For City Council Meeting [June 8, 2021]
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
APPROVAL: Sean Grayson, Acting City Manager
FROM: Stephen Erlandson, Deputy City Manager
Title
Request City Council to (1) Hold a Public Hearing to Solicit Public Comments from Interested Citizens and to Consider and Approve the City’s Consolidated Plan 2021-2022 One-Year Action Plan and (2) Consider and Direct Staff to Budget the Extra $18,392 Equally Amongst the Six Public Service Organizations that did not Receive their full Request During the City’s CDBG Ad-Hoc Committee Allocation Process, Resulting in the Six Organizations Receiving an Equal Allocation of $13,244.67.
(ACTION)
Body
BACKGROUND
The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires that the City prepare and submit a Consolidated Plan One-Year Action Plan if it receives Federal funding under one or more of the following programs: Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME, Housing for People With AIDS (HOPWA), and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG). As a recipient of CDBG funds, the City has prepared a One-Year Action Plan (2021-2022) for review and consideration by the City Council and submittal to HUD.
The Action Plan will appropriate CDBG, funds to specific programs and projects for the 2021-2022 fiscal year. The City expected to receive $1,248,066 in federal community development funds; however, HUD recently notified the City that it would receive an additional $18,392 in funding. In addition, the City has a total of $184,826 of prior year funds that remained from projects and/or activities that were completed and closed out. As a result, the City had a total of $1,451,284 in CDBG funds available to commit to eligible projects.
ANALYSIS/DISCUSSION
As a prerequisite to receiving its annual CDBG allocation, the City is required to submit a One-Year Action Plan. The Action Plan delineates Rialto’s plan for the use of its 2021-2022 CDBG funds. It describes the resources available for program implementation; activities to be undertaken during Program Year 2021-2022; a monitoring plan; the City’s homeless and anti-poverty strategies; and coordination efforts that have or will be undertaken to implement the Action Plan.
The initial steps in preparing the City’s One-Year Action Plan began with a City issued Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for CDBG funds on January 25, 2021, based one previous year allocation levels of funding. In February 2021, HUD released grantee allocations and the City expected to receive $1,248,066. The City held two (2) virtual public meetings in front of the Ad-Hoc Committee on April 16, 2021, and April 28, 2021. This year the City received a total of 15 applications comprised of ten (10) public service agencies, four (4) capital improvement projects, and one (1) Fair Housing and Landlord Tenant service program. Each agency was given an opportunity to present its program and make a formal request for CDBG funding. The attached tables (Exhibits A-D) will provide a summary of the projects that were recommended by the Ad-Hoc Committee for funding consideration under the 2021-2022 Program Year. Funding recommendations made by the Ad-Hoc Committee were placed in the 2021-2022 Draft Annual Action Plan that was made available to the public on May 10, 2021. On May 13, HUD notified the City that there was an error at HUD Headquarters and that the City would receive an extra $18,392 of CDBG funds to its originally posted allocation, which results in the City receiving a total of $1,266,458 in total CDBG funding from HUD. Staff requests that as the City Council considers and approves the Draft Annual Action Plan, that the City Council also consider and direct staff to budget the extra $18,392 equally amongst the six public service organizations that did not receive their full request during the City’s CDBG Ad-Hoc Committee allocation process; these six organizations would end up receiving $13,244.67 in funding if the recommendation is approved by the City Council as outlined in the table below.
Lastly, a public hearing before the City Council is also required to allow citizens to comment on the proposed use of the CDBG funds and to consider and approve the City’s 2021-2022 Consolidated Plan One-Year Action Plan. In addition, the One-Year 2021-2022 Action Plan must be made available to the general public for a period of 30 days in order to provide them with an opportunity to review the Ad-Hoc Committee’s recommendations for funding. In compliance with the City’s approved Citizen’s Participation Plan and CDBG implementing regulation 24 CFR 92-105, a Public Notice was published to solicit public comments from interested citizens and to consider and approve the City’s Consolidated Plan One-Year 2021-2022 Action Plan. The public hearing was noticed for June 8, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. (see attached notices).
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
The request is not a Project as defined by Section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
GENERAL PLAN CONSISTENCY
Guiding Principle #4 of the City’s General Plan states:
Rialto is an Active Community. Our community will support the creation and maintenance of attractive parks, recreational facilities, and gathering places that meet the needs of our residents.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney has reviewed and supports this staff report.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Operating Budget Impact
The funding for the proposed 2021-2022 CDBG projects totaling $1,451,284 will come from the City’s 2021-2022 allocation and prior year unallocated CDBG funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Upon submittal and approval of the City’s Annual Plan by HUD, funds equal to this amount will be available to the City.
Capital Improvement Budget Impact
There is no impact to the Capital Improvement Budget.
Licensing
A Business License application and payment of a Business License tax is not required for this action.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Hold a public hearing to solicit public comments from interested citizens and to consider and approve the City’s Consolidated Plan 2021-2022 One-Year Action Plan; and
2. Consider and direct staff to budget the extra $18,392 equally amongst the six public service organizations that did not receive their full request during the City’s CDBG Ad-Hoc Committee allocation process, resulting in the six organizations receiving an equal allocation of $13,244.67.