Northwest HUD Lines
March 2017

HUD e-Briefs from Alaska, Idaho, Oregon & Washington

Leland Jones, Editor, (206) 220-5356 or Leland.jones@hud.gov

www.hud.gov/alaska	www.hud.gov/idaho
www.hud.gov/oregon	www.hud.gov/washington
http://twitter.com/hudnorthwest

TRUST WORTHY
An innovation aging well
In 1986, Governor Booth Gardner & the Washington State Legislature created a "a continuously renewable resource known" to "assist low and very low-income citizens in meeting their basic housing needs." It's called the Washington Housing Trust Fund and is administered by the Washington Department of Commerce. Over the last just over 30 years, it's invested more than $1 billion in the development of 47,000 affordable housing units across every county in the state. Two-thirds of the households living in those units have incomes of 30 percent or less of area median income & more than half of those households have at least one member with special needs. And every dollar allocated by the Fund leveraged five dollars of other investments from private investors, local governments, banks and, yes, HUD. Thanks to 30 years of hindsight, it's clear the Governor & Legislature had a great idea. As the Fund enters its fourth decade, may its successes ahead be even greater.

SNAPSHOT
On the front-lines with HUD housing counselors
At just under $50 million a year, funding-wise HUD's housing counseling program is one of HUD's smallest programs. Life-wise, its impact is huge. In fiscal year 2016 - October 1, 2015 through September 30, 2016 - 31,493 households sought the help of 55 HUD-approved housing counseling agencies in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon & Washington state. Why? First and foremost, because they're smart consumers & want to tap the expertise of HUD-approved counselors to navigate the sometimes challenging rules & regulations, requirements &, even, runarounds they face buying, renting or holding onto the place they call home. And since, for example, HUD's Office of Housing Counseling reports that a homeowner at-risk of foreclosure who have received counseling is almost three times as likely to get a loan modification as one who doesn't, they've certainly got the right instinct. So, as the Great Recession recedes & the recovery proceeds, what kinds of issues & services are causing Alaska, Idaho, Oregon & Washington have been causing consumers to knock on counselors' doors? Data provided by the office for 2016 offers a snapshot:

NOW-MINATE!
HUD healthy homes award competition opens
HUD has set a March 15th deadline to submit nominations for the 2017 HUD Secretary's Healthy Home Award. A collaboration between the National Environmental Health Association & HUD's Office of Lead Hazard Control &Healthy Homes, the award annually recognizes "excellence in making indoor environments healthier through healthy homes research, education, and through program delivery, especially in diverse, low to moderate income communities.". Awards are made in three categories - public & multifamily housing; policy, education & research innovation; and cross program coordination. Activities or policies nominated" "must show measurable benefits in the health of residents and be available to low-and/or moderate-income families." Prior awardees have included the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium's indoor air quality initiative in 2015 & the Seattle Housing Authority's Breathe Easy program in 2016.

NOW-MINATE TOO!
HUD historic preservation award completion opens
HUD also has set a March 27th deadline to submit nominations for the 2017 HUD Secretary's Award for Excellence in Historic Preservation that has been awarded annually in partnership with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. The award recognizes "developers, organizations and agencies for their success in advancing the goals of historic preservation while providing affordable housing and/or expanded economic opportunities for low-and moderate-income families and individuals." Particular attention is given to projects that promote the use of historic buildings for affordable housing and that use HUD funds to finance the project. The awards are expected to be announced at the Advisory Council's annual business conference this summer. Previous winners of the award have included the Umpqua Community Development Corporation - now known as NeighborWorks Umpqua - in Roseburg for its work in revitalizing the downtowns of rural communities in southern Oregon.

ARTISTS IN YOUR MIDST?
Let a picture tell the story
For the 19th straight year the Fair Housing Council is urging Oregon kids grades 1 through 8 to show the world in pictures & posters why the Fair Housing Act - the law that gives someone the right to live where he or she wants to live - maters in their lives and, obviously, ours. The theme of the Council's Fair Housing Poster Contest this year is "It's Fun Having All Kinds of Neighbors." Entries are due by 5 p.m., March 17th, The grand prize is $100 & there are 1st, 2nd & 3rd place prizes of, respectively $75, $50 & $25 each for grades 1st to 3rd, 4th & 5th and through 8th. Lots of winners, lots of fun. For more, visit

