND TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR, UM, EFFORTS AROUND SOLICITING FOR THOSE FUNDS, UM, REFLECT WHAT THEY'RE SEEING AND WHAT THEY'RE NEEDING IN THE COMMUNITY.
ADDITIONALLY, UH, WE HAVE BEEN MEETING WITH ECHO AND OTHER COMMUNITY PARTNERS ON A, A MUCH BROADER COMMUNITY-WIDE HOMELESSNESS PREVENTION EFFORT.
AND WE'RE LOOKING INTO WAYS THAT WE CAN ALIGN THE TWO FUNDING STREAMS, SO TO MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT CREATING COMPETING, UM, BUT MORE, I THINK, HARMONIOUS AND SYNCHRONOUS EFFORTS.
UM, THE SECOND INITIATIVE OR MEASURE, UH, HH 3.2, WHICH IS THE HEAL INITIATIVE.
UM, 12 HEAL SITES WERE COMPLETED AND CLOSED IN 2024, AND THAT, UM, SUCCESSFULLY CONNECTED 411 INDIVIDUALS WITH SHELTER.
UH, THOSE SHELTERS GENERALLY ARE THE BRIDGE SHELTERS AND THE MARSHALING YARD SHELTER, BUT SOME ACCESS TO THE EIGHTH STREET SHELTER FOR, UM, WOMEN AND TRANSGENDER INDIVIDUALS HAS ALSO BEEN UTILIZED.
ADDITIONALLY, UM, KIND OF A LITTLE BIT TANGENTIAL, BUT VERY RELATED IS THAT THAT WORK WITH OUR CONTINUUM OF CARE TO DEVELOP POLICIES FOR FOLKS WHO ARE IN OUR RAPID REHOUSING PROGRAMS TO ACCESS PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING MORE, MORE QUICKLY, UM, IN ORDER TO CREATE MORE CAPACITY FOR FOLKS WHO ENTER SHELTER THROUGH THE HEAL INITIATIVE, UM, TO THEN ACCESS THOSE RAPID REHOUSING, UH, RESOURCES.
UM, ADDITIONALLY WE'VE BEEN WORKING TO, UM, THINK ABOUT AND, AND WORK FACILITATE CONVERSATIONS WITHIN OUR CONTINUUM OF CARE TO, UM, ENSURE THAT REFERRALS TO THESE PROGRAMS ARE, UM, APPROPRIATE AND SUITED TO, UM, THE LEVEL OF NEED THAT CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS MIGHT HAVE.
SO ALL OF THOSE EFFORTS TRYING TO, UM, KIND OF IMPROVE ACCESS TO OUR HOUSING PROGRAMS. AND THEN THE LAST MEASURE, 3.3 FOCUSED ON STABILITY.
AGAIN, WE, WE CONTINUE TO TRACK EXITS AND RETURNS TO HOMELESSNESS.
UM, IT'S KIND OF A LONG GAME ON, ON THAT ONE.
AND, AND SO, UM, OFTEN WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, SUCCESS AFTER SIX MONTHS, 12 MONTHS, ET CETERA.
AND SO, UM, I BELIEVE WE'LL HAVE MORE DATA TO SHARE ON THAT IN, UH, IN A FEW MONTHS.
AND THOSE ARE ALL OF OUR UPDATES ON THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
BUT I'M, I'M HAPPY TO GO BACK TO THE PRIOR SLIDE AND ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE.
AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS WAS AN APPROPRIATE UPDATE FOR US TO KICK OFF THE NEW YEAR WITH, UH, JUST GETTING A BASELINE UNDERSTANDING OF THE CITY'S STRATEGIC GOALS THAT WE HAVE AS IT RELATES TO HOMELESSNESS AND THE WORK THAT OUR HOMELESSNESS STRATEGY OFFICE IS UNDERTAKING.
ANY QUESTIONS FOR MR. P*****K? YES, VICE CHAIR DECHEN.
I JUST HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THE TRACKING, AND I'VE LOOKED AT THE HOMELESS, UH, THE ECHO DASHBOARD THAT THEY'VE GOT, AND I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE LAST TIME THAT WAS UPDATED, I THINK WAS OCTOBER OR SEPTEMBER OF LAST YEAR.
UM, I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, YOU KNOW, WE TALKED ABOUT SIX MONTHS, 12 MONTHS TRACKING MM-HMM
DO YOU HAVE A SENSE OF, UM, WELL, FIRST OF ALL, WHEN DID THE TRACKING START? AND DO YOU HAVE A SENSE OF HOW OFTEN THAT REPORTING IS HAPPENING AND WHAT SORT SORT OF CONCLUSIONS YOU MIGHT COME TO AFTER YOU SAID IN A FEW MONTHS? UH, AND SORRY, ONE LAST QUESTION I'LL ADD, WHICH IS, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW LONG IS THIS GOING ON FOR? IS IT GONNA BE CHECKING TWO YEARS, FOUR YEARS? HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE GIVEN THE, YOU KNOW, THE VERY, THE NATURE OF THIS COMMUNITY THAT YOU'RE TRACKING? UM, THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER UCHIN.
UM, I'M, I'M, I'M HOPE I'M PRONOUNCING THAT CORRECTLY.
UM, I, UH, SO THE TWO QUESTIONS, ONE ON JUST TRACKING AND, AND KIND OF THAT PUBLISHING OF THE DASHBOARD.
UM, THE DASHBOARD IS MANAGED BY ECHO AND I KNOW THAT THEY WORK VERY HARD ON MAKING SURE THAT THAT DATA IS AS ACCURATE AS POSSIBLE.
UM, EACH PAGE OF THE DASHBOARD DOES TEND TO GET UPDATED AT DIFFERENT TIMES.
AND, AND I'LL ADMIT THAT I DON'T HAVE FULL CLARITY OR KNOWLEDGE OF EXACTLY THE PROCESS OF, OF THAT, UM, UPDATING.
BUT, UM, I KNOW THAT ALL OF THE DATA THAT IS BEING USED TO POPULATE THAT DASHBOARD IS
[00:10:01]
GENERALLY ACCESSIBLE TO US THROUGH BACKEND REPORTING.AND SO, UM, A MEMBER OF MY TEAM IS ABLE TO RUN REPORTS, UH, FROM HMIS, WHICH IS THE, UM, CENTRAL, UM, DATA STORAGE SYSTEM, DATA MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
AND, UM, WE'RE ABLE TO THEN PULL THAT DATA ON A REGULAR BASIS AS NEEDED.
UM, IT'S JUST THAT WE TEND TO LOOK AT HOUSING STABILITY IN THAT KIND OF WINDOW OF SIX TO 12 MONTHS.
AND SO, UM, I THINK STARTING AT THE START OF THE FISCAL YEAR, WANTED TO TRY AND ALIGN IN THAT WAY.
UM, YOUR SECOND POINT ON KIND OF HOW LONG CAN WE CONTINUE TO TRACK THAT? UM, I MEAN, HONESTLY, AS LONG AS OUR HMIS EXISTS, UM, BECAUSE OUR ENTIRE COMMUNITY USES, UM, THE MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM, HMIS, UM, AND IT'S REINFORCED BOTH THROUGH, UH, FEDERAL FUNDING, THROUGH THE CONTINUUM OF CARE PROGRAM, AS WELL AS THROUGH OUR CITY FUNDING, WE REQUIRE ALL OF OUR GRANTEES TO UTILIZE HMIS.
UM, WE ARE ABLE TO CAPTURE ANY INSTANCE WHERE SOMEBODY, UM, REENGAGES WITH OUR SYSTEM.
AND SO IF SOMEBODY WERE TO LEAVE ONE OF OUR RAPID REHOUSING PROGRAMS, FOR INSTANCE, UM, BUT THEN ACCESS, UM, SUNRISE'S, UH, DIVERSION SERVICES, WE WOULD BE ABLE TO SEE THAT INTERACTION, UH, WITH HMIS AND, UM, HOPEFULLY WITH THE DIVERSION PROGRAM, THAT MEANS THEY HAVEN'T ACTUALLY EXPERIENCED HOMELESSNESS.
AND SO WHERE THEY HAVEN'T RETURNED YET.
UM, BUT IN A DIFFERENT CASE, IF SOMEBODY WERE TO ACCESS SHELTER IN, LET'S SAY THE ARCH DOWNTOWN, WE WOULD SEE THAT ENROLLMENT IN THE ARCH, EVEN IF IT WAS TWO YEARS DOWN THE ROAD.
UM, AND SO WE WOULD BE ABLE TO TIE THAT TOGETHER, BUT WE'D SEE THAT WE WERE ABLE TO, UM, WITH THESE SUPPORTS IN SOMEBODY'S EPISODE OF HOMELESSNESS FOR A PERIOD OF TIME.
AND SO DO YOU, UH, THIS REPORT, YOU THINK IT'S GONNA TAKE A COUPLE OF MORE MONTHS TO TRY AND GENERATE A DECENT DATA SET TO UNDERSTAND WHAT, UM, UH, TO UNDERSTAND WHAT SORT OF TRACKING AND EXITS AND RETURNS YOU'RE, WE'RE SEEING FROM THE WINDOW THAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT? I THINK THAT, UM, I THINK WE'RE AT MONTH FIVE OF THE FISCAL YEAR, AND SO WE'LL PROBABLY BE PULLING THIS DATA PRETTY SOON TO REPORT OUT IN THE KIND OF THE SIX MONTH WINDOW, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, WE ARE ACTIVELY TRACKING THAT AND REPORTING THAT UP TO CITY LEADERSHIP.
UH, MR. P*****K, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS I HAVE IS RELATED TO THE CITY'S INVESTMENT IN PREVENTION.
'CAUSE THAT WAS A, A KEY BUDGET PRIORITY THAT MANY MEMBERS OF THIS COMMITTEE SUPPORTED.
