DEPARTMENT:
Neighborhood and Housing Services Department
DEPARTMENT HEAD:
Verónica R. Soto, FAICP, Neighborhood and Housing Services Department Director
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED:
Citywide
SUMMARY:
An Ordinance approving a memorandum of agreement with Grounded Solutions Network for anti-displacement and inclusive growth policy strategy consulting services, and authorizing a co-investment in the Initiative from the City in the amount of $120,000.00 to be funded from the FY 2020 Neighborhood and Housing Services Department General Fund Budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Grounded Solutions Network (GSN) is a non-profit policy consultancy firm specializing in inclusive growth and anti-displacement strategies. They have consulted for many cities including Houston, Austin, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, and Detroit.
The ForEveryoneHome initiative is a nationwide anti-displacement and inclusive growth effort undertaken by Grounded Solutions Network and sponsored by the Ford Foundation. The initiative’s goal is to help cities develop sound anti-displacement and inclusive growth policies before displacement pressures become too great. San Antonio was one of three cities competitively selected to participate in ForEveryoneHome, along with Winston-Salem, NC and Indianapolis, IN.
The ForEveryoneHome Initiative expands on the work of the Mayor’s Housing Policy Task Force, whose charge was to create a comprehensive and compassionate housing policy framework that “allow(s) residents to live with dignity, age in place, rehabilitate their housing, and preserve the integrity of their neighborhoods”. Today, we are pleased that through ForEveryoneHome we have continued to work with community leaders on exploring specific strategies for achieving the Task Force’s call to preserve and protect neighborhoods.
Since the initiative began in 2019, the ForEveryoneHome team has created an in-depth needs assessment which has already been utilized to guide outreach and policy decisions in other city initiatives. The original ForEveryoneHome timeline envisioned that the final project deliverables would be completed in October 2020. However, The ForEveryoneHome team members propose an amended timeline and budget to account for both an expanded scope and the public health and socioeconomic context.
The San Antonio ForEveryoneHome leadership team is a mix of city and community leaders including:
• Juan Valdez, The Office of the Mayor
• Verónica Soto, NHSD Director
• Amin Tohmaz, DSD Assistant Director
• Jessica O. Guerrero, Housing Commissioner Chair and Board President of Vecinos de
Mission Trails
• Graciela Sanchez, Executive Director of Esperanza Peace and Justice Center
• Tuesdaé Knight, CEO of San Antonio for Growth on the Eastside (SAGE)
• Richard Milk, Director of Policy & Planning, San Antonio Housing Authority (SAHA)
• Monica Cruz, Applied Demography PhD student (UTSA)
• Rebecca Flores, Community Advocate
• Jose Gonzalez, Alamo Community Group
The initiative is staffed by NHSD’s Housing Policy Division. Other city departments participating include the Office of Equity, Metro Health, and the Disability Access Office. Sasha Hauswald, Director of State and Local Policy for Grounded Solutions Network serves as the chief consultant along with Fabiola Torralba, Community Engagement Coordinator, and Matt Kreis, Chief Legal Counsel for Center for Community Progress.
ISSUE:
The ForEveryoneHome team has requested to staff that we continue the ForEveryoneHome collaboration into 2021. The reasoning for this extension is two-fold. First, our public-engagement period was scheduled to being in late March, just as the COVID-19 shutdowns began. This forced the team to rethink our engagement strategy and unfortunately focus on primarily virtual outreach. Second, it will allow us to best account for the impacts of COVID-19 upon our policy landscape. We look forward to an expanded community engagement effort in the new fiscal year.
This extension is in acknowledgement of the expanded scope to include the Development Services Department, increased community engagement, and an additional deliverable in the form of an implementation plan for a second policy. Development Services will work closely with the Center for Community Progress, as well. The City would invest an additional $120,000.00 set aside for anti-displacement strategies in our FY2020 budget. With the increased investment from the City, Grounded Solutions Network would also increase their commitment by contributing an additional $77,000.00 to the work.
Now in Phase II of the work, the team has chosen to continue a deeper approach to community engagement and outreach. Further, the team also partnered with the Center for Community Progress, who brings unique expertise in code enforcement and preservation.
Proposed Budget
|
|
GSN Contributions |
City of San Antonio Contributions |
Fund Source |
|
FY 2019 -2020 |
$150,000 |
$75,000 |
NHSD General Fund |
|
FY 2021 |
$77,000 |
$120,000 |
NHSD Fees to Pro |
|
Total: |
$227,000 |
$195,000 |
|
Proposed Timeline (reflects COVID-19 related adjustments)
|
Phase |
Description |
Status |
|
Phase I: July 2019-January 2019 |
A needs assessment that identifies current and emerging housing challenges with special attention to needs of low-income communities of color |
Complete |
|
Phase II; February-July 2020 |
Outreach to community members and experts with lived or professional experience on key displacement issues identified in the needs assessment • Survey: April 2020-June 2020 (Complete) • Focus Groups: July 2020 (Complete) |
Complete |
|
Phase III; August- September 2020 |
Finalize recommendations for anti-displacement strategies in San Antonio, identify two high-priority items. |
In Progress |
|
FY 2021 |
Grounded Solutions Network to develop implementation plans for two high-priority items from the agenda |
Not yet started |
ALTERNATIVES:
If this memorandum of agreement is not approved, the ForEveryoneHome initiative will be limited to utilizing the remaining funding available. This will limit the community engagement and delay the development of the sole implementation strategy.
FISCAL IMPACT:
This ordinance approves a memorandum of agreement with Grounded Solutions Network for anti-displacement and inclusive growth policy strategy consulting services, and authorizing a co-investment in the Initiative from the City in the amount of $120,000.00 to be funded from the FY 2020 Neighborhood and Housing Services Department General Fund Budget. Grounded Solutions Network will contribute an additional $77,00.00 in matching funds.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends approval of the memorandum of agreement to increase community engagement and add an additional anti-displacement policy implementation plan.