Mr. Hanna, Ms. McColloch. Thank you. Please identify yourself again and then you can begin to respond to the question. Mr. Hanna? MS. McCOLLOCH: I'm Deborah McColloch. I am the Director of Housing. I think he's in the hallway and they're bringing him in.
Thank you. MS. McCOLLOCH: I wanted to make sure that I understood the question. The question was the categories of expenditures for the Housing Trust Fund?
Right. MS. McCOLLOCH: Okay. Those 111 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 are listed in the Consolidated Plan. I have them on another piece of paper here --
She said they're listed in the Consolidated Plan for those of you who say it's not united.
We have Housing Trust Fund Proposed 32 Year Budget Allocation. MS. McCOLLOCH: Yes.
It does mention neighborhood-based rental, targeted neighborhood preservation, Basic Systems Repair. MS. McCOLLOCH: Right.
Adaptive Modification, homeless prevention. All of those are part of the Ninth Councilmanic District?
Councilwoman, talk into you're mike. We can't hear you.
All those 112 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 conditions or this allocation could apply to my district? MS. McCOLLOCH: Yes.
So in the process of developing the RFP, were you only concentrating on houses, and at what point will my community be able to access some of the Basic Systems, the targeted preservation? And if you have targeted neighborhood preservation, what is the targeted neighborhood? MS. McCOLLOCH: Okay. Let me try to take one question at a time. The first three categories on this list, neighborhood-based homeownership, new construction homeownership and neighborhood-based rental, those are the three categories for which the request for proposals was issued. Those were the only three categories for which the RFP --
Repeat that, please. MS. McCOLLOCH: 113 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Neighborhood-based homeownership, neighborhood -- excuse me; new construction homeownership and neighborhood-based rental. Those were the categories of funds for which the request for proposals was issued. The request for proposals was issued for the '06 money, so that was $6 million.
And who made that decision? MS. McCOLLOCH: Those are the three categories that are not Citywide categories that are project-specific, development-specific categories of funding.
So at what point do you get around to the other categories? MS. McCOLLOCH: Then HRP stands for Homeownership Rehab Program. That's a program that's currently being carried out by the Redevelopment Authority, and that program is open now. Anyone can apply to it now. That's a Citywide 114 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 program. It's a single-family rehab program that combines a grant with a loan. Someone could apply for it today. I'm going to just skip for one moment the targeted neighborhood preservation and come back to it. The Basic Systems Repair Program is a Citywide program that's carried out by PHDC today. That has its own application process. That's a Citywide program. So that you don't need an RFP for that. This funding is supplementing the funding that PHDC already has. Adaptive Modifications Program is also a program that's carried out by PHDC. It has its own application procedure. It's a Citywide program. Homeless Prevention Program is a program that's carried out by OESS. OESS issued its own request for proposals, and this funding would be added to the funding that OESS already has committed for Homeless Prevention 115 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Programs. So it was simply adding this Housing Trust Fund money into the City money that was already committed for Homeless Prevention Programs. So out of this list, the only new program is the Targeted Neighborhood Preservation Program, and that's a program that hasn't yet been figured out. It's a program designed to provide basic systems repair on a targeted basis, but the general criteria for that and what was imagined was that it would also be a request for proposals. But that has not yet been figured out to issue an RFP yet. So out of this list, that's the only one that I would say is still unclear.
So the process for distributing under this RFP, where does the Board come in and the decision process for all of the programs, or are they just going to deal with the first three categories of homeownership, new construction and rental? MS. McCOLLOCH: The Oversight 116 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Board only made a set of recommendations to provide funding for this set of programs. The Oversight Board didn't make any recommendations for who should get funded under neighborhood-based homeownership, only that $500,000 of Housing Trust Fund money should be committed to that program, that $2.5 million of Housing Trust Fund money should be committed to that program. This set of programs is already in the Consolidated Plan, and so this is supplementing programs that OHCD already funds either through the Redevelopment Authority or PHDC.
So the Oversight Board, what responsibility do they have for Redevelopment Authority, PHDC, the Basic Systems, the Adaptive Modification and the homeless? Do they have any input into the expenditure of those funds -- MS. McCOLLOCH: No. 25
-- of 117 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 those agencies? MS. McCOLLOCH: No. Only insofar as to make a recommendation that for Basic Systems Repair, $1,517,250 of Housing Trust Found money be allocated for the Basic Systems Repair Program that's being carried out by PHDC. The Oversight Board doesn't have any other role.
