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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAdditional Documents CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO CITY COUNCIL INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM FROM: Jim Mulvihill,Councilman, Seventh Ward SUBJECT: An Introduction to the Regional Housing Needs Assessment(RHNA) DATE: October 17, 2018 COPIES: Background: SCAG is responsible for developing the Regional Housing Needs Assessment(RHNA), a requirement under California housing law for the six-county SCAG region. The RHNA allocation represents the future housing need for every jurisdiction (city and county) for a specific 8-year time period. Government Code 65584 outlines four objectives of RHNA: 1) To increase the housing supply and mix of housing types, tenure , and affordability within each region in an equitable manner, 2) Promoting infill development and socioeconomic equity, the protection of environmental and agricultural resources, and the encouragement of efficient development patterns, 3) Promoting an improved intraregional relationship between jobs and housing, 4) Allocating a lower proportion of housing need in income categories in jurisdiction that have a disproportionately high share in comparison to the county distribution. A RHNA planning cycle is 8 years. The RHNA cycle has been synchronized with the Regional Transportation Plan/Sustainable Communities Strategy (RTP/SCS) cycle so that a RHNA allocation would be adopted with every other RTP/SCS cycle. The next RHNA cycle, the 6a', must be completed by October 2020, and will cover the planning period October 2021 through October 2019. Once jurisdictions receive their RHNA allocations, they are required to update their housing element in their General Plans. The General Plan should demonstrate through sites and zoning how the jurisdiction will accommodate their RHNA allocation.. All housing elements are reviewed by Department of Housing and Community Development(HCD)to determine whether or not it is in compliance the State law. HCD Regional Determination: HCD is responsible for providing a regional housing need determination, in addition to existing housing need, for each COG for the corresponding planning period. HCD bases its regional determination by starting with population projections produced by the Department of Finance (DOF) and the forecast used by the COG in preparation for its RTP. If there is a question over a disparity between these forecasts, State law requires the use of DOF projections. In addition to population projections, the COG provides various socioeconomic and demographic data a part of HCD's consultation process,including: 1) Anticipated household growth, 2) Household size, 3) Overcrowding, 4) Household formation rates based on socioeconomic variances, 5) Vacancy rates of existing housing stock, 6) Jobs/Housing relationship. Interestingly, while population projections are used initially, HCD determines household projections (through household formation rates) and other factors to ultimately determine the regional housing need. Methodology: Once a regional housing need determination is provided by HCD, SCAG is responsible for developing a methodology that will determine an individual jurisdiction's RHNA allocation. HCD is not explicitly involved in the development or application of RHNA methodology as long as the adopted final regional RHNA allocation by income category is the same as the regional determination by HCD. SCAG is required to develop a proposed methodology at least two year before the housing element due date.Prior to this methodology development, SCAG must survey all jurisdictions on planning factors, i.e. jobs/housing relationships; infrastructure limitations outside a jurisdiction's control, county policies to preserve agricultural land or open space, and high housing costs. Public meetings will be held and each component of the methodology wille be reviewed by the RHNA subcommittee. The RHNA subcommittee will be composed of two representatives from each county with SCAG. Formula: For SCAG's previous RHNA cycle the following formula was used: 1) Projected household growth:the largest component of the RHNA allocation previously, Plus, Page 2 of 4 2) Healthy market vacancy rate: The purpose of this component is to ensure there are enough vacant units to support the project household growth for the jurisdiction, Plus, 3) Replacement Need: Housing units that have been demolished or eliminated by fires or other natural disasters must be replaced to ensure that projected household growth is maintained, Plus or Minus, 4) Social Equity Adjustment: After determination of a draft RHNA allocation, the total number is divided into four income categories: i. Very low income: <50%of Annual Median Income n. Low income 50%to 80%AMI iii. Moderate income 80%to 120%AMI iv. Above Mod Income >120%AMI To ensure that the RHNA process is consistent with the State housing goal -of ensuring that communities that have a high concentration of an income category are not burdened with more of the same, a social equity adjustment is made to ensure that there is not an overconcentration of households of low income groups where they already exist. Once these new percentages are determined, they are applied to the jurisdiction's total RHNA allocation to determine the number of units needed for each RHNA income category.