UM, WITH THAT CONTRACT WITH SUNRISE, WHICH YOU MENTIONED LAUNCHED IN OCTOBER, CAN YOU TALK US THROUGH HOW MANY, OR DO WE HAVE AN ESTIMATE OF HOW MANY INDIVIDUALS HAVE BEEN SERVED THROUGH THOSE PREVENTION SERVICES, AND CAN WE GET AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW ON TRACK ARE WE TOWARDS MEETING THAT 75% TARGET? YEAH.
UM, SO TO THIS POINT, THE PROGRAM'S BEEN IN OPERATION FOR A LITTLE OVER TWO MONTHS NOW.
UM, AND WE JUST RECEIVED DATA FROM THEM, I THINK IT WAS LAST WEEK, THAT SHOWED AROUND A HUNDRED INDIVIDUALS HAVE BEEN, UM, SERVED SO FAR.
HOUSEHOLDS, I SHOULD SAY, HAVE BEEN SERVED TO THIS POINT.
UM, AND IT'S A LITTLE LOWER THAN OUR, OUR GOAL FOR THEM.
AND SO, UH, WE ARE, UM, ACTIVELY WORKING WITH THEM TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN KIND OF GET THE WORD OUT AND THE MESSAGING OUT THAT, UM, WE HAVE A NEW HOMELESSNESS DIVERSION PROGRAM FOR FOLKS WHO ARE AT RISK OF HOMELESSNESS, UM, JUST A FEW WEEKS AWAY FROM EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, AND THEY CAN ACCESS THESE RESOURCES THROUGH THE HOTLINE.
UM, AND THEN, UM, ADDITIONALLY SEEING THEIR, UM, THEIR SUCCESS RATE AT THIS POINT IT'S ABOUT A HUNDRED PERCENT BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO DIVERT FOLKS IMMEDIATELY.
UM, BUT I THINK AS WELL, YOU KNOW, WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE TRACKING THAT OVER TIME.
AND SO MAKING SURE THAT THAT INTERVENTION IS SUSTAINABLE IS ALSO REALLY IMPORTANT.
AND, AND, AND CAN YOU REMIND US WHAT IS THE, THE GOAL FOR THIS CONTRACT? HOW MANY INDIVIDUALS ARE WE ANTICIPATING BEING SERVED FOR PREVENTION SERVICES? I, I DON'T KNOW OFF HAND.
I KNOW THAT THE QUARTERLY GOAL IS AROUND 120 HOUSEHOLDS, BUT OKAY.
UM, I'D HAVE TO GET BACK AND, AND LET YOU KNOW.
THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE AROUND 500, BUT I'D HAVE TO CHECK.
I AND, AND THANK YOU FOR HIGHLIGHTING.
I MEAN, I OFTEN, I KNOW WE HEAR FROM SEVERAL OF OUR CONSTITUENTS WHO TALK ABOUT WHAT IS THE CITY DOING FOR PREVENTION? HOW ARE WE PREVENTING IN INDIVIDUALS FROM FALLING INTO HOMELESSNESS? AND TO BE ABLE TO SAY, WELL, WE'VE ALREADY SERVED 100 INDIVIDUALS, AND KEEPING THEM, UM, OUT ON THE STREETS AND KEEPING THEM INDOORS, THAT'S, THAT'S IMPORTANT.
SO I REALLY APPRECIATE YOU SHARING THAT WITH US.
HOW ARE WE, UH, OR IS THERE, IS THERE A MECHANISM FOR US TO BE ABLE
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TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THIS STUFF, LIKE ON SOCIAL MEDIA? BECAUSE I DO THINK PART OF THE ISSUE, AND, AND I KNOW I'VE DISCUSSED IT WITH MEMBERS OF THE, OF THE DAIS ALSO, UH, THAT WE AREN'T CELEBRATING OUR WINS ENOUGH.AND SO FIGURING OUT A WAY TO MARKET OUR WINS AND TO BE ABLE TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THAT STUFF, I THINK WOULD BE, UM, WOULD BE VERY BENEFICIAL NOT ONLY TO US AND, AND ALLEVIATE SOME OF THE STRESS THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS THAT WE, I MEAN, AND I'M, WE HEAR IT ALL THE TIME, EVEN THOUGH WE SEE THE WORK IS NOTHING'S BEING DONE OR IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S JUST GETTING WORSE.
UM, AND SO I, I THINK THAT, UH, AND I WOULD LOVE TO WORK, WORK WITH Y'ALL ON THAT IF THERE'S ANY WAY THAT, THAT, THAT OUR OFFICE CAN BE OF SERVICE.
BUT I, I, UH, I, I WOULD PUT A START PUTTING A PREMIUM ON THAT IF WE CAN.
AND, AND ANY WAY THAT WE CAN, WE CAN HELP OUT, WE'RE HERE FOR IT.
UM, COUNCIL MEMBER VELASQUEZ, THANK YOU.
UM, I WOULD, I, I THINK THAT'S REALLY ESSENTIAL.
AND, AND THERE ARE SOME GOVERNMENTS AND COCS AROUND THE COUNTRY THAT ARE REALLY GOOD AT THAT.
UM, SOCIAL SERVICE PROVIDERS ARE NOT GOOD MARKETERS.
I, I, I WORKED, I WORKED AT A ISD AND I KNOW WE, WE, WE HAD TO DO A LOT OF, UH, CREATIVE WORK WITH VERY FEW DOLLARS.
SO I, I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND, BUT EVEN JUST SHARING OUT YEAH.
GRAPHICS OR VIDEOS TO SAY, HEY, I, I, YOU KNOW, FROM AND TESTIMONIALS FROM FOLKS THAT WE'VE HELPED ALONG THE WAY, I THINK WOULD, WOULD GO A LONG WAY TOWARDS, UH, CHANGING, UH, PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF WHAT'S HAPPENING OUT THERE.
AND I SEE OUR COLLEAGUE, COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER ALSO HAS SOME QUESTIONS.
AND I'M SORRY I'M NOT THERE AT THE MOMENT.
HOPEFULLY WE'LL BE ABLE TO JOIN SOON.
BUT I WANTED TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, THESE GOALS AND THE ACTUAL NUMBERS BEHIND THEM WERE PUT INTO THE BUDGET, UH, FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS PAST YEAR, AND WE NEVER REALLY HAD THE CHANCE TO WEIGH IN.
YOU KNOW, WE WERE TOLD AT THAT TIME THAT THIS WAS, UH, GONNA BE PART OF A PROCESS.
WE WERE GONNA REVIEW THESE, AND I, AND I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THEM TODAY, BUT I'M WANTING TO UNDERSTAND THE PROCESS MOVING FORWARD FOR US TO EITHER WEIGH IN ON THE TARGETS, ADD, UH, VARIOUS TARGETS.
YOU KNOW, WE JUST PASSED THE ECHO MODEL, UH, FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS, AND THERE ARE NUMBERS IN THERE, YOU KNOW, ARE THOSE ELEMENTS THAT WE WANT TO INTEGRATE INTO OUR STRATEGIC PLAN AS IT RELATES TO SUPPORTIVE HOUSING OR, UH, PREVENTION OR RAPID, YOU KNOW, ALSO, WE HAVE NO NUMBERS IN HERE ABOUT THE ACTUAL UNHOUSED POPULATION, WHETHER SHELTERED OR UNSHELTERED.
YOU KNOW, SHOULD WE HAVE A GOAL AROUND HOW MANY PEOPLE BY THE END OF NEXT YEAR, WE WANT TO BE, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE WANT OUR POPULATION TO BE? AND HOPEFULLY HAVE THAT BE A DECREASING NUMBER, UH, OVER TIME.
SO I'M JUST, I'M TRYING TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHERE WE FIT IN.
YOU KNOW, THESE, THESE GOALS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE KIND OF THE GUIDING METRIC FOR THE BUDGET, AND YET THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE'VE EVER REALLY TALKED ABOUT THEM AND, AND THEY'RE GONNA GUIDE SOME OF OUR ACTIONS.
SO HOW, HOW DO WE INFLUENCE AND GUIDE THESE GOALS? THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER, UM, I WILL SAY THAT, UM, THESE GOALS WERE DEVELOPED IN COORDINATION WITH FINANCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT.
AND SO, UM, I THINK IT WOULD BE IMPORTANT FOR, FOR ALL OF US TO, UM, UNDERSTAND THAT PROCESS AND, AND HOW, UM, THE COUNCIL CAN BE A PART OF THE STRATEGIC GOAL SETTING AND DEVELOPMENT PROCESS, UM, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH FSD, WHICH KIND OF SHEPHERDS A LOT OF THIS WORK.
UM, BUT ADDITIONALLY, I, I DO BELIEVE WE, WE COULD, UM, CERTAINLY BRING THOSE STRATEGIC GOALS TO THIS COMMITTEE AND, AND HAVE DISCUSSIONS THERE.
AND, UM, I, I WOULD DEFER TO EVENTUALLY TO, UH, DAVID GRAY, OUR HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICER ON HOW HE THINKS BEST TO KIND OF SHEPHERD THESE GOALS AND DEVELOP AND CONTINUE TO DEVELOP NEW GOALS.
UM, BUT I, I AGREE THAT AS OUR COMMUNITY SETS FORWARD AND, AND POTENTIALLY DEVELOPING A LOT MORE RESOURCES FOCUSED ON HOMELESSNESS, UH, WE SHOULD BE MEASURING ALL OF THAT WORK.
AND I, UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY INSIGHT INTO WHETHER OR NOT ANYTHING IS PLANNED TO CHANGE, WHETHER IT BE ADDED OR CHANGED IN THE UPCOMING BUDGET? AND I KNOW WE'RE A WAYS AWAY FROM THAT, BUT I'M JUST CURIOUS IF THAT CONVERSATION, UH, HAS BEEN HAD AT ALL.
