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■ The region's rents have remained relatively high which has impacted the ability of lower income households to obtain decent and affordable housing. Households with no or poor credit history are severely impacted. In an effort to mitigate these barriers the City of Santa Ana undertook the following actions during the report period: ■ Utilized public resources to fund the rehabilitation of rental housing units with private property owners and CHDOs. This public assistance will result in lower rents for assisted units thus partially offsetting the impacts of some of the barriers listed above. Additionally, CHDO ownership ensures long -term affordability and maintenance of housing units. ■ The City's Housing Authority conducted outreach to rental property owners to encourage participation in the rental assistance program. The Authority's staff also provided counseling to new /prospective tenants on the importance of building good credit history. Credit counseling was provided by the Consumer Credit Counseling Center, a local nonprofit agency. 4. ACTIONS TO OVERCOME GAPS IN INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURES & ENHANCE COORDINATION The City worked closely O'cal i ions to ' itiat nk economic incentives with neighborhood and i dev pm obj Ives. Th e efforts included building relationships with neigh a ons• o u sed I ding agencies, nonprofits, and educational instit e C o s p ted prog ms aimed at enhancing coordination among varepartments. Examples of actions undertaken during the report period to overcome gaps and enhance coordination included the following: The City's Workforce Investment Act (WIA) advisory board played a key role in developing employment opportunities for lower income Santa Ana residents. The WIA board is comprised of various community leaders representing private employment, education, social services and government. This diversity in the board's representation ensures that the community's workforce needs are identified and addressed through a variety of public and private resources. This advisory board also brings key community contacts together resulting in enhanced coordination of program delivery and resource utilization. ■ As a participant in the Continuum of Care Community Forum and the HIV Planning Council, the City can ensure barriers created by regional institutional structures that address the needs of the homeless and individuals with HIV /AIDS are identified and addressed through the coordinated use of limited funds. 27 Draft 8/26/2009 19F -33