HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_HOUAB_07.18.2022City of Georgetown, Texas
Housing Advisory Board
Minutes
July 18, 2022, at 2:30 p.m.
809 Martin Luther King Jr. Street
Board Members present: Wendy Cash, Chair; Nikki Brennan, Vice -chair; Regina Watson, Secretary;
Linda Sloan, Joey Carlton, Eric Marin
Board Member(s) absent: Christie Cowden and Chuck Collins
Staff present in -person: Cesar Acosta, Senior Planner; Jessica Lemanski, Planning Specialist
The Meeting was opened by Chair Wendy Cash at 2:38 p.m.
Public Wishing to Address the Board
A As of the deadline, no persons were signed up to speak on items other than those posted on the agenda.
Legislative Regular Agenda
B Consideration and possible action to approve the minutes from the June 20, 2022 regular meeting
of the Housing Advisory Board. - Stephanie McNickle, Planning Technician
Motion by Board member Watson to approve the minutes from the June 20, 2022,
Housing Advisory Board meeting. Second by Board member Brennan. Approved. 6-0.
C Presentation and discussion on existing housing programs, the City's housing website,
current outreach practices, and how to move forward on the board's end of year goal
to improve education and outreach efforts on housing programs. -Cesar Acosta, Senior
Planner
Staff reviewed what was discussed during the June 201h meeting and the timeframe, as well
as narrowing down action item 76 into phases to expand community education and
outreach programs to inform residents of available support such as homebuyer education
services, home rehabilitation grants, utility billing assistance, homestead exemptions,
nonpartisan nonprofit partnerships, home maintenance and City of Georgetown housing
programs. Cesar stated that the mission statement the board settled on last meeting was to
work on promoting programs that help achieve and maintain housing by working with
local businesses, nonprofits, using events, and a helpline, and measuring the success of
those efforts by examining the number of participants, the number of stakeholders, and
increased participation in existing programs. Cesar stated that we should further narrow
those components down to more actionable items, looking first at the help line where
residents can call to easily access information, which would be a substantial investment to
be worked on in the coming years. Staff stated in the meantime that we should focus on the
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Minutes July 18, 2022
website linked on the City of Georgetown Planning website for housing specific. Right
now, it has existing programs and information on them, but it can be improved, which
today's meeting will focus on by creating a framework for improvement and reviewing and
reevaluating the content on that website to make it a "one -stop shop' for housing
information. Cesar stated that the mission statement focused on maintaining housing and
achieving housing as umbrella terms to focus programs on.
Cesar presented a chart for programs aimed at maintaining housing. These include:
• Home Repair Program (City managed)
o City administers the dollars and works with Habitat for Humanity to
facilitate spending, gather applications, and work with homeowners to build
homes.
• Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program (Managed by outside entity)
o Works with low income residents to get utility assistance. Opportunities for
Burnet and Williamson nonprofit manages this program.
• Homestead exemption (Managed by outside entity)
o Helps to reduce a portion of property taxes for primary residences for
qualified residents. Managed through the Williamson County Appraisal
District.
• Rental Assistance (Managed by outside entity)
o Offered through The Caring Place
• Good Neighbor Fund (Managed by outside entity)
o Managed through The Caring Place
• Community Restore Program (Managed by outside entity)
o Run by Habitat for Humanity
Board Member stated that the Community Restore Program is not managed by this Board.
Board Member also stated that the applications for the Home Repair Program comes
directly to the Board. Discussion on the Restore and whether the Home Repair Program
was referencing that.
Board Member inquired on the Homestead Exemption Program, and whether there are
more tax exemptions available to residents without a homestead. Cesar stated that those
kinds of exemptions, such as those for senior citizens, veterans with disabilities, primary
residences are part of the Home Exemption Program.
Cesar presented another chart with programs aimed at achieving housing. These are all city
managed and include:
• Neighborhood Association Assistance
o Helps to create Neighborhood Associations to achieve more organization
and advocate for their community (street infrastructure, lighting, funds for
home repair/building).