NOT TO MY KNOWLEDGE, BUT I'M NOT, I DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING
WELL, I, I WILL HOPE TO, YOU KNOW, DOWN THE ROAD, BE ABLE TO REVISIT THIS A LITTLE BIT AND MAYBE MAKE SOME SUGGESTIONS OF, UM, YOU KNOW, LIKE I SAID, WHAT MIGHT NOT BE IN THERE THAT WE WANNA ADD, AND WHETHER OR NOT THE NUMBERS THAT WE HAVE CHOSEN
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ARE THE APPROPRIATE TARGETS.I APPRECIATE, YOU KNOW, YOU GOING OVER THEM TODAY.
UM, BUT I THINK THAT AS THESE ARE USED TO GUIDE OUR FUNDING DECISIONS, THERE MIGHT BE SOME OTHER GOALS WE WANT TO ADD TO THE CURRENT LIST.
THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER VELASQUEZ.
I HAVE ONE, ONE MORE QUESTION,
UM, WE KNOW THAT THAT YOUTH THAT EXPERIENCE HOMELESSNESS ARE MORE LIKELY TO EXPERIENCE HOMELESSNESS AS A, AS AN ADULT IF THEY'VE HA IF THEY'VE BEEN THROUGH THAT.
WHAT, UH, PREVENTION SERVICES ARE WE PROVIDING YOUTH THAT ARE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS RIGHT NOW OR ON THE VERGE OF EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS? AND IS THERE A PLAN, UH, OR BUDGET PLAN FOR THIS? UM, IT'S A GREAT QUESTION, AND YOU'RE RIGHT.
GENERATIONAL HOMELESSNESS IS, IS A VERY REAL REALITY FOR FOR MANY FOLKS.
UM, AND, UM, RIGHT NOW THE DIVERSION PROGRAM THROUGH SUNRISE DOES NOT HAVE AN AGE LIMIT.
AND SO THEY, THEY ARE ABLE TO SERVE YOUTH.
UM, THEY'VE NOT NECESSARILY DEVELOPED AN INTERVENTION SPECIFIC, UM, SPECIFICALLY FOCUSED ON YOUTH, WHICH MIGHT BE A GAP THERE.
UM, GIVEN THE, UM, THE FUNDING THAT WE HAD AND, UM, KIND OF THE APPROACH THAT, THAT WE WERE TRYING TO TAKE, UM, WE WEREN'T ABLE TO KIND OF SEPARATE THE DIVERSION INTO MULTIPLE POTS.
HOWEVER, WHEN IT COMES TO THE, UM, $2.2 MILLION FOR PREVENTION, WE ARE INTERESTED IN UNDERSTANDING KIND OF WHAT ARE THE GAPS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND SO, UM, CERTAINLY YOUTH HOMELESSNESS AND, AND LIFEWORKS, OUR BIGGEST YOUTH HOMELESSNESS PROVIDER, UM, IS, IS INCLUDED IN THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND, AND CERTAINLY WELCOME TO, UM, APPLY FOR FUNDS ONCE THEY BECOME AVAILABLE.
UH, ADDITIONALLY, THE, THE LARGER COMMUNITY WIDE EFFORT THAT, UM, ECHO IS HELPING SPEARHEAD, UH, AROUND PREVENTION WILL INCLUDE THOSE VOICES AND, AND THOSE PRIORITIES AS WELL.
SO, UM, THAT'S ONE OF OUR GOALS IN, IN TRYING TO ALIGN OUR FUNDING IS THAT WE'RE NOT, UM, KIND OF CREATING SOMETHING AND THEN SOMETHING TOTALLY DIFFERENT COMES OUT OF THE COMMUNITY.
UM, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, IF THIS $2.2 MILLION COULD BE BEST PRIORITIZED FOR YOUTH OR OTHER SUBPOPULATIONS, MAYBE AGING ADULTS AS WELL, UM, THAT THAT'S MAYBE WHERE OUR MONEY GOES.
AND THEN THE LARGER COMMUNITY EFFORT DOES THE, THE GENERAL POPULATION OR, YOU KNOW, NOT REALLY SURE HOW IT WILL ALL PROGRESS, BUT THAT'S OUR GOAL.
AND, AND HOW, WHAT DOES A COORDINATION LOOK LIKE WITH OUR COLLEAGUES AT, UH, AUSTIN, ISD AND EVEN THE, THE YOUTH JUSTICE SYSTEM HERE IN TRAVIS COUNTY, UM, AT GARDNER BATTS TO ENSURE THAT THOSE FOLKS THAT, THAT ARE, UH, 'CAUSE I, I, WHEN I WORKED AT AUSTIN, ISD, THERE WAS, I, I THINK AT ANY POINT THERE WAS AT LEAST 1500 KIDS THAT WERE HOUSING INSECURE, AND, AND IT WAS, IT WAS A, IT WAS A REALLY HIGH NUMBER.
AND SO I'M JUST CURIOUS WHAT THAT COORDINATION LOOKS LIKE WITH THEM.
AND, AND IF, AND IF THOSE RELATIONSHIPS AREN'T, UH, THERE, OR THEY'RE, THEY'RE, WE, WE NEED TO PRESS 'EM A LITTLE BIT MORE, PLEASE LET ME KNOW.
ALSO, LIKE I SAID, I HAVE A TON OF FRIENDS THAT ARE STILL OVER THERE AND I'D, I'D LOVE TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT CONNECTION.
UM, SO SUNRISE HAS TOLD US THAT THEY'VE BEEN MEETING AND SPEAKING WITH PARTNERS AT A ISD AND ROUND ROCK ISD AS WELL ABOUT THEIR SERVICES.
UM, THEY'VE SAID UPTAKE HAS BEEN SLOW.
UM, A LOT OF FOLKS SEEM TO MAYBE NOT RECOGNIZE THAT THEY NEED THE SERVICE EARLY ENOUGH.
UM, AND SO THEY, THEY COME TO SUNRISE LATER AND THEN THEY'RE ELIGIBLE FOR A DIFFERENT PROGRAM, RIGHT? NO LONGER IS IT DIVERSION 'CAUSE THEY'RE NOW EXPERIENCING A, A BOUT OF HOMELESSNESS.
UM, BUT OUR GOAL AS WE ENGAGE WITH THEM ABOUT KIND OF MARKETING AND OUTREACH IS HOW DO WE MAKE THAT PRESENCE MORE KNOWN? YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT THOSE 1500, UM, CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES UNDERSTAND THIS RESOURCE IS THERE FOR THEM? YEAH.
AND THAT'S, THAT'S DEFINITELY ONE OF OUR GOALS IN THE COMING WEEKS AND MONTHS.
AND, AND, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I, THAT I WOULD ADVISE IS WORKING THROUGH, WE WORK, OUR OFFICE WORKS REALLY CLOSELY WITH THE PARENT SUPPORT SPECIALIST AT AUSTIN, ISD.
AND, UH, THEY'RE THE FOLKS THAT I WOULD SAY, UH, KNOW A LOT MORE ABOUT THE KIDS AND SOMETIMES EVEN THE PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS BECAUSE THEY, THEY HEAR ABOUT THE, THE, THE, UM, THE QUALITY OF LIFE PROBLEMS THAT, THAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING.
SO ANY WAY THAT WE COULD, WE CAN MAKE THAT INTRODUCTION AND HELP, UH, BUILD THAT BRIDGE, PLEASE LET US KNOW.
UM, I HAD A QUESTION GOING OFF OF WHAT COUNT, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER VELASQUEZ HAD ASKED ABOUT YOUTH HOMELESSNESS.
WHAT DOES OUR SHELTER CAPACITY LOOK LIKE FOR YOUTH HOMELESSNESS? AND IS THERE A DISTINCT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOUTH HOMELESSNESS, WHICH I THINK, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER ROAS WAS ASKING, YOU KNOW, KIDS WHO ARE IN, IN A ISD AND LIKE YOUNG ADULTS, UM, WHO ARE, WHO ARE NOT, I DON'T KNOW, WHO ARE NOT YOUTH, BUT LIKE, UH, YOU KNOW, MIGHT BE IN THEIR LATE TEENS, EARLY TWENTIES.
UH, THERE WAS AN INSTANCE JUST A FEW MONTHS AGO ACTUALLY IN DOWNTOWN WHERE THERE WAS SOMEONE WHO WAS, I DON'T KNOW, I WOULDN'T CONSIDER THEM YOUTH, BUT, YOU KNOW, A YOUNG ADULT WHO HAD BEEN KICKED OUT OF THEIR HOME AND WAS LIVING ON THE STREETS IN DOWNTOWN AUSTIN.
WE WERE ABLE TO WORK WITH HSO AND, AND ABLE TO GET THAT INDIVIDUAL INTO, INTO HOUSING.
SO WHAT, WHAT DOES THE CAPACITY LOOK LIKE? AND, AND, AND IS THERE A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN, UH, YOU
[00:25:01]
KNOW, I GUESS RESOURCES AND, AND WORK WE DO WITH YOUTH HOMELESSNESS VERSUS LIKE YOUNG ADULTS? UM, THE ANSWER IS YES.UM, I, THERE THERE IS KIND OF, I THINK, DIFFERENT OPTIONS AVAILABLE TO FOLKS.
SO, UM, FOR YOUTH WHO, WHO MIGHT BE IN A FAMILY STILL CONNECTED TO THEIR FAMILY, THERE ARE, UM, FAMILY HOMELESSNESS RESOURCES.
UH, THE SALVATION ARMY PROVIDES TWO SHELTERS FOR FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN, SPECIFICALLY, UH, BOTH THE AUSTIN SHELTER FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN AND THE RATH GABER CENTER.
UM, AND, AND BOTH, THEY OPERATE BOTH FACILITIES, UM, AND SERVE SOLELY FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN.
UM, BUT THOSE REALLY ARE THE MA MOST OF OUR CAPACITY, UM, IN OUR SYSTEM RIGHT NOW.
SHELTER SYSTEM, I SHOULD SAY, FOR THOSE, UM, FAMILIES.
