3A Public Hearing 2010 0405 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

urban Habitat 4. Addressing the Foreclosure Crisis We would like to commend the city for proactively seeking funding to help it address the foreclosure crisis impact in San Leandro, such as working with other cities to obtain Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds (Action # 55.05). Also, we have learned that the city has applied fora $1.5 million grant "Homelessness Prevention and Rapid ReHousing" which it can also be used to help prevent future foreclosures and help families who've lost their homes. We suggest that funds be used in the following ways and would like to see the city involve the public in designing and carrying out effective programs to meet these goals: • Help prevent future foreclosures; • Help families who've lost homes to foreclosure stay in San Leandro by working with landlords to enable families whose credit has been destroyed by foreclosure to qualify to rent in San Leandro (currently some report that they are being denied in their applications); and • Work with Wachovia to set aside a portion of their land near the Downtown BART station (site #3 in the Housing Element) for 100% affordable housing (to achieve 30% affordability on the Alvarado Sites #3,4 and 5 combined). 5. Improving the Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance (IZO) San Leandro's IZO ordinance is generally quite good as it compares to other ordinances, but as the Housing Element Draft points out, it could benefit from a revision based on five years of "lessons learned." We commend the City for wanting to take a fresh look at the policy and for considering many good suggestions that have been already incorporated into the Draft. These proposed changes include: • Affordable Housing Trust Fund: "making it easier to contribute to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund rather than incorporating inclusionary units on site..." which "could enable deeper levels of subsidy for affordable housing development and increase the supply of very low and extremely low income units when above moderate income housing is built." We commend this policy, and would want to ensure that when inclusionary housing in-lieu fees are collected, that the Affordable Housing Trust Fund is used specifically for very low and extremely low income units (Action 53.04-B). • Pay fair share: Ensuring that all projects pay their fare share, by "eliminating in lieu fee exemptions for two and three unit multifamily projects" (just as is required ofsingle-family projects) (Action 53.04-B). • Capturing partial units (.1 through .4) in projects through in-lieu fees: As the law is currently written, developments that yield a partial unit between .1 and .4 do not have to provide a unit or pay into the Trust Fund 4361[+"' Street. Suite 1205, Oakland, CA 946iz (510) 839-9510 • Fax: (510) 839-9610 www. urbanhabitat.org