For FY 1995/96, the City of Compton anticipates to receive $3,118,000 in CDBG funds, $713,000 in HOME funds, and $108,000 in ESG funds.
The Draft Plan which contains the community overview with needs assessment, housing and community development five-year strategic plan, and annual funding plan, was distributed for the 30 day public review in April. The City Council adopted the Plan on May 1, 1995, and the final Plan was subsequently provided to the Los Angeles HUD office. City staff distributed the Consolidated Plan in key locations around Compton. Publication of notices in the Compton Bulletin and direct mail announcement to interested groups and individuals described the purpose, priorities, and goals of the Plan, and the availability of the Draft Plan for review.
During the 30 day public review (April 14 - May 15), community members had
the opportunity to comment on the draft Consolidated Plan. Community members,
especially those in the low and moderate income areas which receive funds, were
encouraged to submit comments during the development of the Plan, and they will
be encouraged to submit comments to any amendments and to the annual program
performance report to the Plan. The City held two public hearings during the 30
day review period.
Compton is an older, urbanized community with virtually all its residential
land already developed. Over 65 percent of the City's housing stock was built
prior to 1960. Since 1980, similar to its population growth, the rate of housing
growth in Compton has also fallen behind that of the region. Compton had a
housing stock of 23,239 units in 1990, representing a 3.6 percent increase from
1980. This growth rate is substantially lower than the County's rate of growth
during the same period. Due to scarcity of vacant land available for
development, recent housing growth in Compton has been characterized by in-fill
development and redevelopment of existing parcels.
The 1990 Census reported an unemployment rate of 14 percent in Compton. The current unemployment rate in Compton is estimated at 15.7 percent by the State Department of Employment Development. Job training and retraining services are needed.
Throughout the City, road surfaces, curbs, and sidewalks show signs of age and wear. Some street segments in the City have no sidewalks, curbs or gutters. Construction and reconstruction of sidewalks will provide for better drainage and safer pedestrian walkways as well as eliminate blight. Some trunk lines and collector sewer systems are operating at their full capacity. The need to replace and enlarge these systems is urgent.
More than 65 percent of Compton's housing units are over 30 years old, with an additional 16 percent reaching 30 years of age during the 1990s. Given that the accepted standard for major rehabilitation need is units over 30 years old, the age of the City's housing stock indicates the potential need for rehabilitation and continued maintenance of a significant portion of the City's housing. There are areas in Compton that are blighted, have major concentrations of abandoned dilapidated houses and vacant neglected lots, and are plagued with crime. It is estimated that 18 percent of the City's occupied housing units, or nearly 4,000 dwellings, are in substandard condition. Over 27 percent (1,096 units) of these substandard units are in need of replacement. Currently, the City administers home maintenance programs that provide home repair grants/loans and tax credits to those who want to make home improvements.
The median selling price in February 1995 for single family homes in Compton ranged from $107,000 south of Rosecrans Avenue and north of Rosecrans Avenue (ZIP code 90222) to $120,000 west of Alameda Street (ZIP code 90222) and $125,000 east of Alameda Street (ZIP code 90221). A total of 86 homes were sold during the month of February 1995 in Compton. Housing sales prices are generally lower in Compton than in its surrounding communities. The overall vacancy rate in Compton was a low 3.9 percent in 1990. However, vacancy among ownership units (1.8 percent) was much lower than that among rental units (4.7 percent).
Housing affordability is income dependent. Given the reported median for-sale housing price in the City is valued between $107,000 to $125,000, close to half of the City's households cannot afford an average-priced home. An estimated 2,574 ownership units in Compton are valued at prices affordable to low and moderate-income households. This is a unique situation in southern California where most other homeownership is not affordable to low/mod income households. However, these units are not necessarily occupied by low/mod income households. The supply of vacant for sale units affordable to low/mod income households is limited. Also, very few large owner units (with three or more bedrooms) are affordable to extremely low and low income households. According to the 1990 Census, 37 percent of the owner-households were paying 30 percent or more of their gross household income on housing.