AND THEN WHEN IT COMES TO YOUTH WHO ARE EITHER UNACCOMPANIED, SO THEY'RE ON THEIR OWN, UM, OR, UH, YOUNG ADULTS OR EVEN YOUNG PARENTS, UM, AND EVEN YOUNG PREGNANT, UM, MOTHERS AS WELL.
LIFEWORKS HAS A VARIETY OF PROGRAMS. UM, I, I DON'T KNOW THEIR SHELTER CAPACITY OFFHAND, BUT I KNOW THAT THEY HAVE SHELTER OPTIONS BOTH FOR, UM, FROM YOUNG, YOUNG FOLKS WHO MAYBE ARE UNDER 18, UM, AS WELL AS SHELTER FOR FOLKS WHO ARE 18 TO 24.
AND THEN THEY HAVE A LOT OF PROGRAM OPTIONS FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS IF THEY NEED AND WISH TO ENGAGE IN THEM, UM, THAT OFFER DIFFERENT, UM, OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEM BASED ON WHERE THEY ARE IN, IN THEIR LIFE AND, AND, UM, NEEDS.
UM, BUT, UM, ADDITIONALLY, LIFEWORKS HAS BEEN HELPING TO LAUNCH A NEW LOCAL ROUNDTABLE TO DISCUSS THE FOSTER YOUTH TO HOMELESSNESS PIPELINE AS WELL.
AND SO, UM, I KNOW WE'RE, WE'RE EXCITED TO JUST HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND BE AT THE TABLE THERE AND, AND REALLY HOPEFUL THAT, UM, THAT WILL ALSO PAN OUT TO BRINGING MORE PARTNERS AND RESOURCES TO THE TABLE FOCUSED ON FOSTERING YOUTH, UM, WHO, UM, DON'T HAVE THAT SOCIAL SUPPORT AND, AND ARE OFTEN LEAVING THEIR FAMILIES INTO HOMELESSNESS.
I REALLY APPRECIATE YOU BEING ABLE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS, UM, IN A MANNER THAT'S COMPREHENSIVE AND IN DEPTH.
SO I JUST WANNA APPRECIATE YOU FOR THAT.
UM, A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS, UM, JUST 'CAUSE I WANT TO, SINCE WE HAVE YOU HERE AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND WE HAVE TARGETS LAID OUT WITH THE HILL RELATED TARGET IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO CONNECT 411 PEOPLE TO HOUSING THROUGH HILL.
AND DO YOU KNOW WHERE THAT PUTS US ALONG THE TARGET LINES OF 50%? SO, UH, I'LL JUST MAKE ONE CORRECTION.
UM, IT'S 411 FOLKS INTO SHELTER, UM, BUT NOT YET INTO HOUSING.
UM, I DON'T KNOW OFFHAND WHERE WE ARE WITH THE TARGET.
I KNOW IT'S A, IT'S A FAIRLY LOW TARGET AT 50%.
UM, AND PART OF THAT RECOGNIZES, UH, THE, JUST THE LACK OF RESOURCES AVAILABLE.
UM, IN THE PAST, UH, WITH ARPA FUNDING, WE HAD TWO RAPID REHOUSING PROGRAMS THAT WERE SOLELY FOCUSED ON THE HEAL INITIATIVE.
AND SO FOLKS, UH, ESSENTIALLY WERE CONNECTED ALMOST WELL AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
I SHOULDN'T SAY IMMEDIATELY, BUT AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
WERE CONNECTED TO, UH, PERMANENT HOUSING THROUGH RAPID REHOUSING PROVIDERS WHO WERE DEDICATED TO THAT PROGRAM.
UM, UNFORTUNATELY WE'VE HAD TO KIND OF FREEZE ALL REFERRALS INTO THOSE PROGRAMS. AND SO, UH, WE'RE, WE'RE RELIANT ON THE COMMUNITY'S RESOURCES RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS WHY SOME OF THE KIND OF, IT'S A LITTLE MORE WONKY, BUT THOSE POLICIES THAT ENABLE FOLKS TO TRANSFER OUT OF RAPID REHOUSING IF THEIR NEEDS ARE, ARE SUCH THAT PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING IS A BETTER OPTION, UM, WOULD HELP US FREE UP CAPACITY TO ENROLL MORE OF THE HE AND OTHER INDIVIDUALS FROM THE COMMUNITY.
UM, AND JUST TO CLARIFY, SO THE TARGET FOR THE HEAL RELATED, UM, STRATEGIC PRIORITY IS RELATED IS SPECIFICALLY THE 50% TARGET IS FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE IN THE HEAL BRIDGE SHELTER, THEIR CONNECTION TO PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING? CORRECT.
AND ON THE STABILITY BENCHMARK, HOW CLOSE ARE WE TO MEETING THE GOAL, THE TARGET FOR HOUSING STABILITY? I HAVE TO ADMIT WE'VE NOT RUN THE NUMBERS RECENTLY.
UM, THE LAST TIME I CHECKED THE, UM, HOMELESS RESPONSE SYSTEM DASHBOARD MANAGED BY ECHO, WHICH AS, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER UCHIN, UM, SHARED IS PROBABLY OUT OF DATE.
UM, I THINK WE WERE AT ABOUT 82% SUCCESS, BUT THAT'S ACROSS KIND OF ALL PERMANENT HOUSING PROGRAMS IN THE COMMUNITY.
UM, NOT SPECIFICALLY CITY OF AUSTIN FUNDED PROJECTS.
UM, BUT THAT'S NUMBER, THAT'S FIGURES WE WOULD, WE, WE CAN TRY AND RUN SOON.
UH, SORRY, JUST TO FOLLOW UP ON THOSE COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
UM, MY GUESS IS MY COLLEAGUES KNOW THIS, BUT, UH, MAYBE YOU CAN JUST HELP ME WHEN WE, WHEN I'M LOOKING AT THE INITIAL TARGETS, WHAT DO THOSE REPRESENT? THE TARGETS FROM THE STRATEGIC GOALS?
[00:30:01]
UM, THOSE REPRESENT, UM, BOTH, UM, BEST PRACTICES OR, OR, UH, TRENDS IDENTIFIED, UH, NATIONALLY THROUGH BEST PRACTICES AS WELL AS A REFLECTION OF WHAT OUR COMMUNITY IS ABLE TO PROVIDE OR OUR EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN.UM, AND ONE EXAMPLE IS, I'M GONNA, OH, I DON'T HAVE IT STILL UP, BUT, UM, ON THE STABILITY PIECE, UM, THE, I THINK THE NATIONAL AVERAGE, UM, FOR, OH, THANK YOU.
UM, NATIONAL AVERAGE FOR INDIVIDUALS RETAINING THEIR HOUSING, UM, FOR INSTANCE, IN PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING TENDS TO BE AROUND 90%.
UM, IN OUR COMMUNITY, IT ACTUALLY IS, IS HIGHER THAN THAT.
UM, BUT RAPID REHOUSING ON THE OTHER HAND, TENDS TO SEE MORE OF, I THINK ABOUT A 70 TO 80%, UM, RETENTION RATE.
AND, AND LOCALLY IN OUR COMMUNITY, UM, WE ARE SEEING FIGURES THAT, THAT HOVER AROUND THERE AND, AND SOMETIMES EVEN COME A LITTLE LOWER.
AND SO, UM, IT'S REALLY US LOOKING AT THE DATA, UM, THAT WE HAVE LOCALLY AND THEN TRYING TO ASPIRE TO SOME OF THOSE NATIONAL TRENDS THAT WE'RE NOT ALREADY ACHIEVING.
UM, AND AS WELL, UM, PUSHING OURSELVES RIGHT TO, TO MAKE THESE PROGRAMS MORE EFFECTIVE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.
UM, I GUESS I'LL MOVE UP FROM THE BOTTOM.
UM, THE HEAL INITIATIVE PIECE, UM, AS I MENTIONED, UH, WAS ADJUSTED DOWN, SO IT WAS A PRIOR GOAL FROM THE PREVIOUS YEAR, UM, AND IT WAS, IT WAS HIGHER THAN 50%.
UH, WE MOVED DOWN TO 50% KNOWING THAT THE ARPA FUNDS WERE NO LONGER AVAILABLE TO THOSE PROGRAMS. AND SO THAT WE REALLY ARE RELYING ON THE COMMUNITY'S RESOURCES AT THAT POINT, WHICH, WHICH ARE LIMITED DUE TO THE, THE, THE CHANGE IN, IN THE FISCAL SCENARIO.
UM, AND SO WE ADJUSTED THAT DOWN TO 50% KNOWING THAT THAT WAS STILL KIND OF A STRETCH NO GIVEN THE, THE ABUNDANCE OF RESOURCES WAS NO LONGER THE CIRCUMSTANCE.
UM, AND, UM, BUT WE WOULD STILL NEED TO STRIVE TO HIT THAT 50%.
UM, AND THEN THE, THE TOP GOAL, UM, 3.1, UH, WHICH IS FOCUSED ON PREVENTION.
WE KNOW THAT, UM, PREVENTION PROGRAMS GENERALLY ARE, ARE VERY SUCCESSFUL.
WE, WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS THAT, UM, FOR FAMILIES IT'S EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL, ALMOST THEY SEE ALMOST A HUNDRED PERCENT SUCCESS FOR FAMILIES UTILIZING PREVENTION SERVICES.
UM, BUT WE HAVE NOT INVESTED IN PREVENTION SERVICES IN, IN A LITTLE WHILE HERE IN AUSTIN THROUGH THE CITY OF AUSTIN, I SHOULD SAY.
UM, A LOT OF OUR PREVENTION FOCUSED FUNDING WAS CHANGED, UM, IN FISCAL YEAR 21, I BELIEVE, TO RAPID REHOUSING.
AND SO, UM, KNOWING THAT THIS IS KIND OF A NEW AREA FOR US, UM, AND, AND WE HAVE A LOT TO LEARN, UH, WE, WE SET THE TARGET AT 75%, UM, EXPECTING TO, TO SURPASS THAT, BUT NOT REALLY HAVING A BASELINE TO WORK OFF OF, OF, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE'RE COMING FROM.
