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Date
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May 18, 2009
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Agenda
Item No. 40 Roll
Call No. 09- Communication No.
09-347 Submitted by: Larry Hulse, Community Development
Director |
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AGENDA
HEADING:
Authorizing the City Manager to sign a letter of
application to the Polk County Housing Trust Fund (PCHTF) for private funds to
provide gap funding within the Jumpstart Housing Assistance Program.
SYNOPSIS:
Due to
the restrictions of the State and Federal funding sources being used for the
Jumpstart Housing Assistance programs for flood affected homes, there is
sometimes a gap, typically ranging from $500 to $2,000 that is needed in order
to fund the project. Private funds are
being requested to fill that gap in order to serve as many applicants as are
eligible throughout Des Moines.
FISCAL
IMPACT:
Amount: $50,000
Funding Sources:
Private donations targeted
for flood victims administered by the Polk County Housing Trust Fund.
ADDITIONAL
INFORMATION:
Since
October, 2008, the City of Des Moines Community Development Department—Neighborhood
Community Services (NCS) Division has been administering the Jumpstart Housing
Assistance Program. To date, 267
applications have been received. Of
those applicants, 45 did not meet the eligibility requirements of the program. Of the 222 remaining applicants:
- 74 applicants are under contract or their
projects have been completed. A
total of $1,358,846 has been committed to these projects for an average
project cost of about $18,000.
- 29 applicants have submitted a complete
application (income verification, insurance and FEMA information, etc) and
are in the inspection and bid process.
- 119 applicants are considered pending because
they have not turned in the required paperwork in order for their
application to be complete. The
focus of staff over the next several months will be to work with these
applicants to help them complete the application process.
In order
to serve all that are eligible, supplemental private funds are being requested
from the Polk County Housing Trust Fund to serve as gap funding for Jumpstart
projects with special circumstances. Due
to the restrictions of the State and Federal funding sources being used for the
Jumpstart programs, there is sometimes a gap, typically ranging from $500 to $2,000
that is needed in order to fund the project.
Private funds are being requested to fill that gap in order to serve as
many applicants as are eligible throughout Des Moines.
Funding
regulations require that in order to receive Jumpstart home repair/rehabilitation
assistance, a homeowner must document how all of the funds received from the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) were spent. Due to the length of time that has elapsed,
the use of cash for expenses, the purchase of non-FEMA approved items and other
circumstances, some homeowners are unable to document where all of their FEMA
funds were spent. By providing private
gap funding, more homeowners will be able have their homes repaired through the
Jumpstart Program.
PREVIOUS
COUNCIL ACTION(S):
Date:
April 20, 2008
Roll Call Number: 09-645
Action:
Iowa
Department of Economic Development (IDED) Community Development Block Grant
(CDBG) Housing Disaster Recovery Fund Contract (08-DHR-209). (Council Communication No. 09-254) Moved by Vlassis to approve. Motion Carried 7-0.
Date: February 09, 2009
Roll
Call Number: 09-236
Action: Approving First Amendment to Jumpstart
Housing Assistance Program Grant Agreement with the Iowa Finance Authority
(IFA) for financial assistance to eligible residents for home repairs due to
heavy rains and flooding during 2008.
Sponsor: Mayor Cownie. (Council Communication No. 09-073) Moved by Kiernan to approve. Motion Carried 6-1. Absent: Cownie.
Date: October 13, 2008
Roll
Call Number: 08-1810
Action: Approving
CDBG Housing Disaster Recovery Fund Contract with Iowa Department of Economic
Development. Sponsor: Mahaffey. (Council
Communication No. 08-628) Moved by Mahaffey to adopt. Motion Carried
6-1. Absent: Cownie.
BOARD/COMMISSION
ACTION(S): NONE
ANTICIPATED
ACTIONS AND FUTURE COMMITMENTS: NONE
For more information on this and other agenda items,
please call the City Clerk’s Office at 515-283-4209 or visit the Clerk’s Office
on the second floor of City Hall,