San Francisco Office of Public Housing
Quarterly Newsletter FY 2012 3rd Quarter
Public Housing News
Serving Northern California and Nevada

We Have a New Director!

Please join the Public and Indian Housing (PIH) Office of Field Operations and the Far West and Beyond Network; Regions IX & X, in welcoming Ms. Velma Christine Navarro to our Team. Effective July 15, 2012, Ms. Navarro began as the Director of Public Housing in San Francisco.

Ms. Navarro brings added value to our team with her knowledge, experience and skills. With over 14 years in the affordable housing industry; 9 years of which serving in senior management positions at various public housing authorities and other public and private agencies working to ensure that public housing programs maintain their operational and financial viability, Ms. Navarro brings the necessary leadership talents to successfully address the different and diverse challenges confronting the San Francisco Public Housing Field Office. Receiving her CPA in 1992, Ms. Navarro has served as the Director of Finance for the Gary, IN and Boulder, CO, Housing Authorities; and as Controller for the State of Colorado Housing and Finance Authority. She has also served as the Director of the Housing Choice Voucher programs for two of the largest public housing authorities in the Nation: Chicago and Washington, DC. Ms. Navarro recently served as the Senior Manager/ Housing Sector Lead for Thomas & Herbert Consulting, LLC responsible for directing and leading the Housing Sector for the company, including all housing projects and staff, Nationwide data compilation and reporting for the HOPE (Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere) VI Program; which served over 200 Public Housing Authorities, and management of HUD's Integrated Assessment Sub-system.

Ms. Navarro has significant experience in affordable and public housing, asset management, human capital management and development, project redevelopment/repositioning; including pulling together Mixed Financing, and other aspects of public housing management and operations. She holds BS and BA degrees in Business Administration from Colorado State University graduating cum laude and is currently pursuing a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. Her successful public and private work experience in various challenging public and affordable housing environments will serve well as a stabilizing force for the San Francisco Field Office Staff and as a positive influence with our public housing partners.

Ms. Navarro is also fluent in Spanish and is a proud mother of 3 children.

Calendar of Due Dates

This web page lists Public Indian Housing (PIH) requirements for PHAs with fixed due dates: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/post/calendar

PHAs with varying due dates can be found here: http://portal.hud.gov/huddoc/post-more-pih-req.pdf

TRUST but VERIFY:  PHAs must comply with all applicable HUD requirements, regardless of the content of this Calendar.

From the Director's Desk

Greetings!

As the new Director of the Office of Public Housing in San Francisco, I would like to say "Hello!" to all of our partners in providing safe, decent, affordable housing! I have been in the San Francisco Office since July 16th and I have had the pleasure of connecting with some of you already. An announcement of my arrival is included in this newsletter and it provides information about my background in the industry.

I look forward to working with each of you as we pursue our effort to promote and achieve HUD's mission "to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all." I hope to meet each of you in the very near future. 

Best regards,

Velma C. Navarro
Director
HUD - Office of Public Housing
600 Harrison Street, Room 2053
San Francisco, CA 94107-1300

HOMEOWNERSHIP

Source: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/ross/about

Participation in the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) Programs Pays Off

Since 1990, the Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program has encouraged families to become economically independent. The program provides Public Housing residents an avenue to becoming self-sufficient through education and training. At the same time FSS lets Public Housing agencies (PHAs) provide supportive services that help their residents meet their financial goals such as homeownership and a better job.

Public Housing residents who join the Public Housing FSS (PH FSS) program work with a program coordinator. The program coordinator connects residents with training opportunities or other services within the community and helps residents connect with local employers for jobs. Residents are required to sign a contract of participation. This contract details their individual responsibilities and goals and also the PHA's responsibilities. The PHA must establish goals on how to help the families achieve independence from welfare.

As the participant begins to earn extra income, an escrow account may be set up. This is money set aside for the resident, funded with the increased income, which would otherwise pay for increased rent. Upon successful completion of the FSS program, the resident may use the escrow funds in various ways.

FSS participants and the FSS coordinators help residents often create a plan of action to reach goals and stay on track. It may be working out a budget, planning for education or future employment, or setting up a successful child care plan. FSS participants gain a sense of financial freedom and independence from welfare assistance. Many successful candidates would agree that the lessons learned while on the program assist them throughout their lives, not just while they are living in Public Housing.

The Newport News Redevelopment & Housing Authority (NNRHA), in Virginia, is an example of a successful FSS program. NNRHA currently has 962 families enrolled in their FSS program with 439 of those families residing in public housing. Many of the participants focused on purchasing a home or improving their education. 70 participants purchased homes and 280 earned General Education Diplomas (GED), college degrees, or vocational programs. Residents who want to get on the road to financial independence through the FSS program should contact their local housing authority.