Rental rates in Compton have remained relatively constant during the 1990's reflective of the slow housing market and limited increases in the supply of housing. Average rents for one- and two-bedroom apartments were $454 and $623, respectively. There were considerably more apartments than single-family houses for rent -- 52 versus 14. Relatively few three- and four-bedroom units were available in apartments or single-family homes. Average rents for 3- bedroom apartments were $750, and for 3-bedroom single family homes rents were $846. While rents in Compton are comparable with the area Fair Market Rents, rents actually affordable to lower income households are much lower: $395 for a studio, $451 for a one-bedroom, $507 for a two-bedroom, and $586 for a three bedroom. Rental units affordable to extremely low income households are limited compared to the number of units affordable to other income levels. According to the 1990 Census, 62 percent of the renter households were paying 30 percent or more of their gross household income on housing.
The homeless problem in Compton has increasingly become a public concern. According to the City's Comprehensive Homeless Housing Assistance Plan, the increase is particularly acute among families with children, the mentally ill, substance abusers, and people with unemployable skills.
According to the 1990 Census data only 39 homeless individuals resided in emergency shelters and 84 homeless were visible in street locations at the time of the Census count. However, the survey of homeless service providers indicates a much larger homeless population than the Census. Based on other studies, the City has estimated that there are approximately 562 to 939 homeless persons inthe City of Compton. Given the depressed local economy, it is safe to assume that the size of Compton's homeless population is leaned towards the high end of these estimates.
The facility and service needs of homeless families and individuals in general include emergency shelter, transitional housing, social services such as job training and counseling, and mental and general health services. The goal of the Consolidated Plan is to coordinate services and facilities available for the homeless as a "continuum of care". A continuum of care begins with a point of entry in which the needs of a homeless individual or family are assessed. Once a needs assessment is completed, the person/family may be referred to permanent housing or to transitional housing where supportive services are provided to prepare them for independent living.
The Compton Local Housing Authority (LHA) administers the City's tenant-based Section 8 Rental Assistance Programs. As of September 1994, 277 households are assisted with Section 8 vouchers and 601 households are assisted with Section 8 certificates. among these households, approximately 23 percent are elderly households, 43 percent are small families, and 34 percent are large families.
Currently, there are 250 applicants on the Compton Housing Authority's waiting list for Section 8 assistance, 109 of these applicants meet the local priority objectives. Among these 109 applicants, 11 are households with a disabled person and 3 are elderly households. The distribution of unit size requested by these 109 applicants are: 25 one-bedroom, 66 two-bedroom, 16 three-bedroom, 1 four-bedroom, and 1 five-bedroom.
The Compton Housing Authority has established six priorities for its Section 8 programs:
There are no public housing developments in Compton.
Constraints to the provision of adequate and affordable housing are posed by both market conditions and governmental factors. These constraints may result in housing that is not affordable to low/moderate income households, or may render residential construction economically infeasible for developers. Constraints to housing production significantly impact households with low and moderate incomes and special needs.
There are several impediments created by market conditions. The single largest cost associated with building new housing is the cost of building materials, comprising between 40 to 50 percent of the sales price of a home. The City's ability to mitigate high construction costs is limited. Compton lacks the financial resources to directly subsidize construction. The City does, however, encourage manufactured housing to contain construction costs. The scarcity of vacant land and lack of adequate infrastructure in the City are other major constraints for new construction. Interest rates are determined by national policies and economic conditions, and there is little that local governments can do to affect these rates. Jurisdictions can however, offer interest rate write-downs to extend home purchase opportunities to lower income households. In addition, government insured loan programs may be available to reduce mortgage downpayment requirements.
Actions by the City can have an impact on the price and availability of housing in the City. Land use controls, site improvement requirements, building codes, fees and other local programs to improve the overall quality of housing may serve as a constraint to housing development. Land use controls may limit the amount or density of development, thereby increasing the per unit cost of housing. In Compton's case, however, land use controls have not functioned as a significant barrier to the development of affordable housing. The City adopted the 1982 Uniform Building Code with updates, which establishes minimum construction standards necessary to protect the public health, safety and welfare. Because this code established minimum standards necessary, the City is not considering changing or allowing exceptions to those standards. The City has adopted a fast track permit processing procedure that has substantially reduced the length of time required to process permit applications.
