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File Number: 15-580 <br />significant funding assistance from the former Redevelopment Agency of the City of San <br />Leandro (RDA). The RDA received approximately $2 million annually to fund eligible <br />affordable housing projects under the RDA Housing Set-Aside Fund (which under State law <br />mandated that 20% of the RDA’s tax increment revenue be reserved for affordable housing). <br />The RDA created 117 new affordable rental housing units in Casa Verde and Estabrook Place <br />Senior Housing as well as provided funding assistance for the 115 affordable family/workforce <br />units in Phase 1 of Marea Alta currently under construction. <br />With the State’s dissolution of redevelopment in 2012, the City is left solely with the IZ <br />Ordinance to produce new affordable housing units. Finding ways to support the <br />development of new affordable housing remains challenging for the City and other <br />jurisdictions in California. Declining federal affordable housing program funding, such as the <br />Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Home Investment Partnership (HOME) <br />Programs, adds to the challenge. <br />The State low income housing tax credit program remains a vital resource, and new State <br />affordable housing funding programs such as the Cap and Trade Program are helpful. Cities <br />and counties currently face challenges finding more substantial and permanent affordable <br />housing financing opportunities. Preparation of a nexus study is the important first step in the <br />process of evaluating the City’s IZ Ordinance and re-assessing the goals and strategies to <br />incentivize and produce more affordable housing. This is a delicate issue as an aggressive IZ <br />Ordinance could push too much of the burden for creation of affordable housing to developers <br />which may make projects financial infeasible. <br />There are three issues related to the IZ Ordinance that staff recommends be addressed as <br />part of the evaluation of the IZ Ordinance. <br />1.How do we require a percentage of new rental housing be affordable? <br />2.Should we allow residential developers to pay an in lieu fee which can then be used to <br />support standalone affordable housing projects? The benefit of standalone affordable <br />housing projects is that the non-profits, (such as BRIDGE Housing, Eden Housing, etc.) <br />that develop and manage these developments are able to pool together multiple <br />resources and provide support services to the tenants. <br />3.Should commercial developers contribute to the creation of affordable housing? <br />Santa Clara and Alameda County Regional Nexus Study <br />City staff planned to conduct a nexus study in partnership with the City of Albany, and <br />$40,000 in funding is included in the Fiscal Year 2015-16 budget for this project. An <br />opportunity exists to collaborate with a larger group of jurisdictions which will save time and <br />money as well as provide a stronger basis to support the likely policies that will need to be <br />adopted. The Santa Clara and Alameda counties project is modeled after an ongoing <br />multi-city nexus study in San Mateo County where the majority of cities agreed to participate. <br />Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) is sponsoring the regional nexus study planned <br />for cities in Santa Clara and Alameda counties. SVCF is a philanthropic organization that <br />provides leadership, expertise and capital to help address social issues in the San <br />Francisco-Oakland-San Jose Bay Area region, including serving as a resource for nonprofit, <br />civic, government and philanthropic organizations. SVCF will contract with Keyser Marston <br />Page 3 City of San Leandro Printed on 10/27/2015