HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Special Meeting of the Ames City Council 05/19/2014
MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE AMES CITY COUNCIL
AMES, IOWA MAY 19, 2014
The Ames City Council met in special session at 7:00 p.m. on the 19th day of May, 2014, in the
City Council Chambers in City Hall, 515 Clark Avenue, pursuant to law with Mayor Ann
Campbell presiding and the following Council Members present: Gloria Betcher, Amber
Corrieri, Tim Gartin, Matthew Goodman, and Chris Nelson. Ex officio Member Lissandra Villa
was not present. Council Member Orazem arrived at 7:06 p.m.
LIBRARY RENOVATION AND EXPANSION PROJECT – CHANGE ORDER NO. 13
WITH A&P/SAMUELS GROUP: Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Betcher, to adopt
RESOLUTION NO. 14-288 approving Change Order No. 13 with A&P/Samuels Group for the
Library Renovation and Expansion Project.
Roll Call Vote: 5-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and
hereby made a portion of these Minutes.
Council Member Orazem arrived at 7:06 p.m.
2014-2015 PROPOSED ANNUAL ACTION PLAN PROJECTS FOR CDBG PROGRAM
– PUBLIC FORUM FOLLOW-UP: Vanessa Baker-Latimer, Housing Coordinator, gave an
overview of the overall forum discussion themes which centered on themes of Housing, Public
Facilities and Public Service and in the project activities areas of assistance to low-income renter
households, first-time homebuyers and existing home owners; assistance to property owners and
developers; assistance to non-profit agencies; acquisition, rehabilitation and development of
transitional and affordable housing; and expansion of public facilities for non-profit
organizations. The needs and challenges for the community seem to center around the “lack of
available, decent rental units in affordable price ranges” and “cost of housing” for both renters
and home buyers. The City’s 2014-15 CDBG Allocation is $488,278, of which $97,656 may be
used for administration, leaving $390,622 available for programming.
After taking into consideration the public forum suggestions and input and the data sources
identified above, staff recommends that the following project activities be considered for FY
2014-15 in the following implementation sequence: Acquisition/Reuse Program, Operations &
Repair, Housing Improvement Rehabilitation, Homebuyer Assistance, and Deposit and First
Month’s Rent Assistance and Public Facilities Improvements. The proposed project activities are
consistent with the 2014-18 Adopted Consolidated Plan goals and priorities which cite the “lack
of available, decent rental units in affordable price ranges” and “cost of housing” for both renters
and home buyers; all activities would be of 100% benefit to low and moderate income persons.
The proposed activities are consistent with the needs outlined in the CHAS, ACS and AIS data
for the City of Ames.
According to Baker-Latimer, the proposed implementation sequence for the project activities
should help meet HUD’s timely expenditure requirements, and funds have been included to
contract for additional staff to accomplish the proposed project activities for FY 2014-15.
Furthermore, this implementation sequence will provide time for staff to explore the feasibility
and eligibility of the other project activities suggested at the May 12th forum. This strategy will
help allow staff to determine the capacity and sustainability of agencies desiring to utilize CDBG
funding, as well as to explore ways to leverage other federal, state, and/or local dollars; more
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time will allow staff to develop programs for partnerships and incentives for property owners and
developers to address the affordable housing stock shortage.
Council Member Betcher inquired that if we don’t manage to use funds for the items listed, are
we able to shift funds to other things that are a part of our goals in order to meet the burden of
our other goals. Baker-Latimer responded by saying that if funds need to be shifted right now,
the citizen participation plan says it must be at $100,000 or less, shifting more than $100,000
would require another comment period, as well as re-submittal.
Council Member Goodman inquired as to whether or not the funds could be spent by April 25,
2015. Ms. Baker-Latimer responded by saying it is an aggressive process and it can be done;
however, she doesn’t want future CDBG funding to be affected, which if this aggressive
approach doesn’t work City of Ames future funding could be jeopardized. Goodman inquired
whether the Council would be engaging in a process in the next year to evaluate the context of
the projects.
Ms. Baker-Latimer responded by saying there is a lot of government and federal funding
available. She discussed the opportunity and need to get our agencies involved in order to bring
more money to Ames. She reiterated the importance of working with the state and ASSET
agencies to bring the funds to Ames.
Council Member Goodman stressed that having assistance available at the state and federal level
will help free up monies for CDBG funds. Ms. Baker-Latimer noted that CDBG funds cannot be
used to offer training to help agencies receive federal and state funding.
Mr. Goodman also inquired if HUD funding could be used for technical training, and if so, how
much of the funding could be put towards training. Ms. Baker-Latimer mentioned that she is
working with administration from HUD to see if this is a possibility and if so, how much of the
funding could be used for technical training.
Goodman questioned how we know the choices we are making are yielding the greatest return.
Steve Schainker noted that it is difficult to judge because it depends on what factors are
evaluated and what individuals define as successful programming. Mr. Goodman also discussed
the possibility of bringing in community members to evaluate programming and see if there are
missed opportunities that could be taken advantage of, as well as increase the visibility and
effectiveness of programming in the community.
Ms. Baker-Latimer mentioned the Fair Housing Impediment Study, which gathers housing
information to help give the Council direction to drive the recommendations for action plan
projects. The Planning and Housing department has met with for profit, nonprofit, and housing
consumers to get the community’s perception and feedback on their needs, as well as what is
being done and what is not being done with housing in Ames.
Moved by Goodman, seconded by Orazem, to adopt RESOLUTION NO.14-289 approving the
proposed 2014-15 Annual Action Plan Program Projects in connection with the City’s
Community Development Block Grant Program.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby
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made a portion of these Minutes.
CLOSED SESSION: Moved by Goodman, seconded by Corrieri, to hold a Closed Session as
provided by Section 21.5c Code of Iowa, to discuss matters in litigation.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
The meeting reconvened in Regular Session at 9:14 p.m.
ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 9:14 p.m.
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Diane R. Voss, City Clerk Ann H. Campbell, Mayor
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Erin Cain, Recording Secretary