The City of Compton contracts with the Fair Housing Foundation (FHF) of Long Beach to provide fair housing education, community outreach, and monitoring of fair housing choices in order to maintain a balanced community. In compliance with HUD regulations, Compton conducted a fair housing assessment in 1991. The study showed that the predominant victims of housing discrimination in the City are low income, minority, and female-headed households. Furthermore, the report indicated that child and race discrimination complaints included: evictions, refund of deposits, substandard housing conditions and rent increases.
In order to further fair housing choices, the City continues to contract with the FHF of Long Beach to provide services to its residents. In addition, the City continues to implement a variety of housing programs to promote affordable housing opportunities.
The HUD Consolidated Plan guidelines require that each jurisdiction address lead-based paint (LBP) hazards. To meet this federal requirement, Compton will assess the existing LBP hazards and incidence of lead poisoning in the City's housing supply. The City will also estimate the number of housing units with lead-based paint that are occupied by extremely low, low and moderate-income families. Based upon these existing and potential LBP conditions, current and proposed actions to evaluate and reduce lead-based paint hazards are present in the Five-Year Strategic Plan and One-Year Action Plan. The Strategy describes how lead-based paint hazards reduction will be integrated into existing housing policies and programs.
The City underwent an extensive community participation process to solicit input from Compton residents to determine community development needs. The following provides a list of the City's community development needs:
The City of Compton has been identified as the lead agency for the Consolidated Plan
process. The Office of Economic and Grants Management Services (EGMS) coordinated the planning activities and will manage the Plan throughout its five-year existence.
The Office of Economic and Grants Management Services is organized into seven functional areas which will allow effective management of the Plan. The functional areas are:
This office is responsible for the
administration of CDBG funds, as well as other grant programs, such as the
HUD-funded Technical Assistance and Youth Entrepreneurial Grant programs. EGMS
serves as the central clearinghouse for all City grants.
The Strategic Plan is aimed at addressing the needs of households in low and moderate income areas.
The City has developed the following priorities to address its affordable housing needs and the needs of the homeless:
The following describes the City's priorities for non-housing community development needs:
The 1990 Census indicated that more than 27 percent of the City's population were in poverty status, much higher than the County's 15 percent in poverty. Specifically, over 37 percent of the City's female-headed households had incomes which fell below the level of poverty, as defined by the Census. Factors contributing to this level "below poverty" population include the generally low level of education held by residents, the depressed regional economy and local disinvestment, disappearance of local manufacturing jobs, and shortage of affordable childcare which prevents single-parents from joining the work force.
To reduce the number of households with incomes below the poverty line, the City will aggressively implement the following programs and policies:
The City receives a variety of federal grants for community development activities. These resources include Community Development Block grants (CDBG), HOME investment Partnerships Act Program (HOME), Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG) Program, and the HUD Section 8 Rental Assistance Program.
The City has access to a variety of other State, local and private sector resources such as: California Housing Finance Agency, Home Mortgage Loan, Mortgage Credit Certificate, Low Income Housing Tax Credit, California Housing Rehab Program, Community Redevelopment Agency, Federal National Mortgage Association, Savings Association Mortgage Company, Inc., and the California Community Reinvestment Corporation.
The City will continue to leverage its scarce public funds to generate private sector funds for implementation of housing related programs and projects. The City will accomplish this by promoting the participation of lending institutions in community development activities in the City. Additionally, the City will work more closely with private investors and developers and initiate programs that link economic incentives and neighborhoods and developers and community development objectives over the coming year. These objectives include removing blight or neighborhood unsightliness and focusing on providing affordable owner-occupied development in the community.
Furthermore, the City will work closely with locally certified Community
Housing Development Organizations to identify potential funding resources and
opportunities for affordable housing development.
The City plans to pursue the following programs/activities to address the identified housing and community development needs.
MAP 2 depicts points of interest and low-moderate income areas.
MAP 3 depicts points of interest, low-moderate income areas, and minority concentration levels.
MAP 4 depicts points of interest, low-moderate income areas, and unemployment levels.
MAP 5 depicts points of interest, low-moderate income areas, unemployment levels, and proposed HUD funded projects.
TABLE (without associated map), provides information on the project(s).