SCHOLARS IN YOUR MIDST?
Opportunity knocks
Now in its 11th year of making awards, the nonprofit National Affordable Housing Management Association Educational Foundation has set a May 31st deadline for residents of AHMA communities who "are a high school senior or hold either a high school diploma or GED, and if you are pursuing higher education at an accredited college" to apply for scholarships to be awarded by the Foundation this calendar year. The application process currently is open & accepting applications for both first-time & renewal awards. Should you have questions, please contact Dr. Bruce W. Johnson of the Foundation at 215-262-4230 or bjohnson@themichaelsorg.com;

BRIEF BRIEFS
In just 18 days more than 20,000 households completed applications for Seattle Housing Authority Housing Choice Voucher waiting list. . .With its 90 beds & support services helping 5,000 people last year, Valley House Shelter in Twin Falls tells Times-News it plans to expand transitional housing facilities. . .Catholic Charities tells Bellingham Herald that 84-unit Mount Baker Apartments, built in 1929, in downtown will get a new roof, circulation system, boiler, electrical system, fire sprinkler system and apartment improvements in $3.8 million renovation funded in part by CDBG contribution from City & Bellingham Housing Tax Levy. . .Facing a shortage of affordable housing, reports Daily Astorian, some members of Astoria City Council are urging limits on temporary lodging like Airbnb rentals to free up units for permanent residents of the coastal Oregon city". . .Boise, Idaho, Rescue Mission tells KDBY-TV it helped more than 600 people in 2016 "transition out of homelessness and sustain long-term jobs & housing". . .After four straight years of rising home prices says, sAlaska Dispatch, average home price drops "about a quarter percent" from $ 366,909 in 2015 to $366,015 in 2016 according to Multiple Listing Service Hot topic at Southern Oregon Home Show, KDBY-TV, is whether lack of affordable housing in Medford area is dues to recession-driven shortage of skilled workforce, to more people moving-in because "it's beautiful here" or to legislative and regulatory costs that, notes Show's executive director, adds "whopping 24 percent" to cost of building new home -or all three. . .Spokane, Washington City Council considering $1.75 million loan to private developer, reports Spokesman Review, to transform Ridpath Hotel - first opened in 1900 but "shuttered" since 2008 - in downtown into 203 housing units, 180 of them considered affordable. . .In 2017, says U.S. News & World Report, Seattle was the 6th, Boise the 12th and Portland the 32nd best city over 500,000 to call home. . .City & housing authority of Vancouver, Washington consider purchase & transformation of former Hazel Dell "wedding venue" into permanent shelter for the homeless says Columbian. . Building on success of its work in Eugene, Register-Guard reports, SquareOne Village & local community leaders select site for 12 new "tiny homes" for homeless in Cottage Grove, Oregon. . .Based on analyses of Census & other data about "the cost of home ownership, rents and changes in foreclosure rates, as well as the influx of new businesses and the diversity of the population. . .Lending Tree concludes, reports KTVZ-TV, that five of the nation's 10 "fastest-changing" cities are in our Region with Bend at number 1, Salem at 2, Seattle at 4, Portland at 5 & Eugene at 9.

BIG STEP
Great news for great food
FareStart - a non-profit restaurant in downtown Seattle, Washington that won a James Beard award, serves great food, supports feeding programs across the city and even has its own line of food products - is about to take a very big step. Jeff Bezos & Amazon, says The Seattle Times, has said it will donate equipment 25,000 square feet of space for FareStart to open five restaurants on Amazon's campus in the booming South Lake Union area That's good news for staff at & visitors to the campus. Even better, the added demand on FareStart kitchens will mean an expansion of FareStart's innovative restaurant industry apprenticeship program supported, early on, with HUD funds award by the City of Seattle & the city's Workforce Development Council. Since then, adds, Bezos, it has "provided opportunity and job training to more than 8,000 people who are homeless or living in poverty." The new restaurants should open late this summer.

 HOUSE-PITAL
Health care & housing in Alaska
If you have a job in Utqiaġvik, Alaska - once known as Barrow - it's not easy to commute from the suburbs. And the nearest big city - Fairbanks - is 500 miles to the southeast. If you can't find a place to call home inside the city limits, you're not likely to find one any place else nearby. "Housing," Arctic Slope Native Association president & CEO Marie Carroll told The Alaska Dispatch. "has not grown with the population here in town," That's a problem, especially at the Corporation's Samuel Simmonds Memorial Hospital. "We've been in situations where we don't know if we should hire now or wait until we can find a place for them. When it got to that point, I knew we had to try our best to get housing that can meet the needs of our staffing levels." Which is why 8 new duplexes - 16, 3-bedroom units - are under construction by an all-local crew & should be ready to rent this summer. Even better, the Corporation will spend $600 less per unit than they do leasing private properties in town. "No matter how you slice it or dice it," says the Corporation's Luke Welles, just a year & a few months after breaking ground, "on every front it makes sense for us because we're able to invest in ourselves." Probably makes sense, too, to the thousands of families served - and kept well - by the only U.S. hospital north of the Arctic Circle.

