Title
Loan Federal HOME-ARP Funds for Senior Bridge Affordable Housing Development Project (Ordinance S-51498) - District 8
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to enter into an Affordable Housing Loan Program agreement for up to $3,015,746 in federal U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) HOME Investment Partnerships American Rescue Plan (HOME-ARP) program funds with Senior Bridge, LLC, or a City-approved nominee, for the Senior Bridge affordable housing development project, and to take all actions and execute all documents to complete the loan. Authorization is also requested for the City Controller to disburse the funds for the life of the contract. There is no impact to the General Fund.
Report
Summary
On June 6, 2024, the Housing Department issued a HOME-ARP Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for Non-Congregate Shelter and Rental Housing acquisition, rehabilitation and/or new construction projects to reduce homelessness and increase housing stability. A NOFO Pre-Submittal Workshop was held on July 11, 2024. Applications were due on August 30, 2024.
Procurement Information
Three proposals for Rental Housing acquisition were received and reviewed by an evaluation committee comprised of City staff members representing various departments. The proposals were evaluated on a 1,000-point scale based on the following criteria: Operations; How Well the Project Addressed the Strategies to Address Homelessness Plan; Organization Capacity; and Project Readiness. The following were recommended for funding:
- St. Catherine Manor (Housing for Hope, LLC/Catholic Charities) - 870 points
- Tanner Thomas Village (Tanner Community Development) - 803 points
- Senior Bridge (Steel+Spark) - 790 points
Senior Bridge, located at 2853 E. Van Buren Street (District 8), consists of 65 permanent supportive housing units for previously homeless seniors entering from Senior Bridge’s on-site transitional housing units. The 65 permanent supportive housing units will serve seniors with Area Median Income (AMI) levels at or below 30 percent. Residents will receive supportive services from Mercy House and will include support from a Housing Navigator to formulate an Individualized Housing Stabilization Plan addressing areas such as financial management, employment, life skills, sobriety, physical and mental health, etc. Additional project funding in the following amounts have been secured by the developer:
- Arizona Department of Housing - $7,100,000
- BloomSpot, LLC - $1,950,000
- City of Phoenix - $750,000
Project awards are contingent on full underwriting, environmental release of funds, commitments of other financing, and availability of federal funds. The overall loan structure will be consistent with the terms listed in the NOFO and HOME-ARP Program requirements.
Financial Impact
There is no impact to the General Fund. HOME-ARP is a federally funded program. Funding for this NOFO is made available from HOME-ARP funds. Funding is budgeted in the Housing Department’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) budget. Loan execution is anticipated for Fiscal Year 2024-25, and the loan will be paid to the developer during the construction period.
Public Outreach
As part of the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan process, HUD required extensive public outreach to formulate the plan. Housing staff conducted six virtual listening sessions for community stakeholders and interviewed numerous service agencies and housing providers directly. More than 66 agencies participated in interviews and listening sessions during this process. This public input was used to draft the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan and inform the design of the NOFO to address the most critical needs of the community.
As part of the formal adoption process, the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan was made public and provided for a 15-day public comment period. The City of Phoenix published a 15-day comment period and public hearing notice in the Arizona Republic on August 29, 2022. A virtual public hearing was held to provide an opportunity for public comment on September 12, 2022. The public comment period was open from September 13 to September 27, 2022. City Council approved the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan on November 16, 2022. The HOME-ARP Allocation Plan was approved by HUD on February 6, 2023.
Location
2853 E. Van Buren Street
Council District: 8
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Gina Montes and the Housing Department.