And in the neighborhood-based homeownership, new construction homeownership and neighborhood-based rental in the RFP process, was it Citywide or was it targeted? MS. McCOLLOCH: It was Citywide.
I had a 118 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 follow-up, if I may.
Back to Councilwoman Tasco's original question, though, which was given and recognizing the fact that her district is not as needy as others, but recognizing also that there are residents -- appears not to be as needy as others. She has senior citizens who have special needs and predatory lending, I believe, was the highest in your district, is that not so, Councilwoman? So what kind of accommodations, considerations, provisions are put in place in any of these categories that give her the dollars she needs to address her particular circumstances? MS. McCOLLOCH: For predatory lending? For anti-predatory lending activity?
Let me try to phrase it differently. 119 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 MS. McCOLLOCH: I'm sorry.
It's okay. Would any of these programs as presented here allow for, provide for the circumstances specific to her district, like predatory lending, special housing needs for seniors, et cetera? I guess what I'm trying to get to is, if spending the dollars equally is not acceptable, then sharing the dollars commensurate with the need of each individual district, is that not or can that not be a consideration?
Has that been -- well, we've heard today, according to the City Solicitor, that Councilmembers cannot get into the allocation process.
Councilwoman, can I 120 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 make a point?
In the past, I remember the year I got here, the first budget cycle through which I went, there was a big debate over NTI dollars, the extent to which NTI dollars would be used for demolition versus Adaptive Modification or Basic Systems Repair or other of these types of line items. The Administration made its recommendation, its proposal, to City Council via the Proposed Consolidated Plan. City Council took action to move money around. In fact, what happened was, money was taken out of demolition and distributed among two, three, four other line items contained in the Consolidated Plan. City Council could just as easily do the same thing here to these recommended amounts provided in these recommended line items. City Council could just as soon also add line items to this list, if it pleases City Council. 121 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 That's why we've always represented that Council always has, I'd say, the next-to-last bite at the apple, in that you can amend a Proposed Consolidated Plan as you deem appropriate, as you see fit, at least as far as the line items and the amount of money that's allocated to line items. You've done that before. You've done that in fact every year that I've been here as we've gone through this budgetary cycle.
But, Mr. Hanna, when we talked about distributing money and we talked about dealing with -- see, you all flip the rules as it suits you. We were having Community Development Block Grant hearings and we said, Go to projects that are near ready, which is what you're saying today. You all went around to every Council office and said, Jannie wants all the money and you should divide it up in the districts, and we all got 122 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 one point something million more. Now today you flipped the rules. You don't want it in districts like you did then. Now you want it in the projects that are near ready, unless you don't agree with the recommendations of the Philadelphia Association of CDC and the documents they wrote. So it's not right. You're not supposed to flip the rules at any given time and the way you feel at any given moment. It's not right. (Applause.)
Thank you. Rick Sauer. Thank you. We'll ask that you still remain.
I apologize, Madam Chair. I actually stepped out for a bathroom break, but I never made it.
Thank 123 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 you. Pat Baltimore is next after Rick Sauer. Thank you.
Good evening, Chairman Blackwell, members of Council. My name is Rick Sauer and I'm the Executive Director of the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations. I'm also a member of the Housing Trust Fund Oversight Board. I'm one of the four community representatives on the Oversight Board. PACDC is the umbrella organization of over 80 CDCs and other organizations working to revitalize neighborhoods and address resident needs throughout the City. And as you mentioned in the letter that we sent to every Councilmember and including one we sent to your office, we stated --
I've been left out daily from the e-mails and letters you all send. You don't send me any. I get them, but you don't send them 124 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 to me. Every day you send them, but you don't send them to me, and I'm on the Board. And I said that at the last meeting. (Applause.)
We have been strong advocates throughout the process for accountability and how the Housing Trust Fund --
And, Mr. Sauer, you sent them all through my district and you don't send them to me. (Applause.)