+ Page 3 of 4 i a; L O � if � M �f n N M00 n o 19TI O N W I Ln n I � M i I co O 01 at Ix I � o 00 O1 � I LO ry ' O l0 N M ! N + O . ! en I `i s I 1i'1 I MD {I P- _0 s I I I 10 � rs O� rI OMl Q II! ( Q N O � N l0 0- C" -Mco r- ai - rn c - eo C } O w O OOO OO O O O ' CL N O O O O O O O O O O m c O O O O O O O O OLn 0 Ln 0 `O Ln Ln Ln M M Ncli N e-1 16 U 7 d 3 co 3 H C N v V/ N E 3 O N N I I N � I � o � O H I N O AR � � C c I co °n a o � c, 0 UD f � Ln 0 rn o rn 0 0 0 0 0 0 vl- 0 0 C 0 0 0 w M N 3 An An N - L m H C 47 V V L 0 N IOc- ....r...�== S1, Oc' -IA i OC, 0 .. OF, SO v SOS pOH t7 Lr) — OO ui e PLn s6r c —�--m- 6 g D r66I m d? _ 6I u to Iwo C E - 4A oDO 3 n �6I `O CL r6r u c Q 69 6I m u TO....�� � �6r IV re Nonay 6 c `o y s6r a a o 0a Cl 0 c 6I N C C 0 0 0 0 0 0 L o In o LO o Cl M M N N 7 0 � � 8 o e co w N a Im 1 c E C 3 i c c Q � o -� I I v Z a 8 1 S L Q ` a E a ro o Y t c a A a ° 8 I 8 i ' LL c c 4► Q -� co E To: Council Members of San Bernardino Thank you for giving the San Bernardino Animal Care Foundation a chance to speak to you once again about our ongoing development plans. We are aiming to have a proposal to the City by the beginning of December, if not sooner, for a partnering with them to run the shelter regardless of the outcome of the election. Over the coming weeks we will be asking to meet with each of you and the mayor in an effort to finalize -our proposal. We welcome the candidates commitment to work with us to solve the ongoing problems with the animal shelter and to provide a warm, safe and nurturing environment for the animals and the residents of San Bernardino. The Problem. Despite decreases in euthanasia rates, the City of San Bernardino has received ongoing complaints regarding just about every aspect of the Animal Control program and conditions at the Chandler Place Facility. It seems that the shelter has been plagued with difficulties for many years. Some of allegations in the last two years include: • Shelter uncleanliness, extraordinary filth, and obvious neglect • Sweltering temperatures in summer and freezing temperatures in winter • Lack of veterinary care for injured and ill animals • Disease outbreaks, including parvo, distemper, kennel cough, and feline panleukopenia • Inadequate staffing • Rigid adherence or constant change in animal handling protocols that work to defeat the efforts of community volunteers • Animals treated like "prisoners" because of the law enforcement emphasis (e.g., most recently animals in isolation have been more severely isolated and referred to as being in "protective custody." The current Animal Control website states: Promoting, motivating and enforcing responsible pet ownership is our number one goal. Our philosophy is to keep working at the root causes of pet overpopulation and irresponsible pet ownership - to provide alternatives to indiscriminate breeding of pets, to encourage people to become better pet owners and to make our community a better place for both people and animals. But in fact, very little effort is spent toward the ultimate problem of pet overpopulation. Additionally, shelter staff are often at odds with rescues who try to partner with the shelter to take up.this role. For example, in terms of adoptions, one way to increase adoptions is to network pictures of animals on Facebook and through other venues. Recently, shelter volunteers were once again denied access to keys to simply take animals out in order to take the necessary networking pictures. That simple solution— networking of animal pictures in order to increase adoption rates and decrease euthanasia rates and days spent in the shelter for an animal doesn't cost money—it simply requires time, and a can-do attitude that is lacking from the current shelter management approach. As a non-profit, San Bernardino Animal Care Foundation will work to promote this can-do community service and orientation philosophy, with the added goal of making the shelter a place people want to come to adopt pets and donate their money, a place people want to spend their time volunteering, a shelter small rescue organizations want to work with, and a non-profit organization the City is proud to work with. To that end we have developed our mission statement.