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HomeMy Public PortalAbout05) 7D- LEAP Grant Application_Staff ReportAGENDA ITEM 7.D. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM DATE: July 21, 2020 TO: The Honorable City Council FROM: Bryan Cook, City Manager Via: Scott Reimers, Interim Community Development Director By: Andrew Coyne, Management Analyst SUBJECT: RESOLUTION SUPPORTING A LOCAL EARLY ACTION PLANNING (“LEAP ”) GRANT APPLICATION TO THE CALIFORNIA HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT IN THE AMOUNT OF $85,000 FOR THE PREPARATION OF A HOUSING ELEMENT RECOMMENDATION: The City Council is requested to adopt Resolution 20-5484 (Attachment “A”) authorizing and directing the City Manager to apply for and submit an application for a LEAP grant and if the grant is approved authorizing the City Manager enter into and execute an agreement with the State of California BACKGROUND: 1. In the 2019-20 Budget Act, Governor Newsom allocated $250 million in funding to assist cities in prioritizing planning activities that accelerate housing production. 2. In February 2020, the California Housing and Community Development Department (HCD) used these allocations to establish the Local Early Action Planning Grant Program (LEAP) with $119 million for cities and counties. 3. On July 1, 2020, the Community Development Staff applied for a LEAP grant that would allow the City to fund its next housing element without using general fund dollars. The application requested a grant totaling $85,000. The State requires the application to include a resolution from the City Council authorizing staff to submit the application. If the City Council does not approve the attached resolution, the grant application can be withdrawn. City Council July 21, 2020 Page 2 of 3 ANALYSIS: In the coming months, the City of Temple City will begin preparing a housing element update for the 2021-2029 planning period in anticipation of the October 15, 2021 deadline. The housing element is one of the seven required elements for a General Plan. Its focus is on planning for the construction of future housing in the city. Specifically, this means demonstrating that the City has the capacity to meet its Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) allotment. The RHNA allotment is the amount of future housing the City is required to plan for. As a built-out community, the primary means to achieving this is by identifying sites throughout the city that are prime candidates for in-fill development with new housing and/or increased density. The housing element will also need to demonstrate barriers to housing development and means of expediting construction. The on-going Covid-19 pandemic has impacted the City’s finances, making it difficult for the City to fund the housing element update with general funds alone. The City is requesting grant funding so that it can hire a consultant to assist the planning staff through the entire process of updating the housing element. The housing element is one of the most challenging elements of a General Plan to update as there are many legal requirements that must be met. Additionally, it is the only element that must be adopted by a certain date and the only element that requires review and certification by the State. The process for updating the housing element includes: • Performing significant property research; • Conducting community outreach; • Preparation of technical studies; and the • Development of an implementation plan with quantified objectives. LEAP grants provide funding to jurisdictions for the preparation and adoption of planning documents or process improvements that accelerate housing production. The timeline for the grant is as follows: Table 1 – LEAP Grant Program Timeline Date / Period Activity January 31, 2021 Submittal deadline 2020 to 2023 State review of LEAP December 31, 2023 Deadline to complete work under the grant If the City receives a grant, the planning staff will issue request for proposals and bring to the City Council a contract for its review and approval. CITY STRATEGIC GOALS: Adopting the proposed resolutions would further the City Strategic Goals of Economic Development, Quality of Life, and Good Governance. City Council July 21, 2020 Page 3 of 3 FISCAL IMPACT : Approval of this item will not have an impact on the Fiscal Year 2020-2021 City budget. Receiving this grant may take pressure off the Fiscal Year 2021-2022 budget which likely would have required additional funds to complete the housing element. ATTACHMENT: A. Resolution 20-5484 RESOLUTION NO. 20-5484 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TEMPLE CITY, CALIFORNIA AUTHORIZING APPLICATION FOR, AND RECEIPT OF, LOCAL GOVERNMENT PLANNING SUPPORT GRANT PROGRAM FUNDS. WHEREAS, pursuant to Health and Safety Code 50515 et. Seq, the Department of Housing and Community Development (Department) is authorized to issue a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) as part of the Local Government Planning Support Grants Program (hereinafter referred to by the Department as the Local Early Action Planning Grants program or LEAP); and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Temple City desires to submit a LEAP grant application package (“Application”), on the forms provided by the Department, for approval of grant funding for projects that assist in the preparation and adoption of planning documents and process improvements that accelerate housing production and facilitate compliance to implement the sixth cycle of the regional housing need assessment; and WHEREAS, the Department has issued a NOFA and Application on January 27, 2020 in the amount of $119,040,000 for assistance to all California jurisdictions; THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TEMPLE CITY RESOLVES: SECTION 1. The City Manager is hereby authorized and directed to apply for and submit to the Department the Application Package; SECTION 2. In connection with the LEAP grant, if the Application is approved by the Department, the City Manager of the City of Temple City is authorized to enter into, execute, and deliver on behalf of the Applicant, a State of California Agreement (Standard Agreement) for the amount of $85,000, and any and all other documents required or deemed necessary or appropriate to evidence and secure the LEAP grant, the City of Temple City obligations related thereto, and all amendments thereto; and SECTION 3. The Applicant shall be subject to the terms and conditions as specified in the NOFA, and the Standard Agreement provided by the Department after approval. The Application and any and all accompanying documents are incorporated in full as part of the Standard Agreement. Any and all activities funded, information provided, and timelines represented in the Application will be enforceable through the fully executed Standard Agreement. Pursuant to the NOFA and in conjunction with the terms of the Standard Agreement, the Applicant hereby agrees to use the funds for eligible uses and allowable expenditures in the manner presented and specifically identified in the approved Application. ATTACHMENT A Resolution No. 20-5484 Page 2 of 2 APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 21st day of July 2020. ________________________ Tom Chavez, Mayor ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM: ________________________ _______________________ Peggy Kuo, City Clerk Greg Murphy, City Attorney I, Peggy Kuo, City Clerk of the City of Temple City, certify that the foregoing Resolution No. 20-5484 was adopted by the City Council of the City of Temple City at a regular meeting held on the 21st day of July 2020, by the following vote: AYES: Councilmember – NOES: Councilmember – ABSENT: Councilmember – ABSTAIN: Councilmember – ________________________ Peggy Kuo, City Clerk