Can I proceed with my testimony, please? Thank you. Through the whole process of initially back before the City Council ordinance was introduced, before State legislation was introduced, we believed in the importance of having accountability around how the funds are expended. We believe in the importance of having transparency and an open and competitive process for how the funds are 125 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 awarded, and we've consistently stuck by that and pushed for that throughout the process of both the legislation being drafted and on the Oversight Board for how the Housing Trust Fund is implemented, and I think I've been consistent in that position. I know you referenced one of the paragraphs in the letter that we did send around to Council about the annual report. That's something we pushed for. In the ordinance that City Council unanimously passed, there is a requirement that every year the Oversight Board has to produce a report that details how all of the funds have been spent, saying total number of housing units produced, homes preserved, households assisted from becoming homeless, list of projects that are funded, reports on the amount of dollars that are leveraged, and in Section D, report in aggregate form the number of households benefiting from the Trust Fund 126 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 by income level, geographic distribution, family size and other criteria. That reference to geographic distribution, which was in the letter that you referenced earlier, that's what we're saying. It's important to look at what the track record of the Trust Fund is so that informed decisions could be made. If things aren't working right, let's go back and correct it. We want to make sure -- but even though we've collected $10 million so far, not a single dime has been committed to a single project or to repair a single home yet. We haven't gotten to the point where the money is actually on the street. We think it's important, though, to track how every dollar is spent so there is information. We know how much is going to each Council District. We know that the requirement in the Trust Fund that half the money has to benefit people below earning less than 127 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 30 percent of median income is being met. We need to know that the requirement that half the money at least has to go towards housing production being met. I think that's the responsibility of the Oversight Board that we made to City Council when you passed this ordinance, that we need to monitor the Trust Fund and track and report back on how those dollars are being spent. And I think that's an important role for us to play.
Mr. Sauer, that's our issue. You mention transparency, but you mean transparency among yourselves. You mention the track record. This is the first opportunity, this is the first time Housing Trust dollars would be spent. That's why we want to make sure we do it right. You don't work for the City. The housing agencies on -- there are four people from the City. I'm elected. The other three are housing agencies. At 128 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 least they have some responsibility to somebody. But you don't. If you decide that nobody can get you and you want to close your door, you don't work for the City, nor are you elected by the people. So, therefore, you don't have the responsibility that we do. (Applause.)
So we want to make sure -- a track record at the end isn't good enough. Council wants to be included at the beginning so we make sure that there's input that we agree with in our districts, because we're on the front line and we're in our districts every day. We know who is there and we know who wants inclusion and who deserves inclusion. That's not your decision to make. I have no idea where you live, but I know that that's not your decision to make for my district.
I agree, it is not my decision to make for your district, and I've been consistent in that as well. 129 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 I have always stated that the Oversight Board should not be making any decisions on which individual housing development projects get funded. I don't think that's the appropriate role for the Oversight Board, and I have said that throughout. That's why we pushed for an RFP process that would be broadly advertised, an open, competitive process that whoever felt they met the criteria for the RFP could respond. That's how the City -- and OHCD issued that RFP after the Trust Fund Advisory Board reviewed the draft RFP. We made changes, recommended changes. Everyone unanimously on the Trust Fund Oversight Board said that was the appropriate RFP to send out, which was done. We also did not want the Oversight Board to review those 20 applications that came in in response to the RFP. The City has set up a separate process to do that, with representatives from the various housing and other 130 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 community development agencies, which is my understanding at how they make decisions around how HOME funds are spent, how Community Development Block funds are allocated to housing projects as well. I agree with you 100 percent. I'm not an elected official. I should not be deciding how those funds are spent. I don't think that's the appropriate role of the Oversight Board. So I concur with you 100 percent on that. (Applause.)
Mr. Sauer, we asked that there be an RFP process. At our first meeting, it was already spelled out who got what. Believe me, I tell my colleagues, decisions were made. Councilwoman Tasco. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Are you saying that you requested an RFP and it was awarded?
I did. 131 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 I am saying that I requested an RFP. When we went in, decisions were made about who was getting funded. I said to the group that we have to have a process that includes everybody or my colleagues wouldn't be satisfied. I'm there to represent you. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: My question is, you requested an RFP. Was an RFP issued or was it ignored?
An RFP apparently, they say, was issued, but only five districts were included. Yours is one of them left out. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I understand that. I'm just curious about your statement that the RFP was ignored. At least I think that's what you said.
No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying there was no RFP process until I insisted there be a process so that my colleagues would understand that there's inclusion. That's what I'm saying. 132 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466
Point of information. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I didn't hear it that way. The way I heard it was, there was an RFP, but you made -- but the decision had already been made as to where the projects were going to be.
I will repeat. I went into a Housing Trust Fund meeting. Decisions were made. I insisted that we had to have a process, an RFP process or some process where everybody had the right to apply. There was not an RFP process until I insisted there be one. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: But there eventually was.
