Draft

City of Lawrence

Affordable Housing Advisory Board

July 9, 2018 minutes

 

MEMBERS PRESENT:

Andrew Brown, Rebecca Buford, Ron Gaches, Edith Guffey, Dana Ortiz, Shannon Oury, Monte Soukup, Nancy Thellman, Erika Zimmerman

 

MEMBERS ABSENT:

Susan Cooper, Thomas Howe, Tim Stultz, Sarah Waters

 

STAFF PRESENT:

Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager; Scott McCullough, Director of Planning and Development Services; Danelle Dresslar, Community Development Manager; Jeff Crick, Planner II; Brad Karr, Community Development Programs Analyst; Danielle Buschkoetter, Strategic Projects Manager

 

Excerpt from draft minutes:

 

5.    Bert Nash Transitional Housing Project update and extension consideration

Chair Oury indicated she was involved with Bert Nash on this project, so she recused herself and left the room. Vice Chair Gaches invited Mathew Faulk, Housing Program Manager with the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, to provide an update on the request to consider an extension on using the awarded housing trust funds.

 

Faulk explained since the Douglas County Proposition 1 ballot initiative was not passed by the county voters, other immediate funding sources would need to be identified for the Bridges Transitional Recovery project. Funding for the Tier II portion of the project will now come from a combination of Bert Nash’s own in-house funds, from Douglas County funds in the proposed 2019 budget, and from the previously awarded $495,000 from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Jill Jolicoeur, Assistant to the County Administrator for Douglas County, indicated there was a consensus among the county Board of Commissioners to allocate $400,000 in the 2019 Douglas County budget for the project.

 

Bert Nash had previously requested an extension on finalizing a contract for the funds with the City of Lawrence until the outcome of other grant applications were determined. The funding now would not be grant dependent, but would need to be approved in the 2019 Douglas County Budget process. Bert Nash is requesting an extension until October 31, 2018 to finalize the contract with the City of Lawrence for the $495,000 allocation from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

 

Brown asked when the Douglas County funds would be available, and when could construction begin. Jolicoeur said the county budget would be approved in August 2018, with the funds available for use beginning January 2019. Faulk indicated they would like to organize the construction to coincide with the Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority’s construction of Tier III of the project, which would depend on approvals from HUD before construction could begin.

 

Brown moved to recommend authorizing an extension through October 31, 2018 for the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center to execute an agreement with the City of Lawrence for the Bridges Transitional Recovery Program facility project, a recipient of Housing Trust Funds. Ortiz seconded the motion. The motion passed 7-0, with Oury abstaining.