- San tatement:San Bernardino Animal Care Foundation exists to provide a better life for companion animals and to assist in the effort to limit the overpopulation of these animals through a low/no- kill methodology. The key principles that we follow to assist us in achieving our goals are: 1. Keep animals in their homes through quality veterinary care, training programs and community education. 2. Shelter and find homes for sick, injured, abused and abandoned adoptable domestic animals. 3. Reduce overpopulation of these animals through spay and neuter programs. 4. Prevent cruelty to these animals by supporting animal protection laws. 5. Foster compassion towards these animals through education. 6. Share our knowledge and experience with other animal welfare organizations. Our No Kill Mission. A no kill, open admission shelter in San Bernardino is not an impossible dream. We understand that our work with the community will be the most important factor in the success or failure of our lifesaving mission. A no kill shelter is not possible without a compassionate shelter director and staff committed to rigorous implementation. We do not need to reinvent the wheel; the system of success has already been implemented in shelters across the country. As an "open admission" shelter, we will use every available resource of population control in order to avoid the euthanasia of adoptable dogs. This involves putting in place the infrastructure to save lives. We believe we can achieve this within two years. Following a commitment to be a "No Kill" facility is the need for accountability. Accountability means having clear definitions, a lifesaving plan, and protocols and procedure oriented toward preserving life. But accountability also allows, indeed requires, flexibility. Too many shelters lose sight of this principle, staying rigid with shelter protocols, believing these are engraved in stone. They are not. Protocols are important because they ensure accountability from staff. But protocols without flexibility can have the opposite effect: stifling innovation, causing lives to be needlessly lost, and allowing shelter employees who fail to save lives to hide behind a paper trail. The decision to end an animal's life is an extremely serious one, and should always be treated as such. No matter how many animals a shelter kills, each and every animal is an individual,and each deserves individual consideration. How Will We Do This? While these are all laudable goals. Proof comes with results. First, We are very aware and mindful of the city budget limitations and we have been carefully reviewing the SBC budget numbers and the prior proposals to assist the shelter with the services it must deliver.This step is critical—a plan that is financially sufficient is a foundation for success. Second, we are also aware that being a small rescue doesn't translate automatically into maintaining and administering a million dollar budget. So we have been conducing quite a bit of due diligence including recently obtaining a detailed proposal for costs associated with "fixing" the current shelter with the ultimate long-term goal of raising funds for a new facility. Finally, in addition to careful and sound fiscal management abilities brought to bear to the shelter, to be successful in today's challenging nonprofit economy and in serving the San Bernardino community to support the shelter, it is clear SBACF will need to be successful in three areas of expertise including animal care, customer service, and fundraising. • First, we must excel at serving the animals with care, efficiency, and expediting the adoption of its animals into welcoming homes. SBACF believes that the best place for animals is with loving families and individuals. To support this endeavor we will need to implement a number of procedures and programs. For puppies and kittens, that are underage volunteer foster homes will provide safe environments for these_ animals to reach adoption age. Animals needing health and behavioral care will be identified at intake-and placed into appropriate programs allowing them to reach adoptability as soon as possible. SBACF will develop sharing agreements with other local and regional shelters and rescues to support animals that have not found a home within a set period of time to be transferred and introduced to potential new owners. All animal care will meet and exceed standards of animal care by following the Association of Shelter Veterinarians' Guidelines for Standards of Care in Animal Shelters published in 2010 with licensed veterinarian care and oversight. The facility will also use Asilomar Accords and Animal Statistics Tables, animal care data tracking to provide documentation that SBACF's shelter is saving all healthy and treatable dogs and cats in its care and is meeting the standard of care typically provided in its community. Further, SBACF's shelter seeks to go beyond this to save a portion of the "unhealthy and untreatable" animals so it is exceeding