Of course there eventually was. That included half of our districts and not the other half. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: But there was an RFP. You made a statement, if I heard you correctly, that decisions were 133 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 already made.
Yes, they were. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Before the RFP was issued?
Yes, sir. I said that. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: But subsequent to that, there was an RFP.
Yes, there was. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: What was the response to the RFP?
You'll have to ask Deb McColloch and Kevin Hanna. We didn't see that. I just got this list after I started arguing. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I mean, if you have an RFP, it's a public --
Would you like them to respond? COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I'm curious, if you're saying you got an RFP but decisions had already been made, 134 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 that's to suggest to me that there was no 3 RFP or it was just ignored.
That's not what I'm saying. You heard exactly what I said. Did we have a point of information, Councilman?
Councilwoman Tasco. MS. McCOLLOCH: Did you want me to answer his question? An RFP was issued by the Office of Housing and Community Development for $6 million. In response to that RFP, we received 20 proposals. That's the list that Mrs. Blackwell and everyone else has. The request came in for approximately $8.1 million. No decisions 135 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 have been made in response to that RFP yet. The proposals are being reviewed by that interagency proposal review committee that we've discussed. That committee will make recommendations to Kevin Hanna. Kevin has committed he's going to review those recommendations with District Councilmembers and the Mayor, and then funds will be awarded. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Would you happen to know if an RFP was responded to that would have covered every Councilmanic District, or were there any Councilmanic Districts that an RFP did not reflect? MS. McCOLLOCH: The RFP was issued Citywide. So proposals -- COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Came in from all over. MS. McCOLLOCH: -- could come in from any Council District. It's true that proposals did not come from every Council District, but they were eligible to come in. 136 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: But they were not responded to from every Councilmanic District. So, theoretically, it could be that my district, no RFP was responded to from my Councilmanic District. MS. McCOLLOCH: Correct. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Thank you.
Certainly. Could you please provide to the Chair the breakdown of where those RFPs came from?
This list? Okay. MS. McCOLLOCH: That's the list. Twenty proposals were submitted in response to the RFP, and the list that you have is the list of the 20 that were submitted.
So would 137 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 it be fair to say to use the expression "left out," a better description would be this list of five districts reflects where the RFPs came from, the list of the five Councilmanic Districts? MS. McCOLLOCH: Yes. The proposals were eligible to come from any place in the City. We happened to receive from the five districts that 11 are represented on that list. 12 COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: So the 13 reason the First District has zero is, 14 there's no RFP? 15 MS. McCOLLOCH: No one 16 responded. 17 COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Not 18 because the Oversight Board or the 19 Administration made a decision to cut 20 Councilman DiCicco's out of the process.
No, Councilman. In fact, that's not unusual. Whenever -- COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I'm not complaining about it. I'm concerned because there has been a number of 138 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 comments and statements made that decisions are being made elsewhere and that may, in the minds of some District Councilperson, they may feel as though, for political reasons or other reasons, they were cut out of that process. That's not the case. An RFP was issued Citywide and in some cases certain District Council folks did not have an RFP as related to their district.
That's correct. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: And I'm one. That's why I have zero. No one responded from my district. MS. McCOLLOCH: Correct. No 17 one responded.
The point I was going to make is relative to PHFA. A couple times a year PHFA, Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, issues RFPs for low-income housing tax credits. It's not at all unusual for responses to come in or come back to PHFA which do not represent all of the City Council 139 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 districts. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Hypothetically, if the equal appropriation process that is being explored here were to be implemented, $2 million a district, and no RFP was responded to from my district, the $2 million would be just sitting there; is that correct?
In your hypothetical, that's correct. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: And the other districts who have responded and have greater needs would be less the money that would help them because it's sitting in my district and there is no 18 RFP responded to.
You talk about the criteria. The RFPs are developed with a basis for what you 140 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 really want to cover, and you write the RFP to meet the criteria. Well, to meet your goals of what you're looking for. Could we get a copy of the RFP that was sent out? MS. McCOLLOCH: Yes, of course.
I would actually suggest that in the future whenever the Housing Trust Fund releases an RFP -- I assume this is done -- that every Councilmember should get a copy of that, not just Councilwoman Blackwell as being on the Oversight Board. Maybe that happened. I don't know. MS. McCOLLOCH: It was sent to every district.
Did we get one? MS. McCOLLOCH: Yes, but I'll provide another one.