Source: PIC August 7, 2012

Roseville Housing Authority Celebrates

The Roseville Housing Authority is sharing with us, its success. The Authority set a team goal to fully lease up its NED Vouchers. The team met its goal and to mark the occasion celebrated with cake. Way to go! . . . and, thanks for sharing the good news.

Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD)

Information source: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/RAD

The Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-55) authorized the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) with two components to apply proven financing tools to help preserve HUD's public and assisted housing stocks:

• 1st Component – allows Public Housing and Moderate Rehabilitation (Mod Rehab) properties to convert, under a competition limited to 60,000 units, to long-term Section 8 rental assistance contracts; and
   
• 2nd Component – allows Rent Supplement (Rent Supp), Rental Assistance Payment (RAP), and Mod Rehab properties to convert tenant-based vouchers issued upon contract expiration or termination to project-based vouchers.
   
• The Department published the Final RAD Notice on Thursday, July 26, 2012. Owners of Public Housing and Mod Rehab properties applying for conversion under the first, competitive component of RAD should submit applications during the Initial Application period, which runs from September 24 to October 24, 2012. Owners of Rent Supp, RAP, and Mod Rehab properties seeking to convert assistance under RAD's second, non-competitive component will be able to submit conversion requests immediately under the revised rules.

Please check this page for the latest information on RAD. You can email (rad@hud.gov) the Department with questions or comments.

Join the RAD mailing list here: (http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?
src=/subscribe/signup&listname=Rental%20Assistance%20Demonstration&list=RAD-L).

Notice

1. HUD Final Notice Rental Assistance Demonstration(7/26/12)
2. Federal Register Notice (7/26/12): http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=FR_RADFinalNotice.pdf

Application Materials

Application materials are in final development. Final application materials will be posted in August.

1. Draft RAD Public Housing Program Application (Updated 7/26/12)
2. Draft RAD Application to Convert Mod Rehab Assistance to PBRA or PBV (Updated 7/26/12)

Contract Documents

Additional documents forthcoming

2nd Component

1. Agreement to Enter Into Housing Assistance Payments Contract Rider
2. New Construction or Rehabilitation Rider
3. Existing Housing Rider

PowerPoint Presentation(7/26/2012)
 Overview of RAD Final Notice: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=RAD_Notice_PPT_7-26-12.pdf

Events: RAD Forum - San Francisco, August 17, 2012 (Eduardo.Cabrera@hud.gov)

Housing Authority of the County of San Joaquin

Project turns blight into a place for someone to call home.

New Four-Plex, 524 North American Street, Stockton, California

It took only a few months to turn a vacant lot near downtown Stockton into four units of rental housing. Villa Real, Inc., a subsidiary of the Housing Authority of the County of San Joaquin, has recently competed construction of the four-plex turning it into a pleasant and affordable apartments. Built on donated land, the Housing Authority financed the project and will manage the property.

This project was made possible by the wonderful commitment of the Villa Real's volunteer governing Board consisting of Gillian Murphy, Joyce Grubbs, Greg Arnaudo, Barbara Kauss, Fred Minor, and Amy Travaille. Villa Real's Board President Murphy stated, "This project is a great example of one of Villa Real's goals to provide comfortable and affordable housing in what was previously a blighted vacant site and which will have a positive contribution to the neighborhood."

This is truly a community effort. Completing the final touches, the Haggerty Construction, DC Vient, Inc., and Home Depot provided tools, paint, materials and their expertise together with volunteers from the Stockton Police Department and Housing Authority staff giving their time to sprucing up the yard.

Three of the four units rented quickly but there is still a one-bedroom efficiency apartment available for rent. Villa Real, Inc., as a subsidiary of the Housing Authority, has already begun looking for the next opportunity – one housing need at a time. If you believe you have such a project or opportunity in mind please contact either the Housing Authority at (209) 460-5069.

The first tenant had already moved in through a federal program providing housing for veterans. The tenant, along with the partners behind the project, are committed to making it a clean and safe place to live, said Gillian Murphy, president of the Villa Real board.

The idea is that the project will have an impact beyond its lot lines. Cosmetically, that means neighbors looking to spruce up their homes can use paint donated to the effort. Volunteers who put the final touches outside improved the landscaping along about a half-block of sidewalk, spreading bark in front of neighbors' homes. The project also was the impetus for starting a new Neighborhood Watch group for the area.