NUMBER CRUNCHING
What the numbers tell Spokane
Every year in late January or early February, thousands of volunteers bundle-up & deny themselves a good night's sleep in a comfortable, warm bed to help count the number of homeless people in the place they call home. After four or five hours in the freezing cold, they gather as night turns to dawn over doughnuts & cups of hot coffee to total the numbers. For many it's depressing, even daunting as they realize how difficult it's been, for year, to put a dent in those numbers. Not so for Rob McCann of Catholic Charities in Spokane, Washington. Some would call him an optimist, but he'd probably say he's a realist. And when he looks at the point-in-time count numbers he doesn't despair, but, declares as he recently did to The Inlander, may be "on the cusp of ending homelessness" in Washington state's second-largest city. Read why.

HYDRO-NOICS
Thinking out-of-the-planter
Growing up and out of foster care, the juvenile justice system or mental institutions can be tough stuff for any kid about to be a grown-up. An 11,000 square-foot warehouse in midtown Anchorage, Alaska purchased in 2014 by Alaska Community Mental Health Services might be an innovative way to smooth that transition - plant therapy. "When you turn 18, by and large, the system of care says, 'Congratulations, you're an adult,' " explains chief operating officer Michael Sobocinski said. "And so programs and eligibility that work when you were 17 may not necessarily work when you're 18." In a prior job in Denver, says The Alaska Dispatch, he learned from a horticultural therapist that "that young people tend to respond well to working with plants.," The 20 or so young people ages 16 t0 24 who sign-up for the Services' Seeds of Change program will have plenty of those to work with, grown on some 2,900 vertical hydroponic towers expected to generate up to 70 tons of produce per year, Sobocinski estimates. That's lots of produce & a lot of the "hands on-work" the young people will do, while also taking life-skills & learning how to market & distribute product. Which is fine, says Sobocinski, since it will give them the skills they need to land a full-time job, the "key" to a successful transition.

BRIEF BRIEFS TOO
Praising the five families who have spent hours and hours building and, once all are done, soon will live in the five, Peninsula Housing Authority self-help homes nearing completion on Eddy Street in Port Townsend, Washington for "rolling every joist, standing every wall, roofing every roof, painting the sides and trim, and installing the doors and kitchen cabinets, all working side by side," reports The Leader, acquisition & development director Annie O'Rourke adds notes "I've heard from some of you that you never want to see a caulking gun again". . .In his first state-of-city address Salem, Oregon Mayor Chuck Bennett, says Statesman Journal, proposes expanded rental assistance, case management & sobering station to help city's estimated 500 "hard to house" homeless. . .Compass Housing Alliance celebrates grand opening of Ronald Commons in Shoreline, Washington, 60 units of affordable housing for low-income & homeless families & individuals as well as 12,000 square foot food bank & service center operated by Hopelink. . .Mayor David Condon & Family Promise of Spokane celebrate opening of Open Doors, that, for the first time" in city's history, says The Inlander, offers a day-time shelter for families. . .Idaho Falls Development Agency, reports Post-Register, votes to reaffirm its partnership to transform Bonneville Hotel in downtown into workforce housing. . .Once a K-Mart, reports The Columbian, thanks to the Living Hope Church now it's an "all-hands-on-deck shelter for the homeless in Vancouver, Washington staffed almost entirely by church members who'll brave any kind of weather or obstacle "to make sure the church" is "open as often as possible. . .Oregon Community Foundation, says Portland Business Journal, "re-ups its entrepreneurial investments" with more than $1.1 million in grants & investments in Oregon Angel Fund, Bend, Oregon's Seven Peaks Ventures, Oregon Entrepreneurs Network &Oregon Business Technology Center "to support Oregon companies and really leverage the strong network of entrepreneurs and investors in Oregon that want to give back". . Cook Inlet Housing Authority wins City of Anchorage, Alaska competitive bidding process to develop a mixed-income "apartment building with street-level stores and a rooftop patio," says Alaska Dispatch, which will be "the first new apartments for the city's core in more than a decade, as a breakthrough for downtown". . .Thurston County, Washington & South Sound Habitat for Humanity launching home repair program for low-income homeowners in cities of Tanino, Bucoda & Rainier and surrounding areas in southern part of county says The Chronicle. . .Juneau, Alaska city officials "inching closer," says The Empire, on approval of Pedersen Hills subdivision that as planning commission considers plat approval for private sector to build 86 affordable residences for "young families, as well as retirees wanting to live close to family". . .At meeting in St. Helens, Oregon Land Conservation & Development Commission okays rule, says KTVZ-TV, to permit two yet-to-be-selected cities - one with 25,000 or fewer residents, the other with more than 25,000 - to develop affordable housing on up to 50 acres outside their urban growth boundaries without going through the normal urban growth boundary expansion process."

