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05/23/1995 - Special Meeting RECEIVED JUN 0 2 1995 APPROVED CITY CLERK DEPT. NEIGHBORHOOD AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING ADVISORY BOARD Special Meeting May 23, 1995 MEMBERS OF THE COMMTT'TEE Shirley Moran (P) George Konstantinidis (P) William Graham (A) Bertha Kelley (P) Ruth Hunter (A) Milly Joplin (P) William Turner Sr. (P) Howard Groth (P) Mayme Hodges (P) Also present: Alan Ferri, Michael Holmes, Pat Fernandez all City Staff, and citizen Bob Joplin. This special meeting was held to allow the applicants for Community Development Block Grant Funds to make presentations regarding their agency funding requests to the NAHAB members. The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm by Alan Ferri. Listed below are the agencies and their speakers: Organization Speaker 1. Community Response Team Lt. Jeff Kronschnabl Requested $175,000 for a Code Enforcement Program Lt. Kronschnabl advised their concept is one other cities are desirous of copying. Inspectors, some hired from the neighborhood, go door to door covering the code and advising the resident how he can come into compliance with the code. They assist where possible and have helped numbering properties as an aid to emergency service providers. The CRT opened a satellite office in February and neighborhood residents now stop in for advice. A 1-1/2 minute video was shown further explaining their ideology. 2. Clearwater Neighborhood Housing Svc. Isay Gulley Requested $291,548 for Housing Rehab Isay Gulley told members their organization is held in high esteem among other Neighborhood Housing Services. Their program enables a low-income resident to do those repairs to their home that would otherwise go undone. Rehab helps to retain quality in the area. Many homes were built over sixty years ago and are in need of repair. The problem is the poor resident does not have the funds. An 11 minute video was shown telling about Infill housing, rehab work and economic development. Clearwater Neighborhood Housing Svc. Nancy Hansen Requested $129,904 for Economic Development Requested $ 42,476 for Commercial Facade Neighborhood & Affordable Housing Advisory Board May 23, 1995 Support facilities (economic development) are needed for a viable neighborhood. Greenwood residents had to travel to other commercial districts to purchase pizza. They now can purchase pizza in their own neighborhood and the business is successful. Having nearby shopping makes for a desirable place to live. The facade program is a match program. If a business looks attractive on the outside, it should be more inviting for a prospective buyer thereby increasing business and making it more profitable by eventually needing neighborhood employees. Clearwater Neighborhood Housing Svc. Jerry Spilatro Requested $ 22,440 for Tenant Conversion Requested $527,400 for In-Fill Housing Jerry Spilatro advised 65% of the homes are owned by a landlord. They recognize a resident home owner takes better care of his property. This program will help a tenant purchase the home they reside in through a bank and assist him obtain loan funds to rehab the home to bring it up to code. 3. Clearwater Police Department Deputy Chief Eastridge Requested $ 21,214 for NuCops Deputy Chief Eastridge advised they were requesting match funds for a second year of the NuCops Program. The funds are for salaries of the fifteen persons in the program who do needed work in the community. Rick McBride, Project Coordinator, told members of the accomplishments including assisting in the house numbering project. 4. Tampa Bay Community Development Corp. Randy Harvey Requested $ 26,000 for the HomeBuyers Club This program is designed to assist the potential home buyers whose credit problems cannot be fixed in three months. In some instances they work with people for 1-3 years as they eventually begin to believe in themselves and will become a home buyer. The program graduated twenty-three families who are now homeowners. 5. Tampa Bay Community Development Corp. Greg Schwartz Requested $85,000 for Downpayment Assistance Applicants are sometimes unable to close a home deal without the financial assistance provided by the Tampa Bay Development Corporation. Their request will enable them to serve 50 loans. 6. Gulf Coast Family Services Tom Elman Requested $ 67,232 for Public Facility addition on Arcturas 2 Neighborhood & Affordable Housing Advisory Board May 23, 1995 Calls upon this agency for help have expanded and the facility needs to be enlarged so they have the space to perform their services adequately. Mental Health Counselors need to be where the client intake is. They believe this expansion will meet their needs now and into the future as other groups formed also work with HIV persons. 7. Community Pride Child Care Martha Skelton Requested $ 20,304 for Public Facility renovation at Gateway Ms. Skelton thanked everyone for past support and advised that the Health Department cited their carpeting. It was suggest it be removed and replaced with tile. Old windows need to be replaced. Also the playground equipment is 10 years old and fails to meet new federal standards. 8. Homeless Emergency Project Sandra Davis Requested $ 75,800 for Public Facilities on Vine & on Nicholson Two homes HEP uses for transitional housing need some renovation. Another property on Nicholson, will be demolished with other funds, and be rebuilt as a larger home able to home, more bedrooms and baths to accommodate more persons. 9. Neighborly Senior Services Dale Sklenar Requested $ 6,000 for Public Facilities on Ewing Mr. Sklenar spoke of the growing aging population in Pinellas County and the myriad of problems encountered by the caregiver. Simple things like a shampoo or shower become quite difficult. They are proposing a personal care room where such items including bed time preparation can be done. 10. RCS - Emergency Housing Ruth Greenslade Requested $189,700 for Public Facility Emergency Housing Ms. Greenslade spoke of the need to house homeless families with children. They have gone from trailers to apartments and still the space is inadequate. They work with other agencies when possible striving to keep the family unit intact. They attempt to affect a change by giving the parent the opportunity to attend school and eventually obtain employment so they can find and retain housing. 11. RCS - Food Pantry Reginald Braswell Requested $ 8,600 for Public Facility Food Cooler Mr. Braswell informed members they had submitted an identical request to the County hoping one of the agencies would recognize their need for a cooler to preserve perishable food supplies until the items can be distributed. 