HomeMy WebLinkAboutIR 10091 INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 10091
To the Mayor and Members of the City Council January 9, 2018
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*a SUBJECT: FUNDING FOR DEVELOPMENT OF PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE
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This Informal Report summarizes a briefing on permanent supportive housing from the December
5, 2017, meeting of the City Council's Housing and Neighborhood Services Committee.
Directions Home, a unit in the City Manager's Office, is working to make homelessness rare,
short-term and non-recurring. Developing more permanent supportive housing is necessary to
reduce chronic homelessness, which includes those with disabilities and more than a year
homeless. A key recommendation from the City Council's Task Force on Permanent Supportive
Housing was to expand the current inventory, which is 1,404 units. A study of housing needs by
OrgCode Consulting found that to end chronic homelessness an additional 1 ,450 units of
permanent supportive housing are needed in Tarrant County over the next ten years.
A donation from the BNSF Railway Foundation for supportive services has allowed Directions
Home to allocate $500,000.00 in the operating budget for capital projects with permanent
supportive housing units. There is an opportunity for Directions Home to increase the supply of
permanent supportive housing through a public-private partnership. A local foundation has
committed $2.5 million over five years to match City funds for capital permanent supportive
housing. Other foundations have also expressed interest in funding the development of
permanent supportive housing. There is a possibility of using Housing Finance Corporation funds
to match these private foundation dollars for permanent supportive housing projects. The funding
is for capital gaps only and the City will not be the sole or majority funder.
City staff has recently issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to develop permanent supportive
housing with possible assistance from the City and local foundations. Project requirements
include the provision of at least 20 permanent supportive housing units through either
rehabilitation or new construction, rents at or below Fair Market Rent, proximity to public
transportation and grocery stores, land use consistency with the City's Comprehensive Plan, and
location in a neighborhood with a relatively low poverty rate. Proposals are due on January 22,
after which a staff panel will meet to review and evaluate proposals. Staff would like to brief the
City Council's Housing and Neighborhood Services Committee about the results of this evaluation
at the committee's February 6 meeting.
If you have any questions about this information, please contact Directions Home Manager Tara
Perez at 817-392-2235.
David Cooke
City Manager
ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS