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• The City's Housing Rehabilitation Program for minor home repair grants and loans for owner -occupied homes provided twenty-one (21) grants and eleven (11) loans respectively to homeowners to preserve and improve the existing housing stock and assist elderly homeowners to age in place. • The City annually monitors preservation of 620 below-market rate rental units (through City/Redevelopment Agency subsidies) for tenants earning between 30% and 120% of the Area Median Income, as well as sixty-four (64) existing BMR ownership units. In FY2007-08 the City lost two (2) privately owned properties consisting of a total of seventeen (17) BMR rental units due to the end of the affordability period with the owners. However, Casa Verde has added significantly more below-market rental units when it delivered sixty-eight (68) new units this past year. • In FY 2007-08, City staff responded to fifty-two (52) tenant and landlord inquiries under the City's Rent Review Board Program, which provides a non-binding arbitration board review of eligible rent increase cases in San Leandro. Of the fifty-two (52) inquiries, the majority [thirty-three (33) inquiries] were from tenants, and six (6) became eligible Rent Review Board cases. Of these six (6) cases, one (1) was settled privately between tenant and landlord just prior to the board hearing. This program is funded solely with City General Funds. The City's proposed Downtown Transit -Oriented Development (TOD) Strategy continues to move forward. This transit -oriented development near BART, a public transit system, is envisioned to not only revitalize downtown San Leandro, but also to develop higher density residential units near public transit. If new residential development at increased densities occurs, it will increase the number of affordable housing units created through the City's inclusionary zoning requirement. Also, the condominium market rate development would add housing stock that would be more affordable than new single family development, providing a range of housing product type. The plan projects as many as 3,430 new dwelling units by 2030 through new residential development. The City Council adopted the TOD Strategy in September 4, 2007..In addition, the City of San Leandro received two (2) Prop l C grants for the San Leandro Crossings, which is a multi -phased and mixed income and use development proposed by a private developer. The private developer has partnered with BRIDGE Housing Corporation. One was for $12,000,000 for San Leandro Crossings for the Prop I C TOD Housing Infrastructure and one was for $12,460,120 for the Prop I C Infill Infrastructure. These funds have been designated to assist in infrastructure improvements related to Phase 1 of the proposed project, which includes 200 market rate and 100 affordable housing units. ♦ Eliminate Barriers to Affordable Housing • The Housing Element of the General Plan identifies barriers to affordable housing and establishes "Goal 58: Elimination of Housing Constraints", which identifies policies and actions with implementation strategies to eliminate barriers. These policies include amending zoning regulations, streamlining permitting procedures, evaluating development fees, providing a customer -friendly environment, resolving design issues, Final Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report: FY2007-2008 City of San Leandro Page 23