I'm sorry I missed the discussion on PHFA financing, but that is being discussed by this Committee as well, who should get PHFA financing as well. So even though it's a City-funded project, they want to deal with State funding as well and control that as well. So that's just another aside. Thank you very much. Patricia Baltimore. Unless you're not finished. I'm sorry, Mr. Sauer.
I think this is an important issue, because each year there are going to be projects in different neighborhoods around the City, affordable housing development projects that are going to be ready to proceed that are going to be ready to go apply to PHFA or 142 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 to HUD or other sources that could bring in millions of dollars to Philadelphia to build affordable housing that we desperately need. We can't address the housing problem in Philadelphia with just our own local resources. The Trust Fund -- one of the whole large goals of the Trust Fund was to expand the pie of resources to enable us to leverage lots of other dollars from the public and private sector. And so while this year there may have been projects that responded from five particular districts to the RFP, next year I'm sure there will be projects that respond from different Council Districts that didn't apply this year. Matter of fact, I know several members of ours who have made a conscious decision not to apply to the Trust Fund in response to this RFP, but to wait for the next RFP that we expect is going to be issued later this year. And the RFP that was issued is for about half the money from the Trust Fund for FY06. As 143 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 pointed out earlier, the other half of the money is for various Citywide programs, whether it's PSRP, Adaptive Modification, HRP, et cetera, that based on where there's demand, those dollars should flow to meet those needs, and I assume that money will be going all over the City, not just in five Council Districts. Just in closing, I'd like to say that there was a long process of negotiations between CDCs and advocates, between those folks in the Administration and representatives from Councilwoman Blackwell's office and Councilwoman Reynolds Brown's office. It was not easy to get to a point where we all agreed on what the structure of the Trust Fund should look like and how it should be implemented. Lots of folks made compromises, but I think the model we ended up with makes a lot of sense for Philadelphia. And I don't think it makes sense to tinker with the Trust Fund at 144 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 this point. Let's give it a chance to be implemented, see how it works, see how the money is allocated. Sure, there's probably going to need to be things that are going to need to be changed as we go forward, but we haven't spent a dollar yet. Until we have a chance to see how the Trust Fund works, how can we make informed decisions about how we should change it? So I certainly encourage Council to move forward and not modify the structure of the Trust Fund or how the dollars are allocated at this point in time. That's an important issue we need to be looking at as we go forward, but let's give the Trust Fund an opportunity to work to provide funding to create more affordable housing opportunities in the City of Philadelphia for the folks that need it the most. Thanks.
Thank you very much. 145 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Patricia Baltimore. We'll say Mr. Sauer makes my case. Thank you. Good afternoon.
Good afternoon. I rise first to give honor to God, as always.
My name is Patricia Baltimore and I'm 49 years old. I was raised in Philadelphia. I am a mental health ex-homeless consumer and I am a child of children -- my mother 15 had 18 children. And if there's one 16 thing I learned in here today was 17 something my mother said a long time ago, 18 you cannot catch the north and southbound train at the same time. Either you're going north or you're going south. What I've learned here and I saw here was that we are all from the same place, unknown territory, earth, and I would have never thought that people would go through what they're going 146 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 through here, like little me that they want to call. You're not the only one who suffered from people doing things behind your back, but that's not really what I came here to say. I've come here to say that I was homeless in the City for seven years. And in the City, I have been on drugs. I have been without -- I've been unemployed, different things like that, and I've been a part of many of the different programs that's been in this courtroom today. And like I said, when you are under different things, disability or whatever, people tend to try to curve you to a certain way. But I sat here and learned today that there are a lot of people who are really not into collaboration, which should be a part of some things up in here, you know. And really, you know. And so what I've learned also is that to get the story for yourself. And I've learned so much about politics today that 147 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 I am really amazed. I might run for it myself. But I just want to say that through this whole thing, by the grace of God, Jannie L. Blackwell saved my life. And this courtroom, it wasn't as full as it's been for the years with me with people that were not really understanding where she's coming from, because one thing I know is for certain, two things for sure. She got me and a lot of people in this City I know housing. She led them to a sense of direction for a job and for treatment and whatever case it might be. And what happens is, I just wanted to say that I wanted to honor her and thank her, and I wanted people that know her to see and know what she's done here. We're going to talk about a track record. A track record is every year what she does for this City, even with coming up when she celebrates her 148 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 birthday with everybody, even the homeless. She dig down and get people who need the help. And I just wanted to say that I know money is a big issue here, but I know for her the bigger issue is the people. The people. And I'm one of the persons -- and this courtroom would have been filled up if it had been all of her supporters, because one thing is for certain, two things for sure, she's stated her case here today and she made a lot of us know that there was some stuff going on that we don't know. Because a lot of us don't even know what ordinance 17 mean. I'm not a follower. I'm a person who lives in North Philly, like I said. And I want to thank you, Ms. Jannie Blackwell, for relieving me from homelessness, along with a lot of my friends who have also asked me to come and say thank you. (Applause.)