NOFA-TUNITY
Funding a fight, we can win
HUD has set a March 23rd deadline to apply for up to, depending on Congressional appropriations, 12 grants under its Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration (LHRD) Grant Program. The program targets urban jurisdictions - either alone or through a consortium) that have at least 3,500 pre-1940 occupied rental housing units and funds may be used only in homes also receiving HUD-funded lead hazard control work (interim controls or abatement). Grantees must use an inspection tool that identifies all 29 hazards identified in the Healthy Homes Rating System (HHRS) for assessing, prioritizing and repairing the identified health and safety hazards within those units. Based on prior year awards, the maximum award for organizations that have not previously received funding under the Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration or Lead Hazard Control programs could be $3 million and the minimum $1 million. Prior awardees may receive a maximum of $400,000 in Healthy Homes supplemental funds. Applications must be filed via www.grants.gov.

NOFA-TWO-NITY
Ditto
HUD also has set a March 23rd deadline to apply for up to 20, depending on Congressional appropriations, Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control funds to identify and remediate lead based paint hazards in privately owned rental or owner occupied housing." Based on fiscal year 2016 awards, the maximum grant is expected to be $2.5 million and the minimum $1 million. Funds may be used only in homes also receiving HUD-funded lead hazard control work (interim controls or abatement). Grantees must use an inspection tool that identifies all 29 hazards identified in the Healthy Homes Rating System (HHRS) for assessing, prioritizing and repairing the identified health and safety hazards within those units. Eligible applicants include state & local governments, special districts and Tribes. Applications must be filed via www.grants.gov.

NOFA-THREE-NITY
Staying dry
The National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration has set a March 15th deadline to apply for a total of $15 million in 2017 Coastal Resilience Grants. The funds are awarded to assist communities to "implement projects that build resilient U.S. coastal communities, economies and ecosystems." Resilience is defined as "the ability to prepare and plan for, absorb, recover from, and successfully adapt" and the program it's intended to build resilience by reducing the risk to coastal communities, "economies and ecosystems from extreme weather events and climate-related hazards. Projects that build resilience include activities that protect life and property, safeguard people and infrastructure, strengthen the economy, and/or c governments. Grants may range from $100,000 to $2 million each. Organizations eligible to apply include regional organizations, non- and for-profit organizations, institutions of higher education, Tribes & state. Funded projects must be in any of 35 states and territories including Alaska, Oregon & Washington.

NO-EOUR-TUNITY
Housing for the most vulnerable
Oregon Housing & Community Services & the Oregon Health Authority have set an April 21st deadline to apply for nearly $14.3 million in Mental Health Affordable Housing Project funds. Eligible activities include the new construction, the acquisition & rehabilitation, or the acquisition of existing housing to provide supportive housing to persons with a severe mental illness or substance abuse disorder. Funds, authorized by the Oregon Legislature, have been set-aside almost equally for projects in both metropolitan & non-metropolitan areas.

NO-FIVE-TUNITY
Partnerships that save the land
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service has set an April 21st Regional Conservation Partnership funding. Now in its fourth year, the program assists "locally driven, public-private partnerships that improve the nation's water quality, combat drought, enhance soil health, support wildlife habitat and protect agricultural viability." Eligible applicants include private, public & state-controlled institutions of higher education, state, county & local governments, special districts and Federally-recognized Tribes. Support for up to 100 partnerships are expected to be awarded. In last year's competition, winners included the Idaho Water Board, the Shoshone-Bannock Tribe, the Friends of the Teton River in Idaho, the Three Sisters Irrigation District, the Nature Conservancy & the Grant Soil & Water Conservation District in Oregon& the Pierce County Conservation District, the Yakama Nation & the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife in Washington state. All told, by the way, these nine projects are being supported by more than 50 other partners.

BRIEF BRIEFS THREE
First-of-its-kind Quixote Village "tiny home" community in Olympia, Washington, to "serve as template," says The Olympian, for "two more sites" in Mason & Pierce counties. . .Portland Mercury reports that Portland-Multnomah County-Gresham Continuum of Care to shift from bi-annual to annual point-in-time count to produce a "more correct" & timely "picture" of the number & needs of homeless. . .Compass Housing Alliance, Hopelink & Ronald United Methodist Church celebrate grand opening of Ronald Commons, 60 units of affordable housing for families with service center & a food bank in Shoreline, Washington. . .Treasure Valley awards two $50,000 public arts grants to enhance Boise, Idaho's Vista Avenue corridor and for City of Caldwell & Destination Caldwell to develop Indian Creek musical art park in downtown says Idaho Statesman. . .Hundreds of new affordable housing units are being built as part of Yesler Terrace revitalization in Seattle, Washington, but maybe the best news yet is a new $4.6 million park that, says Daily Journal of Commerce, will bring "active & quiet spaces to a growing neighborhood". . Zillow, reports King5, says Marysville, Tacoma, Auburn, Kent & Federal Way are most affordable & Bellevue, Seattle, Everett, Kent & Kirkland the least affordable cities in Puget Sound. . .Juneau, Alaska's Project Homeless Connect tells KTOO-FM 238 attended most recent event, 60 of whom were without "habitable" place to live and "most" of whom were "in their 40s and identified as Alaska Native". . .Nine percent of the estimated 5,000 units expected as result of Seattle, Washington City Council approval of "up-zoning" of University District - i.e., taller buildings & 70,000 new residents - will be affordable housing units says The Architects Newspaper. . "More than 100" attend affordable housing forum hosted by King County , The Beachcomber reports, and focused on development of Community Service Plan that "will guide development" on island in "coming years". . .An estimated 1,600 housing & community development professionals, reports Marketwired, attend weeklong NeighborWorks Institute in Seattle. . .City of Roseburg, Oregon, says News-Review, names Douglas County planner Stuart Cowie as its new community development director while Chris Kerr, formerly with the City of West Linn, has been named community development director for Woodburn, Oregon says The Independent.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"Moving forward" in Seattle"
". . .We cannot spend money and expect success without having a strategic plan informed by national experts with accountability measures to make sure what we are funding is working. We have that plan now. It is called Pathways Home. And it mandates this central tenet: Get people into housing. It is a plan with clear and measurable action steps that reduce barriers between people and the services they need. It represents a radical shift in our investment strategy. The facts show that if we are going to make progress, we must provide individualized services. Does a person simply need to be reconnected with their family? Need detox and recovery services? Need mental health care? Or do they simply need housing? Under Pathways Home, for the first time in a decade, we are rebidding all our homeless service contracts with a commitment to only invest in what works. . ." - Seattle Mayor Ed Murray speaking about homelessness in his 2017 State of the City Address in which he also said Seattle "must double the City's spending on homelessness. . .by an increase in the commercial and residential property tax" to generate "an additional $55 million a year, February 21, 2017.

NOTABLE & QUOTABLE
Between the lines
"This isn't about being sad about our neighbors' situation. This is actually about how do I learn about our neighbor's situation. What can I do to help? And how do I just be a better human on the planet?" - Shona Osterhout, the director of Home But Not Less, premiered in Anchorage, Alaska as reported by KSKA-FM, February 8, 2017

QUOTEWORTHY
Navigating the boundaries
"To really understand a place, you have to know the economics, the culture, the politics, the history and the sociology behind the makeup. That is why it's really important not to look at a city as a pure artifact, but as a living and breathing organism. . .What happens to cities in China is related to what happens to cities in Idaho. We're all interconnected, so we need a language, we need a knowledge base, we need an opportunity to study those different relationships and learn how to navigate them" - Boise State University School of Public Service Assistant Professor Amanda Ashley, The Arbiter, January 30, 2017, explaining why the Idaho Board of Education's approval of the University's proposal to start an urban studies & community development program in the fall of 2017 was "probably the highlight of my year."

WORTH NOTING
Downtown rising
"Our mission statement is to make downtown a great place to work, to play, to live. I think we've done a great job with the work part and an even a greater job on the play part. The next component is to bring people down to live" - Victor De Long, Downtown Association of Yakima discussing transformations of former Nordstrom property & Teton Hotel into housing in "Growing a Neighborhood in Downtown Yakima," Yakima Herald, February 17, 2017.

