An Emergency Shelter Grant from the State of Tennessee was approved for the 1995-96 fiscal year in the amount of $53,950, and the City has applied for another ESG in 1996-97 for $37,600. These funds were divided equally between Abuse Alternatives and The Salvation Army of Bristol. There is no CDBG contribution to this program, but the funds are matched on a one-to-one basis by the two agencies. No other private or public funds are available.
Strategies for Serving Homeless Persons
Homeless persons are to be served from the existing shelters in Bristol. Funding from State and local sources, as well as an Emergency Shelter Grant, will assist these agencies to meet their needs.
Bristol's homeless population is principally served through private agencies. Over the past several years, an average of 32 individuals were provided emergency shelter assistance nightly. Some facilities have been expanded to handle emergency shelter. However, Abuse Alternatives, a domestic violence shelter, has difficulty meeting demand shelter. All local homeless shelter providers report that the demand for their services generally meet the demands with periodic times when demand exceeds supply. Those shelters include Haven Home, Haven of Rest, Salvation Army and Abuse Alternatives. Examples of these times are periods of extremely cold weather and the Christmas holidays. Local service providers estimate that there are 120 chronically homeless persons in Bristol.
The proposed strategy to address this priority need is to provide more beds to house the homeless and provide support services such as alcohol/drug treatment, job training and money management (many of the local homeless persons receive a government check and spend this money for alcohol).
Actions taken to meet this priority need include:
Obstacles to meet the need of service providers for this priority are few. This is based upon the success of these agencies in acquiring funds from other sources. Generally, homelessness in Bristol is addressed adequately through existing services. Therefore, it is deemed as a low priority for use of CDBG funds.
As discussed earlier in Other Resources, an Emergency Shelter Grant from the State of Tennessee was received in 1995-96, and a 1996-97 application for the continuation of these efforts has been submitted.
The City of Bristol Tennessee, the Bristol Tennessee Housing Authority, Twin City Federal Bank and Realtor Tony Boyd recently signed National Partners in Homeownership Partnership Agreements with the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This show of support on behalf of the Bristol community is a united effort to assist all households, including moderate- and low-income families, racial and ethnic minorities, families with children, young adults and other underserved populations into affordable homeownership. The strategy calls for the National Partners in Homeownership to implement 100 actions on a variety of topics related to three broad themes:
The City of Bristol Tennessee and the Bristol Tennessee Housing Authority have an ongoing discussion concerning the need for affordable housing in Bristol, Tennessee.
The City of Bristol Tennessee, in conjunction with Johnson City and Kingsport are working on the formation of a regional Continuum of Care Plan.
Priorities identified in the Consolidated Plan were Moderate Rehabilitation, New Construction and Related Infrastructure, Homebuyer Assistance and Support Facilities. All of these priorities have once again been targeted in this year's Action Plan (see Section C. Activities). The Rental Assistance priority is met by the Housing Authority.
The Bristol Tennessee Housing Authority is not designated as troubled nor is it rated as performing poorly. The Bristol Tennessee Housing Authority participates in the Comprehensive Grant Program and has annual revisions of this application/plan.
The approved Citizen Participation Plan encourages and provides avenues for public input in the planning, implementation and evaluation of the CDBG Program. The principles of the Citizen Participation Plan include:
This year, Public Hearings were conducted at the Community Development Advisory Committee meeting on March 12, 1996, and at the City Council meeting on April 2, 1996. A Public Notice was published in the Bristol Herald Courier on April 12, 1996, advertising a thirty-day comment period for interested citizens concerning the proposed projects. A copy of the Proposed Plan was available for public review at the Bristol Public Library as well as at the Community Development Office of the City. Citizens were asked to respond by May 13, 1996; however, no comments were received.
The proposed objectives set forth by Bristol, Tennessee's Office of Community Development focus on the cost-effective utilization of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds. With the prescribed goals and objectives of the Community Development Act of 1974 serving as the framework, Bristol, Tennessee, will use Community Development funds to target specific neighborhoods and problem areas in pursuit of long-term goals. The emphasis of this approach is a comprehensive strategy designed to encourage employment and housing opportunities for low and moderate-income families, the elderly, and disadvantaged persons. The basic strategies for achieving these goals in FY97 are principally through neighborhood revitalization efforts. The projected amount of program income estimated to be available for reprogramming from FY96 is approximately $30,000. The exact amount will be identified when our annual audit is conducted after June 30, 1996. Following the receipt of the audit, the Community Development Advisory Committee (CDAC) will review possible use of funds to be reprogrammed, and two Public Hearings will be held prior to submission for Council approval in the fall or winter of 1996-97.
The City administers a Codes Enforcement Program to ensure the long-term goal of improving the living environment for all citizens of Bristol. Solutions are sought to problems that contribute to the deterioration of housing and result in slums and blight with an emphasis on preservation of existing housing stock whenever possible. However, houses that are so severely deteriorated that rehab is not practical are referred to the Better Housing Board; and, if no ameliorating solutions are found, demolition may be authorized. In addition, owners of rehabilitated property are counseled regarding proper maintenance procedures to further stabilize the neighborhood and preserve existing housing stock. A Certified Building Inspector writes all rehab specifications and reviews all housing units undergoing rehabilitation with CDBG funds. Inasmuch as the program addresses the visual image of the neighborhood, the psychological well-being is also improved whenever measures are taken to eliminate slum and blight conditions.
The short-term objectives for nonhousing community development activities include facilitating economic development and improving the infrastructure in low and moderate-income neighborhoods.
In a perfect world, all citizens would enjoy decent, affordable housing. There would be no discrimination and no unfairness. However, reality quickly sets in, and we must deal with life as it is.
Since assistance for homeownership has become a permanent part of current legislation, the City of Bristol intends to continue its efforts through down-payment assistance for qualified families. We envision being able to assist an increasing number of citizens into affordable homeownership.
Efforts will continue through Fair Housing activities to eliminate discrimination and educate the public regarding their rights. While homelessness is not a major problem in the Bristol area, we hope to ensure that it does not increase substantially by providing support services at local shelters. Additionally, ongoing cooperative efforts are in place with the local Housing Authority.
Bristol hopes to grow in the future and desires the best possible living conditions for all of its
citizens.
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