Thank 149 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 you, Ms. Baltimore. Thank you very much. Any questions? (No response.)
Thank you. Nora Lichtash, is she still here? (No response.)
Staci Moore? Is David Koppisch still here? (No response.)
Hello. My name is Staci Moore and I'm here representing Women's Community Revitalization Project, which develops affordable housing for low-income and working-class women and their families in the eastern North Philadelphia area. We're here to urge City Council to vote against Bill 060466 and to testify about the Housing Trust Fund and 150 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 what that money for affordable housing means to people like me and organizations like WCRP. I'm going to cut to the chase, because I became rather incensed at the latest article in the Daily News on concerning the Housing Trust Fund and in big bold letters how the Councilwoman is upset on housing. Well, I'm good and upset, too. I live in Northern Liberties and I am a Section 8 tenant. Just saying those two things together in the same sentence feels almost like an oxymoron, with all the market-rate development going on as we speak. I feel like if you stand for too long, you'll get a condo built right around you. Before the Housing Trust Fund was established, I felt as if it was going to be an even greater uphill battle for working-class folks like me who might get pushed out of their rapidly developing neighborhood due to landlords 151 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 who wish to reap the benefits of the housing boom or rising property taxes or eminent domain issues. With the creation of the Housing Trust Fund, I felt that at least City Council and the Administration was making good on its claim to create true mixed-income neighborhoods with this pot of money that would allow for good, decent, affordable housing to be developed in communities along with all the market-rate developments, giving a sense of balance. I remember what it was like to be homeless, and I, nor any other working-class person, is asking for a handout. What I am asking is, with my level of income, where will I be able to move to when most of the recently built housing in my area starts at at least $200,000, which is not affordable for me. I urge City Council to vote against Bill 060466 and to vote on getting the money in the Housing Trust 152 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Fund out to the organizations and communities who need it most. Thank you.
Mr. Mark Edwards. Is Farah Jimenez here? (No response.)
John MacDonald. Is John MacDonald still here? Okay. You're next. And then Pat DeCarlo. Is Manuel Delgado here? Yes. And then is Phil Lord still here? (No response.)
All right. So we have after this three or four more people and then we're there. Thank you, Mr. Edwards. Thank 153 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 you for your patience. Sorry to hold you up.
Thank you. Good afternoon, members of Council. My name is Mark Edwards. I'm the Program Director for the Philadelphia Local Initiative Support Corporation. We are a national corporation that combines corporate government and philanthropic resources to help community-based organizations revitalize underserved neighborhoods. Since our inception in 1980, LISC has raised more than $7.2 billion to build or rehab more than 196,000 affordable homes, developed 27 million square feet of retail, community and educational space nationwide. Within the City of Philadelphia, LISC has a $206,000,000 investment and $670.8 million leveraged through our work. We continue to make investments today and are committed to future investments. We consider ourselves 154 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 partner stakeholders in the development of our neighborhoods, the City and our region. We are testifying today because we applaud the efforts of this Council and State legislators for its timely leadership in passing the Housing Trust Fund a year ago and we now believe those efforts are threatened. These resources are badly needed in markets in our City where real estate values continue to climb in many of our neighborhoods where low-income housing tax credit projects are expiring and the demolition resulting from NTI has prepared land now ready for development in an environment where market forces are demonstrating record interest. We do not support the City Council Bill 060466. We believe that Trust Fund dollars need to be flexible enough to support development, the development efforts of CDCs, non-profit developers and producers of affordable housing in our City's communities that 155 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 are ready to go and in areas most in need. We believe that dividing Trust Fund dollars among districts will hinder such flexibility, and we ask and urge this Committee to support the implementation of your unanimous leadership taken last year by allowing Trust Fund dollars to be applied Citywide. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Any questions? (No response.) (Applause.)