12. RCS - Spouse Abuse Shelter Outreach Frieda Widera 3 Neighborhood & Affordable Housing Advisory Board May 23, 1995 Requested $ 26,298 for Public Facility, office space Their present leased office space is inadequate and they have difficulty finding space to hold private confidential conversations with clients. This group has selected a site and are requesting funds to own rather than lease office space. 13. RCS - Spouse Abuse Shelter Transitional Housing Karla Conway Requested $ 42,768 for Public Facility They take in many single parents with children who come to them as the result of domestic violence. Families can stay up to two years while the parent goes to school. Activity for the children is needed. Presently they use the shelter office. They are requesting funding so they can build a multi-purpose room that will solve many of their space problems. 14. Salvation Army Paul Bridges Ed Brant Terry Hammond Requested $ 61,400 for Public Facility, for overnight shelter Requested $ 60,305 for Public Service Paul Bridges advised they can no longer use space at Everybody's Tabernacle. They have not been able to find a suitable permanent site that could accommodate 30 beds. As an interim measure, they will locate in their old thrift shop and renovate the building to accommodate 16 persons. Ed Brant said they had served 243 clients in the previous six months. Five beds are set aside for inebriates brought in by the police department. Persons coming in are offered case management and given support while they recover and become self- sufficient again. Other agencies are involved to keep the individual off the streets. Their record contains many human success stories. 15. YWCA Judy Wood-Ganison Requested $ 9,471 for Public Facility The YWCA has a Community Room with the original air conditioning unit which does not work properly. It is beyond repair and there is no heat. The acoustics, when the unit is on, are so noisy that it is difficult to stay on task. Pregnant teens use it as a class room and for lamaze training. This room, if it had suitable air conditioning and heat, could be rented and bring the YWCA some cash for other projects. David Perkins informed us his family has been involved with the YW and their Antique Sale for 30 years and agrees that the air conditioning system needs to be replaced. 16. Boys & Girls Club Rosalie Murray Requested $ 16,000 for Public Services 4 Neighborhood & Affordable Housing Advisory Board May 23, 1995 Funds are being asked for the salary benefit package for 2 full time and 2 part time staff. Children coming to the center are at the poverty level and the Boys & Girls Club provides support to the families and also teaches violence prevention. 17. Community Service Foundation Sam Evans Requested $ 44,300 for Public Services Mr. Evans spoke of the one to three years they spend with clients by working with them to eliminate the obstacles in their path to owning a house. Counseling is offered, they learn budgeting, and slowly the client comes to believe in himself and realize that home ownership is a possible. They have had good results with the program thus far. 18. Girls Inc. of Pinellas Danielle Taylor-Fagan Requested $ 25,040 for Public Services Kings Kids Requested $ 15,243 for Public Services Most of the children who attend either Girls Inc. or Kings Kids are from single parent households. The children are in an at-risk category. Girls is asking for funding for program instructors. Kings Kids is asking for one tutor. Most of the girls are below grade level and this help is needed so they can achieve. The program is for drop out prevention. It fills a specific need and builds self esteem. 19. Mustard Seed Foundation Don Malcolm Requested $ 26,879 for Public Services The need for employment was stressed as necessary in the healing and return to productivity of clients. They need help finding a job and having transportation to get there. Many of the social service agencies refer clients. Mustard Seed has had a successful program south county and now wishes to expand the service north county. A permanent location offered at the Homeless Emergency Project is preferable to roving counselors. Other agencies assist in the rehabilitation and rebuilding of self esteem in the clients. 20. Partners in Self Sufficiency Sue King Requested $ 33,500 for Public.Services Sue King started out telling NAHAB members they have had 71 graduates and have 35 persons in their program. These clients are working towards having sufficient funds to go on their own. Persons coming to them have the desire to succeed and given the opportunity they work hard at school and in self-improvement to do so. Monies are requested to assist with staff salaries and benefits. 5 Neighborhood & Affordable Housing Advisory Board May 23, 1995 21. Pinellas Opportunity Council Joan Lanier Requested $ 13,989 for Public Services Joan Lanier told how her program serves the frail and old who are trying to maintain their living in their own home. Some homes need cleaning and others have yards that are roach and rodent infested to a point where support help will not come to the home to assist. Meals on Wheels will not deliver. At this point, Chore Services is usually called. Her staff is fearless. They serve 637 per year and have a waiting list of 2,500 clients. Monies are requested for salaries and fringe benefits for a paid staff of seven workers. After the presentations Mr. Ferri reminded everyone that the Neighborhood and Affordable Advisory Board does not make decision on funding, only makes recommendations. He advised there were less monies this year as the roll over dollars were fewer. He briefly spoke of the point system the NAHAB members will use when these various agencies are rated to determine the group's recommendation as to who gets funding. The next meeting has been set for Tuesday, May 30, 1995, at 7:00 pm in the DRC Conference Room, at the City Hall Annex. He briefly spoke of the Home Consortium and going back to low income housing. SHIP monies was discussed. Alan gave a brief synopsis of how the point system works and informed members he was available to help them in advance of the meeting if that was preferable to them. The appearance of overlapping of agencies for the homeless was answered. Mr. Ferri stated that the Salvation Army served street bums, RCS was a shelter and assisted homeless families and Homeless Emergency Project was designed for longer term care and rehabilitation. The various agencies each target a different segment of our needy population. There were no comments from the public. The session closed at 10:15 pm. 6