City and county officials were at the launch Monday, noting how projects such as this can improve a neighborhood. "Little by little, one house at a time, we can take our neighborhoods back," county Supervisor Carlos Villapudua said.

Good tenants and good landlords can make a difference, City Councilman Paul Canepa said. "I think if you have decent people who take pride in where they live ... we can make it better that way."

With the completion of the new units, Villa Real is looking for a new project and is asking for people with one in mind to call (209) 460-5069 or send an email to chenderson@hacsj.com.

100 Days - Martha Ruiz, Public Housing Revitalization Specialist, HUD

It is the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders that ultimately find solutions to difficult t issues such as homelessness.

Friday, August 17 will mark the 100th day that a group of dedicated volunteers came together and set a goal to house homeless veterans in the City and County of San Francisco. Under the banner of the SF Homes for Heroes, The City, The Veterans' Administration, nonprofit housing organizations, landlords, and people of good will came together with HUD to achieve this noble effort.

HUD's commitment to finding suitable housing for our homeless veterans was demonstrated by the attendance of Deputy Sectary Maurice Jones at the SF Homes for Heroes weekly meeting in July. Mr. Jones was briefed on the challenges the campaign is facing and on potential solutions. Many unforeseen problems have already arisen and been resolved in this effort. The major challenge however, has always been the lack of affordable housing in San Francisco. Rents are at an all time high and homeless veterans are unable to successfully compete with the more affluent urban renters, even with rental assistance provide by the HUD (Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing) VASH voucher.

The SF Homes for Heroes team will continue their effort beyond the 100 day campaign and will focus on creating affordable housing options for the veterans using HUD VASH Project Based Vouchers. Bevan Dufty, Director of HOPE San Francisco will become the team leader. Martha Ruiz who initiated the effort stated, "It is the collaborative efforts of all stakeholders that ultimately find solutions to difficult issues such as homelessness.  SF Home for Heroes is a fine example of collaboration."

In the next issue of this newsletter, Ms. Ruiz will narrate the process and discuss the group's successes and areas of the housing process that need to be addressed. 

Housing First for Homeless Persons with Active Addiction: Are we Overreaching?

Context

More than 350 communities in the United States have committed to ending chronic homelessness. One nationally prominent approach, Housing First, offers early access to permanent housing without requiring completion of treatment or, for clients with addiction, proof of sobriety.

Methods

This article reviews studies of Housing First and more traditional rehabilitative (e.g., "linear") recovery interventions, focusing on the outcomes obtained by both approaches for homeless individuals with addictive disorders.

Findings

According to reviews of comparative trials and case series reports, Housing First reports document excellent housing retention, despite the limited amount of data pertaining to homeless clients with active and severe addiction. Several linear programs cite reductions in addiction severity but have shortcomings in long-term housing success and retention.

Conclusions

This article suggests that the current research data are not sufficient to identify an optimal housing and rehabilitation approach for an important homeless subgroup. The research regarding Housing First and linear approaches can be strengthened in several ways, and policymakers should be cautious about generalizing the results of available Housing First studies to persons with active addiction when they enter housing programs.

Targeting Veterans Experiencing Chronic Homelessness and Using Housing First

HUD-VASH programs are encouraged to adopt a Housing First model that focuses immediately on stabilizing Veterans in housing and then providing supportive services. The VA (Veteran's Administration) has provided guidance to Veteran's Administration Medical Center (VAMC) case managers not to require Veterans to demonstrate sobriety or receive treatment for underlying addiction or mental health issues as a precondition for receiving housing assistance. To support targeting, HUD has eliminated all criminal history screening requirements for HUD-VASH vouchers except for the ban on lifetime sex offenders.

VAMC case managers are responsible for appropriate targeting of HUD-VASH resources through screening potential HUD-VASH participants and providing written referrals for eligible veterans to the participating PHA. The HUD-VASH Resource Guide (www.va.gov/HOMELESS/docs/Center/144_HUD-VASH_Book_WEB_High_Res_final.pdf) provides a standard assessment that case managers can use to target assistance to Veterans experiencing chronic homelessness. VA case managers should actively collaborate with street outreach workers and shelter staff to identify Veterans experiencing chronic homelessness and assist them to enroll, locate units, and receive support through HUD-VASH resources. This is necessary to ensure that HUD-VASH assistance is effectively targeted and rapidly utilized. Communities can develop a registry of Veterans experiencing chronic homelessness that will function as a prioritized list for placement into permanent supportive housing. Some local examples of this are Washington, DC (www.hudhre.info/documents/VashPlus.pdf) and other communities' use of the Vulnerability Index (http://jedc.org/forms/Vulnerability%20Index.pdf) and Seattle's Client Care Coordination program (http://clerk.seattle.gov/~public/meetingrecords/2010/hhshc20100526_6a.pdf).

