Superior Court of California County of Sonoma Sep - 1 2016 Response to Grand Jury Report Form*

Additional Recommendations 2

These recommendations are not explicitly linked to specific findings.

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  The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, Community Development Commission and Santa Rosa Housing Authority prioritize the development of new sources of affordable housing funding by supporting passage of AB 1335, applying for grants from the National Housing Trust Fund and creating Community Revitalization and Investment Areas or Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts. Some portions of this recommendation have been implemented, some portions will be implemented in the future, and some portions require further assessment to determine if they will be implemented, as discussed below. AB 1335 would provide a permanent source of funding for development of affordable housing, a goal that is strongly supported by the SCCDC and included in the County's Legislative Platform. The Chair of the Board of Supervisors submitted a letter to the State Senators and Assembly members representing Sonoma County, expressing support of AB 1335. SCCDC will continue to support this legislation in FY 2016-17. National Housing Trust Fund allocations were announced for the first time in May 2016. The State of California will receive a 2016 allocation of $10,128,143, which will be administered by the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The SCCDC will be tracking HCD's promulgation and implementation of regulations for statewide distribution of the funds, and will work with local affordable housing developers to submit applications for assistance as funding becomes available. Community Revitalization and Investment Areas could be established in Sonoma County if no less than 80% of the included land is characterized by both an annual median household income that is less than 80% of the statewide annual median income, and at least three of the following four conditions exist: 1. Non-seasonal unemployment that is at least 3% higher than statewide median unemployment, 2. Crime rates that are 5% higher than the statewide median crime rate, 3. Deteriorated or inadequate infrastructure such as streets, sidewalks, water supply, sewer treatment or processing, and parks, 4. Deteriorated commercial or residential structures. While it may be possible to identify areas that meet the last two of these criteria, there are no areas in the County that currently meet either of the first two criteria. Therefore, this potential tool is not available for our County at this time. The SCCDC will assess the feasibility of using this approach in the future if either the mandated criteria are changed, or the local unemployment or crime rates rise to the level of meeting current criteria. Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts (EIFDs) could be comprised of any geographical configuration, including non-contiguous areas. They could be as small as a part of one city, or as large as the entire County and all cities. Like former Redevelopment Project Areas, EIFDs are entitled to receive property tax increment revenue; however, school funding would not be included, all other local taxing entities would need to consent to the tax increment formula, and voter approval is required for bond issuance. While EIFDs appear to be a potential tool for raising funds for affordable housing, these requirements render them significantly less powerful than the former Redevelopment Program. As part of its work to implement the Building HOMES Toolbox strategies, the SCCDC is working to develop a countywide public/private partnership Housing Trust Fund, and will work with local jurisdictions to assess whether EIFDs could comprise one source of revenue for the effort. This work is underway in 2016 and will be ongoing in coming years.
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  The Sonoma County Community Development Commission and the Santa Rosa Housing Authority expedite formation of Area Specific Plans to facilitate private housing development. The CDC will not implement this recommendation because formation of Area Specific Plans is not within the scope of this agency's authority. The CDC will refer this recommendation to PRMD, and therefore to the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, for response. Please feel free to contact me at 707-318-1290 if you have questions or would like to further discuss the information presented in this response. Sincerely, Kathleen H. Kane <b>Executive Director</b> Sonoma County Board of Supervisors c: Veronica A. Ferguson, Sonoma County Administrator William Rousseau, Sonoma County Clerk Charlotte Addington, Grand Jury Foreperson, PO Box 5109, Santa Rosa, CA 95402 Tennis Wick, Permit and Resource Management Department David Gouin, Santa Rosa Housing Authority of