FAC-TAS-TIC
Investments that pay off
The Oregon Individual Development Account Initiative was created by the Legislature in 1999 to help Oregonians with lower incomes save money that can be invested in post-secondary education or job training, purchasing or repairing a primary home, starting or expanding a small business, or acquiring assistive technology that supports employment: assets that build better lives and put people on a track towards economic security." And, according to a January, 2017 evaluation issued by Oregon Housing & Community, almost 20 years later it's doing exactly that. For example, over the last three program years - April 1, 2013 through March 31, 2016 - IDA holders were residents of 35 of the state's 36 counties. More than 4,400 Oregon residents with limited incomes and net worth opened IDAs with 36 percent saving for education, 32 percent for a first home purchase, 22 percent for small business and five percent each for repairs to their home or for assistive technology. 2,642 participants reached their savings goals, saving an average of $2,183 per participant, for a total of $5.8 million. There were large increases in the percentage of participants who use a budget, keep an emergency fund, or make regular deposits to savings, from 43 percent before they got an IDA to 77 percent once they got one. With results like these, no wonder Oregon Housing & Community Services' Margaret Salazar says the Oregon IDA program is all about "building pathways out of poverty.".

FACT-SINATING
Leaving money on the table
Last year, the IRS reports, 48,000 workers in Alaska, 130,000 in Idaho, 274,000 in Oregon & 436,000 in Washington state filed claims for the Earned Income Tax Credit. In return, they received over $1.9 billion or about $2,220 per claim. Nationwide, more than $97 billion was paid in claims. Resources 27 million workers and their families didn't have until, they took the time to file a claim and, all of a sudden, did. That's the good news. The bad news? It's estimated that as many one in every five families eligible for the credit didn't apply. In Washington state alone, says Governor Jay Inslee, that left $270 million on the table that could have been in the pockets - and at the disposal - of Washington state families. "As one of the largest anti-poverty programs in the United States" he said, "it is critical to raise awareness of this opportunity, not just for individuals and families, but also to strengthen our state's economy." It needn't happen again in 2017. Families earning up to $53,505 are eligible to apply and can receive a refund of up to $6,269. But a check won't magically arrive in their mailbox. THEY HAVE TO APPLY! Which is where you, one of HUD's partners, come in. Make sure those you serve are aware of the Credit. Make sure they know they might be eligible. And if they need help finding, it's available and it's free just by visiting the IRS Tax Credit Clinic Map.

NOT-SO-FACTASTIC
The cost of buying
The bad news? Portland Tribune says that a survey of 27 major metropolitan areas by the New Jersey-based HSH.com, you needed a salary in the fourth quarter of 2016 of $70,995.46 a year to buy a median-priced home on a 30-year, 3.97 percent fixed rate in Portland, Oregon, up .3 percent from the 3rd quarter. In Seattle, you'd need $83,969.34, up .21 percent. The good news? You needed a salary of $92,664.64 in New York City, $113,530.43 in San Diego or $160,589.84 in San Francisco. But if you're looking for a bargain, try Pittsburgh where you'll only need a salary of $32,373.50, almost 40 percent l below the nationwide average of $51,962.53.

JUST PUBLISHED
Documents & data drops of interest
HUD posts Comprehensive Housing Market Analysis for Salem, Oregon & Market-at-a-Glance for Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area in Washington & Boise, Idaho. . .Oregon Housing & Community Services issues Director's Message discussing changes in its Low Income Housing Tax Credit allocation process made necessary by recent challenges in equity markets. . .Idaho Housing & Finance announces its 2017 calendar of homebuyer education courses in Boise, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Falls, Moscow, Nampa, Sandpoint & Twin Falls. . .HUD posts homeownership value limits for HOME Investment Partnership & National Housing Trust Fund effective March 1st. . .HUD launches resource bank on instituting smoke-free public housing rule which became final on February 3rd. . .HUD Office of Native American Programs issues guidance on who can serve as certifying officers for environmental reviews conducted under 24 CFR Part 58 for projects funded by the Office. . .FHA launches new Loan Review Resource Web page to prepare to the upcoming transition of an electronic loan review platform for Title II FHA single-family loans.