BUT WHEN YOU SAY 75%, THAT MEANS, UM, 75% OF THE PEOPLE THAT MOVE THROUGH THE SYSTEM ARE ABLE TO GET SERVED IN A CERTAIN WAY.
WHAT CAN YOU, CAN YOU EQUATE WHAT THAT MEANS FOR ME? YES.
FOR, FOR THE FIRST MEASURE, EXCUSE ME.
UM, FOR THE FIRST MEASURE, UH, IT'S THE PERCENTAGE OF FOLKS WHO UTILIZE OUR PREVENTION SERVICES AND DO NOT EXPERIENCE HOMELESSNESS FOR ANOTHER 365 DAYS.
UM, SO BASICALLY THEIR INTERACTION WITH THAT PREVENTION PROGRAM WAS SUCCESSFUL ENOUGH THAT THEY NEVER TOUCHED THE SYSTEM AGAIN, UM, FOR ANOTHER YEAR.
UM, NOW I WILL SAY THAT THAT, UM, QUITE OFTEN FOLKS MIGHT BE ABLE TO REENGAGE WITH THE PREVENTION PROGRAM MAYBE AFTER SIX TO EIGHT MONTHS OR NINE MONTHS.
UM, BUT THEY WOULD NOT HAVE EXPERIENCED HOMELESSNESS BECAUSE AGAIN, THAT PREVENTION PIECE IS KEEPING THEM, UH, STABLY HOUSED.
AND SO THAT'S A SUCCESS FOR THAT PROGRAM.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY.
ALRIGHT, COLLEAGUES, WE'RE GONNA MOVE
[3. Discussion and possible action on the permanent supportive housing pipeline and ongoing permanent supportive housing needs.]
ON TO ITEM NUMBER THREE, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PIPELINE AND ONGOING PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING NEEDS.UH, I JUST WANNA REMIND OUR, UM, OUR COLLEAGUES HERE THAT AND CONGRATULATE.
WE WERE ABLE TO PASS THE RECOMMENDATION THAT CAME OUT OF THIS COMMITTEE AT COUNCIL MEETING LAST WEEK.
AND AS PART OF THAT RESOLUTION THAT PROVIDES DIRECTION TO THE CITY MANAGER, UH, THERE IS DIRECTION TO IDENTIFY POLICY AND INVESTMENT STRATEGIES TO CONSTRUCT AND OPERATE THE EXISTING PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING UNITS IN OUR PIPELINE, AS WELL AS TO MAKE PLANS FOR THE FUTURE.
AND THIS IS KEY BECAUSE WE WANNA ENSURE THAT WE CONTINUE TO INVEST IN PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING AND WE WANNA HAVE, UM, THOSE PLANS IN PLACE AND HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT THAT MIGHT LOOK LIKE.
JOINING US TODAY IS INTERIM HOUSING DIRECTOR MANNY DE MAYO, UH, FOR TODAY'S PRESENTATION.
AND BEFORE YOU GET STARTED, MS. DE MAYO, IF YOU CAN SHARE WITH US, UM, SOME REALLY GOOD NEWS WE'VE RECEIVED
[00:35:01]
IN TERMS OF GRANT FUNDING.WE HAD TWO BIG ANNOUNCEMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS BOTH WITH THE PRO, UH, THE PRO GRANT AND THE GRANT THAT WE GOT FROM THE HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT AGENCY.
UM, THAT WILL GIVE AROUND $20 MILLION WITH BOTH OF THEM, BUT IF YOU COULD JUST TOUCH ON THEM JUST SO THAT WE ABSOLUTELY.
UM, MANDY DE MAYO, INTERIM DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME HERE TODAY.
THERE WAS JUST AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT THE CONTINUUM OF CARE FUNDING, UH, WHICH IS COORDINATED THROUGH ECHO.
THAT IS, UH, $14 MILLION IN FUNDING, UH, THAT WILL GO TO SUPPORT, UM, THE HOMELESS RESPONSE SYSTEM, OUR, OUR LOCAL NONPROFITS, UM, PROVIDING HOUSING AND SERVICES FOR PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
AND THEN WE WERE ALSO RECENTLY NOTIFIED AND CITY COUNCIL, UH, JUST ACCEPTED A 6.7.
UM, THE PRO HOUSING GRANT, $6.7 MILLION.
UM, AND THAT WILL BE ADMINISTERED BY THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT OVER A PERIOD OF SIX YEARS.
UM, BUT WE ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
UM, WITH RESPECT TO OUR FEDERAL FUNDING, THAT ALL COMES ON TOP OF OUR, UH, FEDERAL BLOCK GRANT AWARDS, UH, THAT WE RECEIVE EVERY YEAR.
THAT'S ABOUT $14 MILLION A YEAR.
AND THAT IS CDBG HOME HOPWA HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PERSONS WITH AIDS AND ESG EMERGENCY SOLUTIONS GRANT.
UH, SO COMBINED THOSE FOUR GRANTS EQUAL APPROXIMATELY $14 MILLION A YEAR, AND THOSE FLOW THROUGH THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, TWO ARE ADMINISTERED BY THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, CDBG, AND HOME.
AND THEN ESG AND HOTWIRE ARE ADMINISTERED BY AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH.
SO WE APPRECIATE OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS.
UM, I AM HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT, UH, THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT INTERSECTION WITH, UM, UH, THE HOMELESS RESPONSE SYSTEM AND SPECIFICALLY PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS AND PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING AND OTHER RELATED PROGRAMS. UH, JUST AS A REMINDER, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, THAT IS THE THREE LEGGED STOOL, UH, THAT WE OFTEN REFER TO.
AND THAT INVOLVES CAPITAL FOR BUILDING THE HOUSING, UM, WRAPAROUND SERVICES FOR SUPPORTING THE FOLKS WHO ARE LIVING IN THE HOUSING, AND THEN AN ONGOING OPERATING OR RENTAL SUBSIDY TO ENSURE THAT THE HOUSING IS SUCCESSFUL.
SO COMBINED ALTOGETHER, YOU ADD THOSE UP AND THAT IS WHAT WE REFER TO AS SITE-BASED PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING OR PSH.
IN TERMS OF THE PIPELINE, WE'RE GONNA GET INTO SOME DETAILS, BUT JUST OVERALL, UM, SO YOU ALL KNOW RIGHT NOW OUR SITE-BASED PSH, WE CURRENTLY HAVE 480 UNITS IN OPERATION, ANTICIPATED IN TWENTY TWENTY FIVE, THREE HUNDRED AND THIRTY EIGHT ADDITIONAL UNITS, AND THEN 2026 AND BEYOND, BECAUSE SOME WILL BLEED OVER INTO 2027 IN TERMS OF WHEN WE ANTICIPATE THEM COMING ONLINE.
527 UNITS FOR MORE THAN 1300 UNITS, UM, IN THE OPERATION OR PIPELINE.
SO WE HAVE A BIG YEAR THIS YEAR.
LAST YEAR ALSO WE SAW THE OPENING OF QUITE A FEW UNITS, AND THEN, UH, THE NEXT COUPLE YEARS WE HAVE, UH, A LOT OF UNITS COMING.
HOW LONG, IF I COULD JUST, IS THE MIC, CAN WE ADDRESS THE MIC SITUATION? UM, I NEED TO LEAN IN, I THINK.
DO I NEED TO GO OVER THOSE NUMBERS AGAIN OR ARE WE GOOD? OKAY.
UM, IN ADDITION, AND AGAIN, WE'LL GET TO SOME DETAILS OF THE PSH, BUT IN ADDITION, OUR DEPARTMENT ADMINISTERS TWO DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THAT DIRECTLY SUPPORT PEOPLE EXPERIENCING, UH, CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS.
THE FIRST ONE IS OUR TENANT BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE, OR TBRA PROGRAM.
AND I MENTIONED EARLIER OUR BLOCK GRANTS WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
ONE OF THOSE IS THE HOME, UM, BLOCK GRANT, AND WE DEDICATE ALMOST $1.3 MILLION A YEAR OUT OF THAT HOME BLOCK GRANT.
UM, FOR OUR TBRA PROGRAM, WE HAVE A CONTRACT WITH HAKA, THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
THEY PROVIDE UP TO 18 MONTHS OF RENTAL SUPPORT, UM, FOR INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
THE FOLKS COME DIRECTLY OFF THE COORDINATED ENTRY SYSTEM.
UM, AND WE SERVE APPROXIMATELY 120 HOUSEHOLDS EACH YEAR THROUGH THIS PROGRAM.
UH, WE ANTICIPATE CONTINUING, WE JUST APPROVED OUR FIVE YEAR CONSOLIDATED PLAN.
WE ANTICIPATE CONTINUING THIS PROGRAM FOR ALL FIVE YEARS OF THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN.
WE ALSO ADMINISTER A LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER PROGRAM, UM, WHICH BECAME NECESSARY A FEW YEARS AGO, UM, TO PROVIDE SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING, UM, TO SUPPORT THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN ADMINISTERS PROJECT BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE, ALSO KNOWN AS SECTION EIGHT, NOT THE HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER, WHICH IS PORTABLE, BUT PROJECT BASED.
VERY LIMITED FUNDS, UM, FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
AND WE ARE ANTICIPATING, UM, NO FUTURE FUNDING FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR THIS PROGRAM.
[00:40:01]
WE, UH, CREATED ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO A LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER PROGRAM, WHICH IS CURRENTLY FUNDED AT ABOUT $4 MILLION.IT COMES OUT OF THE HOUSING TRUST FUND, WHICH WE RECEIVE, UM, AT THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, APPROXIMATELY $10 MILLION A YEAR FOR THE HOUSING TRUST FUND.
THIS LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER PROGRAM IS ALSO ADMINISTERED BY HAKA, THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN, AS THEY ARE BEST POSITIONED TO ADMINISTER A RENTAL SUBSIDY PROGRAM.
