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Elk REQUEST FOR ACTION <br /> River <br /> TO ITEM NUMBER <br /> Housing and Redevelopment Authority .5. <br /> AGENDA SECTION MEETING DATE PREPARED BY <br /> July 8,2013 Brian Beeman,Director of Economic <br /> Development <br /> ITEM DESCRIPTION REVIEWED By <br /> Discuss and determine which housing agency best fits the city's Jeremy Barnhart, Deputy Director, <br /> housing needs based on the HRA's housing goals Community Operations and <br /> Development Director <br /> REVIEWED BY <br /> ACTION REQUESTED <br /> Information presented for discussion only. Action is anticipated at the August HRA meeting. <br /> BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION <br /> The HRA has indicated a strong interest in being more proactive in housing programs. At the May 6, <br /> 2013 HRA meeting, the HRA set some housing goals and directed staff to address some community <br /> housing needs including: 1st time home buyer's assistance, affordable housing,rehab assistance,and <br /> foreclosure prevention. <br /> In developing draft policies to address these goals, Staff has met with the Minnesota Housing Finance <br /> Agency (MHFA),Minnesota Central MN Housing Partnership (CMHP),Tri County Action Partnership <br /> (Tri-CAP),Brooklyn Park and Coon Rapids staff, and researched several other Minnesota housing <br /> programs. <br /> Through this process,it became clear that outside agencies provide the services desired by the HRA,at a <br /> fraction of the cost of administering our own program. For example, CMHP or Tri-CAP can address the <br /> HRA's preferences for 1st time buyer's assistance, affordable housing,rehab assistance, foreclosure <br /> prevention, and a variety of other housing programs. It is staff's recommendation that the City utilize <br /> these resources more aggressively for the benefit of city residents. Both entities will be at the meeting on <br /> July 8th to further discuss their programs. <br /> Staff seeks HRA consensus on which housing agency will best fit the needs of the community and the <br /> HRA housing goals.After a consensus is reached, the HRA will take action on the hiring of one of the <br /> housing agencies at the August 1, 2013 regular HRA meeting. In order to start applying for the Small <br /> Cities Development Grant for 2014, one of the agencies will need to start the grant writing process in <br /> August or September to meet the pre-application deadline. <br /> rTIRE E I <br />