Want more guidance on HUD-VASH?   

Learn about these topics:

RAPID LEASE-UP (http://www.usich.gov/usich_resources/toolkits_for_local_action/
using_hud_vash_to_end_veterans_homelessness/rapid_lease_ups)

CASE MANAGEMENT (http://www.usich.gov/usich_resources/toolkits_for_local_action/
using_hud_vash_to_end_veterans_homelessness/case_management/)

ACTIVE COLLABORATION (http://www.usich.gov/usich_resources/toolkits_for_local_action/
using_hud_vash_to_end_veterans_homelessness/collaboration/)

PROJECT-BASING (http://www.usich.gov/usich_resources/toolkits_for_local_action/
using_hud_vash_to_end_veterans_homelessness/project_based_vouchers/)

RESOURCE & EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES FROM OUR PARTNERS (http://www.usich.gov/usich_resources/toolkits_for_local_action/
using_hud_vash_to_end_veterans_homelessness/
resources_and_effective_strategies_from_our_partners/

Paul's Success Story

As a Vietnam Veteran, Paul has been living with symptoms related to Post Traumatic Stress and hearing loss for over 20 years. He and his therapy dog lived off and on in a van for 15 years, traveling from state to state, seeking treatment at various VA hospitals and clinics. Struggling to cope with his symptoms and feeling like "the system failed me," Paul drank heavily. He lost his van in a bad business deal in 2010, and spent time at a number of substandard hotels before ending up on the streets of San Francisco where his drinking escalated. 

When introduced to his West Bay Housing Case Manager, Paul quickly dismissed her as another person who would build up his hopes and let him down. Due to the difficulty with sleep Paul had been prescribed sedating medications. Being on the streets he was forced to live without them as he didn't feel safe sleeping on the streets thus he was often functioning without sleep for days. Drinking has helped him not only stay awake but get through the rough days and nights without shelter. Despite facing obvious hardships Paul met with his Case Manager often. When his Case Manager secured 15 units for Housing First veterans with vouchers at a brand new supportive housing property, Paul was the first veteran to move in. 

The day the veteran moved in, he was beaming in a bright white jacket, saying "I've been wanting to wear this, but it would have gotten dirty on the streets." He said he was going to get his sleep medication first thing so that he – and his dog – could finally get some rest. He will continue working closely with his Case Manager to maintain a treatment plan that helps him address some of the obstacles that have kept him homeless for so long and eventually maintain long-term stability. 

Inventory Management System (IMS) / PIH Information Center (PIC)

HUD's San Francisco Office of Public Housing PIC Coaches

Richard Kim (richard.t.kim@hud.gov) PIC Coach (415) 489-6448

Sarah Glover-Johnson (sarah.j.glover-johnson@hud.gov) PIC Coach (415) 489-6454

ADVICE FROM YOUR PIC COACHES:

A list of workload assignments for our office by Public Housing Authority (PHA) is listed below. Please note that the Low Income Public Housing (LIPH) Revitalization Specialists (PHRS), Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Public Housing Revitalization Specialists Public and Indian Housing Information Center (PIC) Coach, and Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) System Coordinators are listed for each PHA. The standard procedure when a PHA has a PIC question is to contact the LIPH or HCV PHRS as a first-line point-of-contact, as they can answer most general and day-to-day PIC questions. However, if you are unable to find a solution or are unable to get a response from their PHRS, they can contact their PIC coach for more technical assistance. (PHRSs can also escalate an issue to the assigned PIC Coach.) 

Training

Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/ph/rhiip/piheivwebcasts

Webcast training is available year round and presented by Nicole Faison. This training provides Public Housing Agencies (PHAs) with a comprehensive understanding of the Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) system and how to use EIV to streamline the income verification process and reduce administrative errors and improper payments within HUD rental housing assistance programs. 

REAC Learning Tools available online: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/reac/training/learningtools

The REAC has released a series of training tools online in an effort to facilitate communication with our clients. These learning tools should assist in clarifying the various aspects of REAC processes. The first of these tools is a presentation on the Physical Assessment Subsystem (PASS).

Federal Register Notices

2012 Notices, Rules and Regulations

Below is a list of PIH notices which provide guidance, extensions, instructions, clarifications, announcements and other policy information. The notices are also available on HUDclips. Note: HUD announces the end to hard copy mailing of PIH Notices. Notices will be available electronically only and posted on this website.

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