THIS PROGRAM SUPPORTS, CURRENTLY WE'VE COMMITTED TO 374 UNITS AT SEVEN PROPERTIES.
UM, AT THIS POINT, WE ARE COMPLETELY COMMITTED, UM, THAT EXCEEDS THE, THE, THE $4 MILLION THAT ACTUALLY EXCEEDS, UH, THE $4 MILLION THAT WE HAVE SET ASIDE.
BUT THESE PROJECTS ARE IN THE PIPELINE, SO THEY HAVEN'T STARTED FULL OPERATION OR UTILIZING THE LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER PROGRAM YET.
UM, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT OUR PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, AND I MENTIONED THE PIPELINE, I WANNA HIGHLIGHT A FEW DIFFERENT, UM, CATEGORIES THAT WE HAVE COMMITTED TO.
ONE IS, OF COURSE, OUR HOTEL CONVERSIONS.
THERE ARE THREE DIFFERENT PROPERTIES, UM, THAT THE CITY HAS BEEN, UM, INTEGRALLY INVOLVED IN.
THOSE ARE OUR HOTEL CONVERSIONS WHERE WE ACQUIRED HOTELS, UH, AND THEN CONVERTED THEM TO PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PECAN GARDENS, WHICH IS 78 UNITS.
UM, AND IS CURRENTLY OPERATED BY FAMILY ELDER CARE.
THAT IS IN D SIX BUNGALOWS, UM, WHICH IS OPERATIONAL.
THESE BOTH CAME ONLINE IN 2024.
UM, OPERATIONAL, UH, THAT IS IN D SEVEN AND THAT IS 60 UNITS OPERATED BY INTEGRAL CARE.
AND THEN BALCONES TERRACE, WHICH IS 123 UNITS, BUT 60 OF THOSE ARE, UH, UH, COMMITTED TO THE CONTINUUM OF CARE, THE COORDINATED ENTRY SYSTEM.
UM, AND THAT IS OPERATED BY FAMILY ELDER CARE, BY FOUNDATION COMMUNITIES, APOLOGIES.
UM, SO THOSE ARE OUR THREE, UH, HOTEL CONVERSIONS THAT WE HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN.
AGAIN, ALL OF THEM ARE OPERATIONAL RECENTLY COME ONLINE.
THEN WE HAVE NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.
THIS IS SITE-BASED PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
IT'S ALL INCORPORATED, UM, IN THE TABLE PREVIOUSLY PROVIDED THAT SHOWED THE, UM, THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY, THIRTEEN HUNDRED AND FORTY FIVE PSH UNITS.
THE FIRST ONE IS A SPARROW AT RUTLAND, WHICH HAS BEEN, UM, OPERATIONAL FOR ABOUT A YEAR.
WE HAVE KATIE LOFTS, WHICH IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION AND SHOULD BE ONLINE SPRING.
UM, THAT SHOULD BE ONLINE IN SPRING OF THIS YEAR.
LIBERTAD, WHICH IS 198 UNITS, BUT 50 OF THE UNITS ARE DEDICATED TO PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
UM, AND WILL BE OPERATED BY, UH, CARITAS, UH, KAREN POINT, AND THAT SHOULD BE ON LINE SUMMER OF 2025.
KAREN POINT, CAMERON UNDER CONSTRUCTION, UM, THAT WILL HAVE A HUNDRED UNITS OF PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
THE R UH, ALSO UNDER CONSTRUCTION, UM, THAT IS IN D THREE I BELIEVE.
UM, AND THAT IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
UM, SO WE ANTICIPATE THAT'LL COME ONLINE IN ABOUT 18 MORE MONTHS.
AND THEN WE HAVE THE TRAVIS COUNTY COLLABORATIVE.
AND YOU ALL MAY BE FAMILIAR WITH THE TRAVIS COUNTY COLLABORATIVE.
IT WAS, UM, A COLLABORATION OF FIVE NONPROFITS THAT CAME TOGETHER WORKING WITH TRAVIS COUNTY TO UTILIZE THEIR ARPA FUNDS FOR PEOPLE EXPERIENCING CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS.
UM, WE HAVE BEEN, UM, BROUGHT IN AS PART OF THE CAPITAL STACK FOR FIVE OF THOSE PROJECTS.
UM, ONE IS SEABROOK SQUARE TWO CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION, UM, THAT IS ON A HFC AUSTIN HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATION, UH, LAND.
AND THAT IT WILL BE 60 UNITS OPERATED BY, UH, INTEGRAL CARE SAFE AT LANCASTER, UH, UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
UM, AND THAT WILL BE OPERATED BY THE SAFE ALLIANCE, THE WORKS THREE AT TILLERY, WHICH SHOULD BE, I THINK WE JUST CLOSED THE LOAN ON THAT ONE THAT, UH, WILL SERVE PEOPLE, UM, UH, YOUTH EXITING HOMELESSNESS.
SO, UM, PRIMARILY FOLKS 26 AND UNDER, AND THAT IS IN COORDINATION WITH LIFEWORKS AND THEN KAREN POINT, MONTOPOLIS, WHICH WE HOPE TO CLOSE SOMETIME THIS SPRING.
UM, AND THAT IS A PARTNERSHIP THAT INCLUDES FAMILY ELDER CARE AND THEN UEZ ONE, WHICH IS AN URBAN LEAGUE PROJECT, UM, OFF MLK.
AND THAT'S THE URBAN EMPOWERMENT ZONE.
AND THAT WILL PROVIDE ANY UNITS, UM, OF HOUSING FOR PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
AND WE'RE WORKING IN PRE-DEVELOPMENT WITH THE URBAN LEAGUE RIGHT NOW.
SO WE HAVE A LOT COMING ONLINE, PRE-DEVELOPMENT, UNDER CONSTRUCTION COMING ONLINE SHORTLY.
[00:45:01]
HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.AND I WILL SAY UPPER LEFT PHOTO IS BALCONES TERRACE, UH, 123 UNITS, UM, AGAIN, OPERATIONAL.
AND THEN THE RENDERING BELOW IS, UH, THE ROS, WHICH WILL BE A HUNDRED UNITS OF PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
I, IF I CAN KICK US OFF WITH THE, JUST A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
YOU KNOW, WE JUST ADOPTED THE RESOLUTION LAST WEEK THAT INCLUDED, UM, THE ECHO MODELING DATA AS A, AS A WAY TO INFORM OUR INVESTMENTS OVER THE NEXT DECADE.
WE KNOW THAT THROUGH ECHO'S MODELING CALLS FOR 5,000, NEARLY 5,000 NEW PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING UNITS.
SO ABOUT 500 ONCOMING ONLINE EACH YEAR OVER THE NEXT 10 YEARS.
HOW DO YOU FORESEE US MEETING THAT GOAL? UH, THAT GOAL IS CERTAINLY AMBITIOUS AND CHALLENGING.
UM, I WAS, AFTER A CONVERSATION WITH COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER YESTERDAY, I RAN SOME QUICK NUMBERS, UM, AND THE, UH, PROJECTS PIPELINE AND RECENT PROJECTS LIKE THE HOTEL CONVERSION, I JUST TALLIED ALL OF THOSE UP.
AND THAT IS THE RESULT OF $137.2 MILLION OF INVESTMENT BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN INTO THIS PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
ON AVERAGE, IT'S ABOUT $140,000 PER PSH UNIT.
UM, AND THAT REPRESENTS OVER 1100 UNITS OF PSH.
AGAIN, THOSE ARE ALL THE PROJECTS THAT I JUST RAN THROUGH, WHETHER IT WAS HOTEL CONVERSIONS, NEW CONSTRUCTION, UM, AND THE TRAVIS COUNTY COLLABORATIVE.
WOULD YOU MIND JUST REPEATING? SURE.
UM, THE PROJECTS THAT I RAN THROUGH REPRESENT 1,107 PSH UNITS.
THOSE INCLUDE OUR HOTEL CONVERSIONS.
UM, AND THEN AS SPARROW AT RUTLAND, THOSE ARE OPERATIONAL.
THE REST ARE IN THE PIPELINE REPRESENTS 130, APPROXIMATELY $137.2 MILLION IN INVESTMENT FROM THE CITY OF AUSTIN, PRIMARILY FROM GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, ALTHOUGH WE DO HAVE OTHER FUNDING SOURCES SPRINKLED IN.
UH, THAT INCLUDES SOME PROJECT CONNECT DOLLARS AS WELL AS DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS DOLLARS THAT ARE COMMITTED TO, UM, HOUSING FOR THE CHRONICALLY HOMELESS.
AND ON AVERAGE, WHILE THE PER UNIT SUBSIDY RANGES, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT APPROXIMATELY $140,000 PER PSH UNIT.
DOES THAT INCLUDE, DOES THAT INCLUDE COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS? YOU SAID IT INCLUDES COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS AND SO DID YOU FACTOR IN THE MONEY FROM THE COUNTY AS WELL? NOT AT ALL.
THIS IS NOT AT ALL, THIS IS DIRECT CITY OF AUSTIN SUBSIDY.
SO IF WE'RE JUST LOOKING AT SUB PUBLIC SUBSIDY PER UNIT, WHAT THEY KICKED IN LIKE A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS.
UH, THEY 60 MILLION, THEY KICKED IN I THINK ABOUT 50 MILLION.
UH, FOR THE FIVE, THERE ARE ONLY FIVE COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS THAT WE PARTICIPATE IN.
THE REMAINING PROJECTS WERE EITHER OUTSIDE OF THE CITY LIMITS, SO I CAN'T SPEAK TO THOSE.
BUT OF THE FIVE COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS, UH, WE PUT IN APPROXIMATELY 50 MILLION AND THEY PUT IN APPROXIMATELY 50 MILLION.
I SHOULD ALSO CLARIFY THAT THIS 137 MILLION IS STRICTLY CAPITAL TO BUILD.