Mr. John MacDonald, you're next. After Mr. MacDonald, Ms. Pat DeCarlo. Thank you for your patience. MR. MacDONALD: Hello, Councilwoman. I am John MacDonald. I am the President of the Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations, as well as the President of 156 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Impact Services Corporation. As a group, I'd like to begin by just saying that anyone connected with PACDC feels for anyone that is in jeopardy of losing their job and their ability to provide for their families, regardless of the reason. I'd also like to state that the intention of my letter on June the 1st that was put together by the Board on my signature was to express the concerns of our members to the passage of Council Bill 060466, as we understood the meaning of equal distribution for all ten Councilmanic Districts. At the conclusion of the letter, we ask that Council not support restricting the distribution of funds as proposed by this bill. I'd also like to say at this time if you did not receive a copy of that letter directly, I would definitely guarantee you that in the future any correspondence that we send to all 157 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Councilmanic Districts certainly would include you on that list, as I believe we did. I'd also like to say that when the Trust Fund was passed many months ago, I thought that it was a win for the City of Philadelphia. Housing for low-income individuals would have a steady source of funds to ensure additional housing units each year. The Trust Funds dollars would leverage significant additional dollars into the City for this purpose, and numerous construction jobs would be created, the majority of which, if not all, would be union jobs. On a personal note, if my organization, Impact, was lucky enough to be selected as a recipient of any of these funds, all the jobs created would be union jobs. Additionally, clearly, it was not my intention to suggest that the Advisory Trust Board makes any decision 158 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 in that letter of June 1st. I thought my letter clearly stated this position when I wrote the Oversight Board does not decide which individual housing development projects should receive funding. Again, I'm embarrassed to say at this time that we are all sitting here discussing this topic. I thought we were all on the same page many, many months ago, and I only hope we can get back there again.
Thank you very much. Thank you. Ms. Pat DeCarlo. And, remember, our question was not about the groups listed to be funded. They're all great groups. It's about the process and how that takes place. Thank you for your patience. Thank you. MS. DeCARLO: My name is Patricia DeCarlo and I have the unenviable position of being the 159 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Executive Director of Norris Square Civic Association and a Board member of the RDA. But I am here today speaking on behalf of the thousands of people who live in the Norris Square neighborhood who need housing that is affordable to them. Last night, we had a presentation for our Hunter School Homeownership that's been on the works for several years now across from the new Hunter School, where dead bodies have been found because of vacant housing. We want to build 50 houses, homeownership. There were over 80 families and we haven't even finished demolition, and they all need housing. They're the children of long-term residents of that neighborhood who want to stay in that neighborhood, who struggled hard to clean up the neighborhood and don't want to have to move because of gentrification. And this project, the Hunter School Homeownership, would afford them that. 160 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 We're one of the people that applied under the Housing Trust Fund. You know why? Because even though we've already committed and gotten most of the funding for the project, we did not look at Katrina, the Iraq War, the gas shortage and the increase in price, and now there is a funding gap. And that's what stops the business of being able to fund this project. So when it comes to City Council distributing equally among districts, we would need to take a position that says no, that's not fair, because we know that in our Councilmanic District, currently without a representative, there are more poor people and more housing affordability need than in some other districts, and there needs to be a pot of money allocated to be able to move projects, particularly when the federal government has cut the funding as it has. And so to answer some of the 161 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 questions that I've heard you ask throughout the thing, because I really do respect you, Councilwoman Blackwell, but I'll be damned if I understand where this is all coming from. Numero uno, I think yes, Council Districts need to figure out a process by which you invite folks in your neighborhood to talk about the housing needs and elaborate and propose some kind of projects that you're aware of that you're going to support so that you don't get blindsided or you don't get -- don't know about it until the last minute but that in fact are proponents of it. You've been one who has been very effective at representing your district and proposing and moving projects, much more so than a lot of other District Councilmen. But that should be something that Council figures out how do you -- but you start at the beginning, not when the project is three-quarters funded and then you want 162 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 to decide, because it's like the three-quarter funded needs to get funded so we can build it. So I would agree. Often at the RDA when we're at the Board, I ask, Do we know if the neighborhood supports this? Do we know if they're going to like this? But that should be your task at the get-go, at the beginning. Get your community's input about that and get the CDCs to support that kind of thing. Not at the tail end or not distributing equally among District Council, because you know that we don't have the same needs. Does Councilwoman Tasco have a need because there's poor people in her -- absolutely. So develop programs that meet those needs and that people then can access Citywide because they can apply for those programs. And keep an eye on how those programs are working and whether they really are helping people in your neighborhood and in your district.
