29A - CON PLAN ANNUAL UPDATE FOR FEDERAL FUNDED PROGRAMS

Home Browse Search

2013/14 12010/11- 2014/15 CITY OF SANTA ANA CONSOLIDATED PLAN ACTION PLAN million. At the conclusion of the NSP program, the City anticipates it will have assisted 75 households to become new homeowners, plus producing at least 76 newly constructed or refurbished rental units that are affordable to very low-income households. BARRIERS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING The City will implement an array of housing programs in order to enhance and expand the supply of affordable housing in Santa Ana. As outlined above, the City will provide housing rehabilitation programs for both owner- and rental-housing units. Additionally, programs to provide new homeownership opportunities will be undertaken with NSP funding. For renters, the City will evaluate various activities including rental assistance vouchers, acquisition and new construction or rehabilitation activities. The City will continue to utilize its strategy to leverage federal funds with non-federal resources (to the extent they are available), especially those available to nonprofit housing developers. A recent and significant barrier to the provision of affordable housing opportunities for Santa Ana residents is the end of redevelopment in California. For Santa Ana, the mandated termination of the redevelopment agency activities translates to the loss of several million dollars annually dedicated solely for affordable housing. For 2013-2014 this issue has been compounded by significant reductions in HOME and CDBG funds. LEAD-BASED PAINT As outlined in the City's 2010-2014 Consolidated Plan, HUD estimates that 74 percent of dwellings built prior to 1980 have some level of lead-based paint. Since over 80 percent of Santa Ana's housing was built before 1980, the City recognizes lead-based paint hazards as an economic and health issue. The cost of removing lead paint often acts as a deterrent to addressing this problem especially for lower income families. The City has implemented HUD's lead-based paint hazards regulations (Title X). These regulations require that certain types of HUD-funded housing activities must be tested for lead-based paint hazards prior to the beginning of any work. If the property owner moves forward with the HUD-funded housing activity, all lead-based paint hazards will be controlled or abated using HUD defined "safe work practices." Complying with lead paint requirements has increased rehabilitation costs, and has also added to the project timeline. These regulations have also prompted some potential program participants to drop their request for rehabilitation assistance. Nonetheless, the City will provide educational materials to program participants that outline the need and benefits of identifying and eliminating lead-based paint hazards. 34 DRAFT 04/22/2013 29A-39