NOTES TO NOTE
Alaska First Lady Donna Walker sets March 6th deadline to submit nominations for Alaska Volunteer of the Year Awards. . .National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration sets March 15th deadline to apply for $15 million in 2017 Coast Resilience Grants. . .Alaska Housing Finance Corporation sets March 7th public hearing & a March 20th deadline for public comments on its fiscal year 2018 Moving to Work & Capital Funds Program. . .Portland Housing Bureau sets March 9th deadline to submit proposals for up to $13 million in Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area Tax Credit Financing and property for development and/or acquisition and rehabilitation for affordable housing North & Northeast neighborhoods of Portland, Oregon. . .Portland Housing Bureau also sets March 9th deadline to submit expressions of interest from owners of "more than 350 buildings" providing some 13,500 units of affordable housing under long-term agreement with the Bureau in need of "significant repair/rehabilitation". .USDA sets March 13th deadline to apply for up to 10 Community Connect grants to broadband rural communities. . .HUD sets March 15th deadline to submit nominations for 2017 HUD Secretary's Health Homes Award. . .Oregon's Meyer Memorial Trust sets March 15th to announce 2017 funding details for is Building Community, Equitable Education, Healthy Environment & Housing Opportunities initiatives. . .Oregon Department of Parks & Recreation sets March 17th deadline to apply for Oregon Main Street Revitalization grants of up to $100,000 to acquire, rehabilitate and construct buildings in designated downtown areas or promote revitalization efforts to promote investments, job creation or retention and business expansion in downtown. . .HUD sets March 17th deadline for approved housing counseling agencies & state housing finance agencies not funded in the fiscal year 2016 Comprehensive Housing Counseling grant competition to apply for the 2017 Supplemental Comprehensive Housing Counseling funding opportunity. . .Alaska Housing Finance Commission sets March 20th deadline to submit public comments on 2018 Moving to Work & Capital Fund Program. . .HUD sets March 23rd deadlines to apply for Lead Hazard Reduction Demonstration grants & for Lead-Based Paint Hazard Control grants. . .Alaska Housing Finance Corporation sets March 24th deadline to submit completed application for HOME Opportunity Program funds. . .USDA sets March 27th deadline to apply for Farmers Market Promotion Program of grants from $50,000 to $500,000. . .HUD sets March 27th deadline to submit nominations for the 2017 HUD Secretary's Award for Excellence in Historic Preservation. . .Oregon Housing & Community Services sets March 30th deadline to submit comments - as well as March 23rd public hearing - on proposed rule that would add acquisition shelter facilities as an allowable program service for the Homeless Assistance program. . .Affordable Housing Management Association of Washington sets March 29th deadline to submit nominations for its 2017 Washington AHMA awards to be presented at its annual conference in April. . .USDA Rural Utilities Service sets March 31st deadline for local utility organizations to apply for Rural Economic Development Loan & Grant program. . .Oregon Department of Parks & Recreation sets April 14th deadline to apply for Preserving Oregon grants of up to $20,000 each for rehabilitation activities that will preserve historic resources listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. . .USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service sets April 21st deadline to apply pre-applications for Regional Conservation Partnership funds. . .Oregon Housing & Community Services & Oregon Health Authority set April 21st deadline to apply for nearly $14.3 million under Mental Health Affordable Housing Project program. . .Oregon Department of Parks & Recreation sets May 12th deadline for Diamonds in the Rough grants of up to $20,000 to reconstruct or restore the facades of buildings that have been altered over the years. . .Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines sets June 30th deadline to submit applications for Affordable Housing Program funds. . .National Affordable Housing Management Association Educational Foundation sets May 31st deadline to apply for eligible residents of AHMA communities to apply for college scholarships to be awarded in 2017. . .HUD sets August 9th to 11th for annual HOPWA Summit in Tampa, Florida.

COMING UP

LIHI celebrates grand opening of "tiny village" in Georgetown neighborhood, March 2nd, Seattle, Washington. Visit

City of Tacoma hosts South Sound Sustainability Expo, March 4th, Tacoma, Washington. Visit

FHA & HUD Washington host workshop on Completing Today's FHA Appraisal, March 6th, Seattle, Washington. Visit

King County Office of Civil Rights hosts Fair Housing Basics for Maintenance Personnel Workshop, March 7th, Seattle, Washington. Visit

Native Learning Center hosts Webinar on Youth Programs that Work Well Within Indian Country, March 7th, on-line. Visit

Association of Alaska Housing Authorities & HUD Alaska Office of Native American Programs host Self-Monitoring workshop, March 8th & 9th, Anchorage, Alaska. Visit

FHA & HUD Oregon host workshop on Completing Today's FHA Appraisal, March 8th, Portland, Oregon. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts free workshop on USDA Rural Development Programs, March 9th, Salem, Oregon. Visit

HUD Seattle hosts Continuum of Care Fundamentals workshop for Continuum recipients & sub-recipients, March 9th, Seattle. Visit

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco & Corporation for Supportive Housing host Central Oregon Housing First Workshop, March 9th, Bend, Oregon. Visit

Washington AHMA hosts Uniform Physical Condition Standards workshop, March 13th, Spokane, Washington. Visit