AND SO WHEN WE GO BACK TO THAT, YOU KNOW, THE THREE LEGGED STOOL, WHICH INCLUDES CAPITAL, SO THAT'S THE 137 MILLION.
BUT THEN WE'VE GOT THE SERVICES CRUCIAL.
WE CAN'T JUST HAVE TWO LEGS OF THE STOOL.
AND THEN WE'VE GOT THE OPERATING SUBSIDY ALSO CRUCIAL.
SO FOR A LOT OF THESE PROJECTS IN TERMS OF OPERATING SUBSIDY, WE HAVE A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT, UM, COMMITMENT FROM HAKA, THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN WITH PROJECT-BASED VOUCHERS.
AGAIN, EVERY INDICATION IS THAT THEY WILL NOT HAVE FEDERAL SOURCES TO SUPPORT ON AFTER THESE PROJECTS TO SUPPORT NEW PROJECTS FOR PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
UM, BUT AGAIN, THE 137 MILLION DOES NOT INCLUDE ANY SERVICE DOLLARS OR OPERATING DOLLARS.
AND JUST TO CLARIFY, THE, FOR THE $137 MILLION INVESTMENT THAT THE CITY HAS PUT IN, IN BUILDING PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING UNITS, YOU SAID THAT HAS YIELDED 1,107 UNITS? THAT IS CORRECT.
RIGHT NOW WE HAVE ABOUT 300 UNITS THAT ARE FULLY OPERATIONAL.
NEXT ONE TO COME ONLINE IS KATIE LOFTS, WHICH IS A HUNDRED UNITS.
AND THAT'LL COME ONLINE, UH, SPRING.
I WANNA SAY IT'S APRIL IS THE PROJECTION.
I'LL CERTAINLY HAVE SOME QUESTIONS, BUT FIRST WE'LL YIELD TO MY COLLEAGUES FOR ANY QUESTIONS.
C MEMBER ALTER, I WANT TO DIVE IN A LITTLE BIT TO THOSE NUMBERS AND UNDERSTAND YOU AND I TALKED
[00:50:01]
A LITTLE BIT YESTERDAY ABOUT, UM, KINDA WHAT IS AVAILABLE AS IT RELATES TO PSH PROJECT FROM A 4% TAX CREDIT VERSUS A 9% TAX CREDIT.AND JUST KIND OF THINKING ABOUT IF WE LOOK AT THE MODEL AND IN YEAR 2028, WE'RE, WE'RE TRYING TO BUILD 650 PSH UNITS.
AND SO IF WE ARE THINKING ABOUT PROJECTS THAT ARE GOING BEFORE T-D-H-C-A FOR THEIR AWARD, ARE WE THINKING THAT PROBABLY IT'S A, A THREE OR FOUR YEAR HORIZON? SO THE, THE, THE PROJECTS RIGHT NOW UP FOR AWARD FOR THE NINES, WHATEVER'S AWARDED WILL, WILL BE KIND OF WHAT IS BUILT IN 2028.
IS THAT ABOUT A RIGHT, THE CORRECT TIMELINE? OKAY.
SO FOR THE 9% TAX CREDITS, UM, YOU ALL ARE GONNA HAVE ON YOUR AGENDA ON FEBRUARY 13TH, THE STAFF BRINGING FORWARD, UH, WE STARTED WITH 13, UM, APPLICATIONS FOR AWARD.
AND I THINK WE'RE CURRENTLY DOWN TO SEVEN OR EIGHT.
AND TO MY BEST RECOLLECTION, NONE OF THOSE ARE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
SO IN THE 9% ROUND, WHICH WE ANTICIPATE, TYPICALLY WE GET TWO, MAYBE THREE AWARDS.
I AM NOT ANTICIPATING, I HOPE THIS IS, I WASN'T ANTICIPATING THIS QUESTION, SO I I'M HOPING THAT I'M CORRECT ON THIS, BUT I'M PRETTY SURE I AM, UH, THERE WILL NOT BE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING IN THAT IN THIS ROUND.
HAVING SAID THAT, UM, WE HAD A VARIETY IN THE PIPELINE.
WE HAVE A VARIETY OF 9% AWARDS THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY FUNDED.
KATIE LOFS, THE ROZ, SASHA BAILEY AT BERKMAN.
AND WE JUST LEARNED BAILEY AT STANE WAS AWARDED FOR, WITH SOME LEFTOVER FUNDING FROM T-D-H-C-A.
SO WE HAVE THOSE FIVE PROJECTS, COUPLE OF WHICH ARE UNDER CONSTRUCTION, ONE'S ABOUT TO OPEN UP.
UM, SO YOU KNOW, THE PIPELINE IS CHURNING THOSE NINE PERCENTS.
IN TERMS OF THE 4% AWARDS OF ALL OF THE PROJECTS THAT I LISTED PREVIOUSLY, HOTEL CONVERSIONS DIDN'T INVOLVE ANY TAX CREDITS.
SPARROW AT RUTLAND WAS A 4% LIBERTAD UNDER CONSTRUCTION, THAT'LL HAVE 50 UNITS, 198 TOTAL, 50 FOR PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
KAREN POINT, CAMERON A HUNDRED UNITS, IT'S UNDER CONSTRUCTION, A HUNDRED UNITS OF PSH 150 TOTAL.
AND KAREN POINT, MONTOPOLIS, THEY'RE HOPING TO CLOSE THIS SPRING THAT'LL HAVE 50 UNITS OF PSH.
SO WE ARE ACTIVELY INVOLVED AND ACTIVELY PURSUING GOOD 4% TAX CREDIT PROJECTS.
UM, BUT THIS IS WHAT IS IN THE PIPELINE RIGHT NOW.
AND SO FOR THOSE, THOSE, THE HORIZON IS KIND OF 25, 26, 27.
LOOKING THEN TO 2028, IF, IF I WANTED TO, IF I, IF I WAS A DEVELOPER AND I WANTED TO BUILD A SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PROJECT, IF I STARTED TODAY, IF I WAS IN, LET'S JUST, LET'S SAY I'M, I'M A 4%, SO I, I HAVE A LITTLE MORE ASSURANCE MM-HMM
I DON'T HAVE TO WAIT TO GET THE AWARD OR NOT, YOU KNOW, BE FIRST PLACE OR NOT.
BUT IF I, IF I START TODAY, WHAT'S THE GENERAL TIMELINE? IS THAT, IS THAT A THREE YEAR, FOUR YEAR, FIVE YEAR? WHAT AM I LOOKING AT? UH, TO START CONSTRUCTION? TO FINISH CONSTRUCTION FROM TODAY TO OPENING, I AM GONNA BALLPARK AND SAY IT WOULD BE 2028, YOU WOULD GO INTO THE LOTTERY, WHICH IS NOVEMBER OF 2025, THE TEXAS BOND REVIEW BOARD LOTTERY.
UH, YOU WOULD BE NOTIFIED THAT YOU WERE ONE OF THE LUCKY WINNERS.
UH, YOU'D LINE UP YOUR FINANCING, YOU'D HAVE 180 DAYS TO CLOSE.
UH, AND THEN YOU WOULD START CONSTRUCTION, WHICH WOULD BE AT LEAST TWO YEARS.
SO LATE 2028, BEST CASE SCENARIO.
AND MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE LOTTERY IS NOT QUITE, SO, UH, NOT QUITE SO MANY PEOPLE IN IT THESE DAYS GIVEN MARKET CONDITIONS.
MAYBE EVERY, MOST PEOPLE IN THE LOTTERY ARE GETTING, AND THE REASON I'M ASKING THIS IS IF, IF WE WANT TO DELIVER ON THESE GOALS 3, 4, 5 YEARS OUT, WE HAVE TO START DOING THAT STUFF.
DOING THE, THE DEVELOPMENT, THE PRE-DEVELOPMENT TODAY, AND AS YOU JUST MENTIONED, NOTHING IN THE 9% APPLICATIONS ARE PSH.
SO THAT MEANS YOU'RE LOOKING AT SIX TO EIGHT 4% DEALS TO, TO MEET THAT 600 TO 650.
'CAUSE YOU KNOW, GENERALLY SPEAKING, 60, 80, A HUNDRED UNITS IS KIND OF WHERE WE SEE IT.
SO LET'S JUST SAY THE NUMBER'S EIGHT.
HOW DO WE GET EIGHT
[00:55:01]
BUT WE, UM, AS A DEPARTMENT IN GOOD CONSCIENCE COULD NOT MOVE FORWARD WITH A 4% PSH DEAL UNTIL WE KNOW THAT IT IS ONE APPROPRIATELY CITED AND TWO FULLY FUNDED FROM BOTH THE SERVICES AND OPERATION PERSPECTIVE.SO WE DON'T, WE WALK HAND IN GLOVE WITH HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICE, UM, ON ALL OF THESE.
SO WHEN I WENT THROUGH LIKE OUR 9% TAX CREDIT AWARDS, WE COORDINATE, UH, DAILY WITH OUR HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICE.
AND I SHOULD SAY, UH, WE ALSO MEET REGULARLY WITH BOTH ECHO HAKA AND THE HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICE TO GO OVER THE PSH PIPELINE BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO GET ONE FUNDER IN FRONT OF ANOTHER FUNDER.
AND LET'S TAKE THE, THE, LET'S LOOK AT JUST THE CAPITAL LEG OF THE STOOL.
LET'S ASSUME FOR A MOMENT WE'VE GOT THE VOUCHERS AND WE HAVE SOME KIND OF ONGOING OPERATING SUBSIDY SO THAT WHEN THESE DO OPEN MM-HMM
THAT THOSE TWO PORTIONS ARE GONNA BE TAKEN CARE OF FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
AND I'M NOT SUGGESTING THAT THE CITY WOULD BE THE ONE THAT NECESSARILY TAKES UP ALL EIGHT, RIGHT? MAYBE WE AND OUR PARTNERS SAY WE TAKE FOUR AND EVERYONE ELSE TAKES THE OTHER FOUR.
I, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT BALANCE IS, BUT WHATEVER THAT NUMBER IS, HOW WOULD, HOW WOULD YOU, FROM YOUR POSITION, GET THOSE PROJECTS IN THE DOOR? WOULD YOU ISSUE AN RFQ AND SAY, WE HAVE THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY AND, YOU KNOW, BRING US YOUR PROJECTS, OR WHAT WOULD BE THE WAY TO GET THAT HAPPENING? SO I WILL SAY, UH, ONE OF A HFC OWNS A VARIETY OF LAND THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
RIGHT NOW, I THINK WE HAVE 60 PLUS ACRES.
UH, WE RECENTLY COMPLETED, WE HAVE A DRAFT OF THE REPORT FROM AN OUTSIDE CONSULTANT HELPING US TO PRIORITIZE, UM, WHICH PARCELS TO PUT OUT FOR SOLICITATION AND FOR WHICH PURPOSES.
SOME PARCELS ARE MUCH MORE APPROPRIATE FOR OWNERSHIP HOUSING, SOME FOR PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, MOST OF OUR PARCELS ARE CONNECTED TO HIGH FREQUENCY TRANSIT, BUT NOT ALL OF THEM.
WE WOULDN'T WANNA PUT PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, UM, UNLESS IT WAS CLOSELY, UH, ALIGNED WITH HIGH FREQUENCY TRANSIT, VARIETY OF DIFFERENT FACTORS GO INTO THE THINKING.
UM, WE'RE REVIEWING THAT PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS RIGHT NOW, AND THEN WE'LL BE ABLE TO SAY WHICH OF THE PARCELS WE ANTICIPATE GOING OUT FOR SOLICITATION FIRST.
ONE OF THE SOLICITATIONS I HAVE BEEN MOST PROUD OF WAS OUR SEABROOK SQUARE SOLICITATION.
UM, THE REASON FOR THAT WAS, THIS WAS A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, IT'S UNDER CONSTRUCTION.
THE DEVELOPER IS, UH, NHP FOUNDATION, A NATIONAL NONPROFIT PARTNERED WITH CAPITAL A.
UM, AND WE EXPLICITLY AN INTENTIONALLY PUT OUT A, UM, A SOLICITATION IN PARTNERSHIP WITH, AT THE TIME A PH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, UM, THAT HAD SOME SERVICE DOLLARS ATTACHED.
WE INTENTIONALLY PUT MONEY INTO THE DEAL, AND FROM BOTH THE CAPITAL SIDE AND ALSO FROM THE OPERATING SIDE, PUT OUT A SOLICITATION AND SAID DEVELOPERS.
WHAT WE WANNA SEE IS FAMILY FRIENDLY HOUSING AND PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING FOR THE CHRONICALLY HOMELESS.
AND THE RESULT IS A COLLABORATION BETWEEN INTEGRAL CARE, WHICH IS DOING THE 60 UNIT PSH, WHICH ALREADY HAS THE SERVICES DOLLARS COMMITTED ALREADY HAS THE LOCAL HOUSING VOUCHER COMMITTED AND HAS THE CAPITAL DOLLARS COMMITTED.
AND THEN, UM, 198 UNITS, 204 UNITS OF FAMILY HOUSING, UM, DEVELOPED BY NHP.
SO I THINK APPROACHING IT THAT WAY, INTENTIONALLY AND PROACTIVELY, RATHER THAN REACTING TO A DEAL, UM, AND TRYING TO COBBLE TOGETHER THE OPERATING FUNDING, UM, IT'S REALLY THE, THE BEST STEWARD OF PUBLIC DOLLARS.
SO IF I CAN SAY THIS BACK TO YOU, JUST TO MAKE SURE I'M UNDERSTANDING FROM OUR, IF WE WANTED TO ENCOURAGE SOME OF THESE PROJECTS BASED ON THAT EXPERIENCE, HAVING AN RFP WHERE WE SAY, AS PART OF THE SOLICITATION, WE HAVE X AMOUNT OF OPERATING DOLLARS, WE HAVE X AMOUNT OF VOUCHERS, COME TELL US YOUR BEST.
AND, AND HERE ARE KIND OF THE, THE POPULATIONS WE WANNA SERVE.
UM, YOUR BEST IDEAS, AND THEN WE PICK THE BEST.
SO WE WOULD, WE WOULD NEED TO IDENTIFY THOSE SPECIFIC AMOUNTS PRIOR TO GOING IN SOLICITATION.
IS THAT A, UH, THAT IS AN ACCURATE, UM, THAT WOULD BE AN IDEAL APPROACH AND I THINK A BEST PRACTICE APPROACH.
AND SO WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO FOLLOW UP WITH THIS COMMITTEE ON HOW MUCH THOSE,
[01:00:01]
LIKE LET'S JUST, YOU COULD, YOU COULD DO IT FOR ONE, AND WE CAN MULTIPLY IT OUT HOWEVER MANY WE, YOU KNOW, ARE INTERESTED IN.BUT IF WE WERE TO DO ONE OF THESE SOLICITATIONS, HOW MUCH YOU THINK WE WOULD NEED TO BE BRINGING TO THE TABLE FROM AN OPERATIONS PERSPECTIVE, FROM A OPER, UM, THE SUPPORT DOLLARS.
AND THEN AN ESTIMATE ON KIND OF WHAT YOU THINK THE GAP WOULD BE THAT THEY WOULD BE COMING TO A HFC FOR, YOU KNOW, FIVE OR $10 MILLION, WHATEVER THAT MIGHT BE.
WE HAVE ESTIMATES ON THE CAPITAL SIDE.
WE ACTUALLY ALREADY HAVE ESTIMATES ON THE OPERATING SIDE.
WE THINK IT'S ABOUT $15,000 A YEAR FROM AN OPERATIONAL SUBSIDY PERSPECTIVE.
UM, AND I KNOW HSO HAS SERVICE ESTIMATES AS WELL.
WE CAN, UM, BRING THOSE ALL TOGETHER AND BRING THAT BACK TO THIS COMMITTEE.
THAT'S ALL I HAVE FOR NOW, MS. MAYO, DO YOU THINK THAT INFORMATION COULD BE PRESENTED AT OUR NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING IN MARCH? UH, WE WILL.
WE WILL FIGURE IT OUT AND I THINK WE CAN.
WE'LL TRY OUR DARNEST AND WE'LL HAVE, WE MIGHT EVEN BE ABLE TO HAVE KIND OF AN EXAMPLE PROJECT.
COLLEAGUES, ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? YES, VICE CHAIR.
THANKS FOR ALL THIS INFORMATION.
I AM JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND, 'CAUSE I'M PROBABLY WORKING OFF OF OLD DATA.
IF THERE'S A WAY TO, PERHAPS NOT RIGHT NOW, BUT WORK WITH YOU TO GET THE AVERAGE COST OF WHAT A PSH UNIT IS THEIR OPERATING COST? YEARLY OPERATING COST.
AND WE HAVE OPERATING DATA FOR THE HOTELS THAT WE'RE INVOLVED IN.
SOME OF THEM WERE INVOLVED IN THE SENSE THAT WE PROVIDED A SUBORDINATE LOAN, BUT WE'RE NOT AS HEAVILY INVOLVED IN THE OPERATIONS.
SOME, WERE MUCH MORE HEAVILY INVOLVED IN THE OPERATIONS.
SO, UH, WE CAN CERTAINLY GET YOU THAT DATA.
ANYTHING ELSE, COLLEAGUES? THANK YOU SO MUCH.
[Future Items]
AT OUR NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING, I WANTED TO GO THROUGH WHAT WE HAVE ON DECK FOR AGENDA TOPICS.UM, WE WILL BE DISCUSSING IT AND CONSIDERING THE APPOINTMENT TO, OR A RECOMMENDATION FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF THE SOBERING CENTER BOARD.
WE WILL ALSO RECEIVE A REPORT BACK REGARDING THE COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION THAT PASSED CITY COUNCIL LAST WEEK REGARDING PRIORITIZING INVESTMENTS IN THE HOMELESSNESS RESPONSE SYSTEM.
AND WE'LL ALSO RECEIVE A REPORT BACK ON, I BELIEVE THIS IS COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER'S RESOLUTION REGARDING A MULTI-YEAR PLAN FOR THE CITY'S LIVING WAGE FOR FUTURE SOLICITATION OF SOCIAL SERVICES.
THAT WAS A GAP IN OUR SYSTEM THAT WE DID NOT HAVE COVERED UNDER OUR LIVING WAGE STANDARDS.
IT WOULD BE BRINGING IN OUR SOCIAL SERVICE CONTRACTS INTO MEETING THE CITY'S LIVING WAGE.
UM, WE'LL ALSO, AND THIS IS ONE OF THE REQUESTS THAT I'LL BE BRINGING FORWARD, IS AN UPDATE FROM THE AUSTIN ANIMAL SERVICES DIVISION.
UM, THEY HAVE AN UPDATE TO THEIR STRATEGIC PLAN AND THEN, UM, ALSO A UPDATE ON THE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING POLICY, WHICH WE JUST TALKED ABOUT.
UM, AND OH, NO, NO, THIS IS A DIFFERENT PIECE.
THIS IS CREATING A POLICY ON THE BRIDGE PORTION, THE BRIDGE TO PSH POLICY, UM, THAT THIS COMMITTEE ALSO PREVIOUSLY ADOPTED.
AND THAT SHOULD COME EITHER AT MARCH OR APRIL.
SO WE HAVE A LOT, LOT ON DECK NEXT MONTH IN THE COMING MONTHS, BUT ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS FOR TOPICS? ALL RIGHT, EVERYONE, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION AND CONTRIBUTIONS IN TODAY'S IMPORTANT CONVERSATIONS.
IF THERE'S NO FURTHER BUSINESS, I WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING AT 11:04 AM THANK YOU.