Fiscal Note
This Resolution authorizes the City's submission of a grant application to the state DOH for $471,453 in ETH (Emergency Solutions Grant, Transitional Housing Program, and Homeless Prevention Program) grant funds, an amount that would cover the costs of several programs serving homeless and at-risk individuals and families, and associated grant administration costs.
Up to $500,000 in ETH grant revenues and commensurate expenditures was authorized and approved as part of the Community Development Division's 2015 Adopted Operating Budget.
Title
Authorizing the Mayor to sign, and the Community Development Division to submit, a grant application to the Wisconsin Department of Administration's Division of Housing for 2015-2016 ETH grant funds on behalf of local agencies providing housing and services to homeless and at-risk persons.
Body
BACKGROUND
The City of Madison has worked closely with a group of community-based non-profit agencies that provide services and housing to homeless persons and those at risk of becoming homeless. This cooperation involves City sponsorship and administration of an annual application to the State of Wisconsin for grant funds for various projects.
The Division of Housing determines awards based on a formula using data from monthly homeless census as well as poverty, unemployment and population data. Dane County is being awarded a total of $471,453 in federal Emergency Solutions Grant funds and state Transitional Housing Program funds. Following the notice of award, the CD Division will enter into contracts with the participating non-profits, with activities provided from July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016.
The application is comprised of five initiatives: (1) homeless prevention, (2) street outreach, (3) rapid re-housing, (4) emergency shelter, and (5) transitional housing programs. A minimum of 30% of the grant must be spent on rapid re-housing activities in Dane County; rapid re-housing activities are those that move homeless persons from the street or emergency shelter into permanent housing in as short a time possible, thereby minimizing their time homeless.
The Division of Housing requires that each applicant select one agency to receive all financial assistance to prevent homelessness. The CD Division recommends that the City continues its relationship with Community Action Coalition of South Central Wisconsin as the lead agency for providing financial assistance and housing stabilization services to homeless persons and those at-risk.
A small portion of these funds is designated to partially fund HMIS (Homeless Management Information Services) activities. The City and Dane County agencies participate in entering client-level data into Wisconsin ServicePoint (WISP) which is administered through contracts between each of the state's CoCs and the Institute for Community Alliances (ICA). ICA is a non-profit that serves as the lead HMIS administrator for CoC's in Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin.
For the 2015-2016 grant cycle, the Division of Housing is requiring an expedited submission date for proposals, and a planning meeting has been scheduled for the purpose of determining which proposals for activities will be included in the application. At the time of this Resolution's consideration, specific proposals have not yet been finalized, but it is likely that agencies who have participated in the past will participate in this application. These agencies include: Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin, Inc.; Dane County Parent Council, Inc.; Institute for Community Alliances; Legal Action of Wisconsin, Inc. Porchlight, Inc.; The Road Home Dane County, Inc.; The Salvation Army of Dane County; Stoughton United Ministries, Tellurian UCAN, Inc.; Tenant Resource Center, Inc.; YWCA of Madison, Inc.; and Youth Services of Southern Wisconsin, Inc.
Note: Once the City's ETH award for 2015-2016 has been announced, a complete list of the funded programs and their allocations will be articulated in a subsequent Resolution that authorizes the Mayor and City Clerk to execute agreements with the Wisconsin DOA's Division of Housing and with the designated non-profit subcontractor agencies.
ACTION
WHEREAS, the Common Council has adopted a five-year Community and Neighborhood Development Plan which identifies homelessness as a critical issue within the community and outlines a set of strategies and priorities to address those problems using community-based groups; and,
WHEREAS, the Common Council has accepted the Community Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in Dane County, which includes goals and objectives represented in these activities; and,
WHEREAS, the CD Division staff have created an open process and worked collaboratively with interested Homeless Services Consortium agencies to analyze current unmet needs and jointly develop a list of proposals for submission to the state Division of Housing for Emergency Solutions Grant, Transitional Housing Program and Homeless Prevention Program (ETH) funds;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Common Council hereby authorizes the Mayor to sign and approve the submission of an application to the Wisconsin Department of Administration's Division of Housing for 2015-2016 ETH funds, and to execute any additional documents necessary to accomplish the purposes of this Resolution.