As to the RFP, why people 163 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 didn't respond, I'll tell you why. It's happened to me a hundred times. I missed out. I didn't hit the deadline. If I'm on vacation, oh, well, tough luck. Next year is another year. That's a reality that non-profits, we all meet every year. So sometimes you get it, sometimes you don't. Sometimes you get to apply. They have the commercial corridor. We blew the deadline. We were involved in some other things and we just couldn't do that. That's something that happens. It's not something that people get excluded. The political process, last time I looked, you all have an incredible and I think undue influence into what happens, from getting a building demolished, land acquired, to the zoning. I mean, you got the power to decide all these things in your district. I don't think you don't have power. You've got a lot of power. So I find it hard to believe that there's this discussion here 164 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 about Council not having the power to decide and influence for their district. I just don't understand and don't get it, because my experience has been that if I didn't have the support of my Councilperson, I wasn't moving any place. So that's a reality check in terms of where I come from and what I expect from my Council representative and the kind of advocate that you have been. And you're a great advocate, but I don't think we should be mixing apples and oranges, because you're upsetting the apple cart. And I wasn't raised in this country, so forgive me if my slang is all mixed up, but it's sort of like appropriate to what I'm trying to say and it may not be appropriate. That's it. The reorganization of the Office of Housing, I understand. It's a difficult subject. I understand that Mayors have done it every single time. I understand that in this particular instance, it's even more 165 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 difficult because the President chose to cut the budget, and that means something has to give. Hopefully we have reasonable people across the board, on the union side, the employees, the Administration, City Council. And reasonable people can sit down and negotiate stuff that is fair for everybody. But the fact is, there is less money now to do the work, and so we've got to figure out how we do that. I thank you.
Mr. Manuel Delgado. Is there anyone else here to testify? (No response.)
Thank you. Thank you for your patience, Mr. Delgado.
Thank you. Good 166 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 afternoon, Councilmembers. My name is Manuel Delgado. I'm the Deputy Director of Community and Economic Development for APM. I am here today to state my opposition to Bill 060466, which states that funds appropriated from the Housing Trust Fund shall be appropriated and expended equally between each Councilmanic District within the City of Philadelphia. Given the timing of this bill 13 relative to an already issued OHCD request for proposal, which has received 20 responses and is currently under review, I believe at this point to restrict the amount of dollars going into any one district would not be prudent. Expending the dollars equally in each district at this time would lessen the City's ability to leverage already committed funding in projects needing gap financing, as you've already heard from Pat, and she has almost all the funding for her project there, specifically a lot 167 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 of money from the State at PHFA level, and there are a lot of groups that have those. We also have Prodera, which has PHFA dollars, and we are in a current gap situation with our project and have applied for Trust Fund dollars. Additionally, this appropriation of funds longitudinally would also prove to be unsuccessful in creating the overall impact in communities and resolving many of the housing issues diverse communities and neighborhoods face. With each district required to expend dollars as specified through the ordinance, only limited impact would be possible. Low-wealth communities with high neighborhood decline will be slow to gain any economic momentum, and those communities experiencing a marked increase in housing values, the possibility for retaining and protecting existing long-tenured homeowners and of affordability within those communities through multiple 168 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 strategies would be thoroughly weakened. The correct and meaningful use of the Philadelphia Housing Trust Fund is as the current ordinance passed unanimously by this Council in July of last year is established. In this manner, with the participation of City Council members, developments across the City would maximally leverage outside dollars and strategic investments and meaningful ways can be made within each district. For those reasons, I respectfully request that Bill No. 060466 be opposed. Thank you.
Thank you very much, Mr. Delgado. We will recess this Committee on the Housing Trust Fund until tomorrow morning at 8 o'clock with Appropriations. Thank you all. Sorry to hold you. (Committee on Housing, 169 6/7/06 - HOUSING - BILL 060466 Neighborhood Development and the Homeless adjourned at 7:00 p.m.) - - - 170 CERTIFICATE I HEREBY CERTIFY that the proceedings, evidence and objections are contained fully and accurately in the stenographic notes taken by me upon the foregoing matter on June 7, 2006, and that this is a true and correct transcript of same. ______________________________ MICHELE L. MURPHY RPR-Notary Public (The foregoing certification of this transcript does not apply to any reproduction of the same by any means, unless under the direct control and/or supervision of the certifying reporter.)