Association of Alaska Housing Authorities & HUD Alaska Office of Native American Programs host Mold Remediation Workshop, March 13th & 14th, Anchorage, Alaska. Visit

HUD Idaho hosts Fair Housing Accessibility FIRST Construction & Design workshop, March 14th, Boise, Idaho. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts workshop on Low Income Housing Tax Credit Compliance, March 14th & 15th, Salem, Oregon. Visit

Association of Alaska Housing Authorities & HUD Alaska Office of Native American Programs host Uniform Physical Conditions Standards Training, March 15th to 17th, Anchorage, Alaska. Visit

Washington State Housing Finance Commission hosts Fundamentals of Low Income Housing Tax Credit Compliance workshop, March 14th, Seattle, Washington. Visit

Washington State Housing Finance Commission hosts Advanced Low Income Housing Tax Credit Compliance workshop, March 15th, Seattle, Washington. Visit

FHA hosts Webinar on Functions & Uses of its new Loan Review System for Title II single-family mortgages, March 15th, on-line. Visit

HUD Seattle hosts Continuum of Care Fundamentals Workshop, March 16th, Seattle, Washington. Visit

Washington AHMA hosts Webinar on housing protections provided under Violence Against Women Act, March 16th, on-line. Visit

HUD hosts Webinar on Coordinated Entry Requirements for Continuums of Care, March 20th, on-line. Visit

King County Office of Civil Rights hosts All About Service Animals Workshop, March 22nd, Seattle, Washington. Visit

National American Indian Housing Council & HUD Washington Office of Native American Programs host Environmental Review: A Study of Housing Rehabilitation & New Construction Projects Workshop, March 21st & 24th, Silverdale, Washington. Visit

HUD Seattle hosts 24 CFR Part 50 Environmental Training, March 21st & 22nd, Seattle, Washington with video tele-conferencing available at HUD offices in Anchorage, Boise & Portland. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts Two Workshop Tuesday - Management & Occupancy Reviews & Enterprise Income Verification, March 21st, Salem, Oregon. Visit

HUD hosts Webinar on Coordinated Entry Requirements for Continuums of Care, March 22nd, on-line. Visit

Native Learning Center hosts Webinar on Preparing a Market Study for Your Housing Project, March 23rd, on-line. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts Two Seminar Thursday - Enterprise Income Verification & HUD Waiting Lists, March 34rd, Grants Pass, Oregon. Visit

Pacific Northwest Regional Council of NAHRO & King County Housing Authority host Family Self Sufficiency Workshop (with proficiency test), March 27th & 28th, Tukwila, Washington. Visit

HUD hosts Webinar on Coordinated Entry Requirements for Continuums of Care, March 28th, on-line. Visit

Association of Alaska Housing Authorities & HUD Alaska Office of Native American Programs host Pathways Home: Train the Trainer Workshop, April 3rd to 7th, Anchorage, Alaska. Visit

King County Office of Civil Rights hosts Fair Housing 101 for Nonprofit Transitional & Shelter Housing Providers Workshop, April 5th, Seattle, Washington. Visit

Washington Association of REALTORS holds Spring Business Conference, April 12th to 14th, Cle Elum, Washington. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts workshop on USDA Rural Development, April 12th, Grants Pass, Oregon. Visit

Washington State Housing Finance Commission hosts Tax Credit Compliance Fundamentals Workshop, April 13th, Tacoma, Washington. Visit

Oregon Opportunity Network hosts 2017 Spring Industry Support Conference, April 18th, Salem, Oregon. Visit

AHMA of Washington hosts 2017 Washington Affordable Housing Management Convention, April 18th & 19th, SeaTac, Washington. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts workshop on USDA Rural Development, April 19th, La Grande, Oregon. Visit

Northwest Fair Housing Alliance, cities of Spokane & Coeur d'Alene,, Spokane County, Spokane Housing Authority, Spokane Low-Income Housing Consortium & State of Washington host 2017 Inland Northwest Fair Housing Conference, April 20th, Spokane, Washington. Visit

Idaho Affordable Housing Management Association hosts 2017 Biennial Training & Certification Conference, April 24th to 26th, Boise, Idaho. Visit

Association of Alaska Housing Authorities & HUD Alaska Office of Native American Programs host Basic Financial Management for Small Tribes Workshop, April 24th & 25th, Anchorage, Alaska. Visit

Oregon AHMA hosts Managing HOME Compliance workshop, April 25th & 26th, Salem, Oregon. Visit

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