the community's standard of care and thus setting an example of being a leader in providing humane treatment. One approach to this will be to work with breed specific rescue organizations that have the expertise and resources to rehabilitate and place animals. • Second, SBACF will be highly acclaimed at customer service throughout all of its interactions with customers and the community. Our goal is to drive high levels of customer traffic through the shelter, grounds and website to ensure the exposure of our animals available for adoption and to build relationships with supporters of the shelter. Customer service provided in a loving and caring fashion will be a hallmark of operations especially during the intake of animals, the visitation hours at the facility, the adoption of animals, and follow up contacts to monitor and support the families and newly placed animals. The facilities staff will be prepared to respond to all email and online inquiries of adoptable pets within 24 hours and will create a welcoming experience. Additionally, SBACF will be a major provider of animal training and education as well as provide the area with free dedicated animal exercise and training monthly classes in partnership with local rescues. These customer service interactions will uphold SBACF's commitment to being an asset in its community and a resource to those who support animal welfare in the region. Finally, highly acclaimed customer service creates friends and advocates of the organization leading to financial and community advocacy support. • Finally, San Bernardino Animal Foundation will have a dynamic and engaging fundraising and development program that provides sustainable funding to the facility and its programs. Through its animal and customer service, SBA will build strong relationships with potential and past donors and animal advocates. It is the mission of SBACF to raise the quality of life for the community's animals and pet owners. The fundraising and development programs will use a sophisticated database and online communications tools to identify, track and communicate with its supporters. Both regular and online marketing will be used to enhance and maintain awareness of SBACF's offerings and services and build a strong community presence for the organization. These tools will augment the interactions that the staff and board have with SCAF members, program participants and community members. Fundraising events will include: animal walks, fundraiser parties and events, co-sponsored restaurant events and online donations, matching corporate donations, memorial and legacy programs, as well as a variety of sales and solicitations for donations. One additional method of exposure and fundraising is the placement of donation boxes at local businesses. SBACF and its Board will develop and deliver these events to maintain a robust fundraising and community awareness program. In particular, our President, a seasoned attorney and professional with a large business background, has previously and successfully helped form and create a 300 million dollar family foundation, and numerous city and state program budgets. We will leverage her expertise and our expertise with those rescues currently in the community such as Daisy's Hope Foundation and Dream Team Angel's Rescue to build a successful grant and development effort to support the shelter efforts. In conclusion, .....we are certainly aware that the Riverside Shelter program has submitted a proposal for supporting San Bernardino's efforts. We believe that is the wrong solution to the animal overpopulation problem for a number of reasons. First and foremost, solutions to problems can rarely be "outsourced" to other communities or simply contracted a way. We firmly believe that to "fix"the SBC shelter problem, once and for all, it must start with community and stakeholder engagement. We live and work here with the animals everyday and are aware of the obstacles to running a successful shelter including fiscal constraints. Attempting to simply contract away the issue to a new set of managers won't create the groundswell and enthusiasm of support we need from the citizens of the city and people like you, the Council Members and elected representative. We can't promise a "quick" solution but as those of us who have been working with the shelter and showing up as volunteers for many years now have demonstrated: WE AREN'T GOING ANYWHERE! We are committed to the community and, most importantly, the animals. We want to make this work and we are developing a plan to make that happen. We ask for your support over the next few months to make that happen. Thank you for your time and we look forward to our conversations over the coming weeks and what we hope to be a successful partnership in the future to solve the community shelter problems of SBC. On behalf of SBACF thank you.