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• Community Development Block Grant Program
o Home repairs, grants for development and direct development
• LIHTC Inventory
o Competitive 9% and non-competitive 4% grant. Offers people to help
develop low income and income -restricted properties.
• Housing for Tax Credits
o Federal program that this Board helps to approve before taking federal funds
for new housing development to the City Council.
• Workforce Housing Program
o New program developed 2 years ago to work directly with developers to
create a density bonus by setting aside income -restricted units for greater
impervious cover and height that would normally not be allowed under
zonmg.
Discussion on the purpose of the website, future goals for what information will be
available on it, and who will be using it. Board Member inquired on whether federal and
state programs should be included on the website.
Discussion on adding resources for developers and businesses and perhaps adding a
different page/portal for different users.
Cesar presented how we currently provide information on the website and in print. Cesar
displayed the Neighborhood Association Assistance Program information printout and the
Home Repair Program website as examples.
Cesar noted that the printout effectively conveys the information and is available in
multiple formats, and that the Home Repair Program website is easy to navigate and get
information from.
Board Member asked if the LIHTC inventory was available on the website. Cesar said it is
not and should probably be added to the site, along with some of the other programs
described in the PowerPoint.
Cesar asked the Board:
• What information should be provided about all programs? What questions should
be answered?
• What format or layout is best to model in order to make program information more
uniform?
Board Members shared their answers, which included:
• Determining if you qualify for a program.
• Who is the program for?
• What is the purpose of the program and what are its benefits?
• How do you apply for a program?
• Who do you contact for related services?
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• Are there any operating costs associated?
• Can the information be printed and/or a print picked up somewhere?
• Frequently asked questions about the program, "Learn More' button for a
longer explanation of the program.
Discussion on the format of the website; Simple for the eyes, lots of white space, FAQs,
pictures, option for Spanish, succinct questions with options for a dropdown menu to
learn more, no long paragraphs (bullet points instead).
Board Member suggested printout versions to have available for those without
computer access/knowledge.
Board Member suggested an event at the Library to allow those in the public who are
interested in these programs to come learn more and get face-to-face conversation
opportunities. Cesar stated that part of developing our housing programs includes
facilitating events with the public and nonprofit partners and businesses in the coming
months.
Discussion on the structure of the website. Board Member suggested presenting
information based on who is trying to access it, such as having specific options for
residents, developers, and nonprofits. Cesar noted that there should be limitations on
how many subcategories users need to click through to get to the desired information.
Board Member also suggested having "I need help with..." links to more information
on programs and contact information. Staff noted that certain questions may have
overlapping answers and resources.
Board Member noted that the goal of the website is to empower users to access the
information they desire, so the website should be easy to navigate and access.
Board Member asked about the contact information email and how often those come in.
Cesar stated he just started managing those emails and will have a better idea of the
frequency of questions next month. Board Member also inquired about Constant
Contact and its feature showing who clicks where on a website. Cesar noted that the
City of Georgetown has certain standards within the Communications Department for
City websites that we will have to comply with.
Cesar asked the Board to review the programs available on the website, information
presented there, and what key questions should be answered for each program. Cesar
also stated that he will begin to revamp the website to add the buckets/subcategories
discussed at today's meeting and make sure all the programs are listed.
At the next meeting, the Board can begin retooling each individual page to include key
information for each program.
D Recognition of service to the Board of Linda Sloan
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Board Member Sloan has served on the Board since 2020 and served with Habitat for
Humanity for 17 years.
The next schedule Board meeting is scheduled for August 18, 2022
Adjournment
Motion to Adjourn by Board Member Eric Marin. Second by Board Member Brenan.
The meeting adjourned at 3:25 p.m.
Wendy Ca , Chair
Housing Advisory Board
Minutes July 18, 2022
�-c
Attest, R na Watson, Secretary
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