The Washoe County Consolidated Plan details actions proposed for human services, housing and community development. It includes one-year action plans which allocate approximately $2.6 million of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds (under CDBG entitlement allocations, Reno receives approximately $2 million and the City of Sparks receives approximately $600,000). Additionally, the HOME Consortium receives approximately $1.1 million as a participating jurisdiction. The City of Sparks and Washoe County allocated approximately $300,000 from general funds for community support to human services providers. To help address the needs of the homeless and affordable housing needs, the State of Nevada provided $100,000 under the Emergency shelter Grant (ESG) program, and approximately $700,000 from the State's Low Income Housing Trust Fund.
The allocation of resources available to the Consortiums for housing and
human services, as well as to the cities for community development activities,
afford many opportunities for citizen participation. Outreach efforts are made
to get citizen input throughout the process. There were approximately eight
public hearings during the allocation and draft plan review process.
Washoe County is comprised of three governmental entities that must address affordable housing and human services issues. During the past two years, two consortiums were formed to deal with these issues on a regional basis. The population of Washoe County was 254,667 in 1990. In July of 1994, the County's population was estimated to have risen to 283,666 (an increase of approximately 11.4 percent. Approximately 27 percent of the area's households are single persons and the over-60 population makes up 14.5 percent. The area's 1990 race/ethnicity household demographics were: White - 87.4 percent; Hispanic - 6.4 percent; Asian - 2.8 percent; African American - 1.9 percent; and Native American - 1.5 percent.
In 1990, the HUD Median Family Income (MFI) was $38,225. Approximately 9.6
percent of the area's households had incomes between 0-30% MFI; 10.3 percent of
the households had incomes between 31-50% MFI; 18.6 percent of the households
had incomes between 51-80% MFI; 9.5 percent of the households had incomes
between 81-95% MFI; and 52.1 percent of the households exceeded 95% MFI.
The economic base for the area is predominantly service- orientated, with two-fifths of the workers employed in service-related industries such as personal, business, health, education, professional, etc. Retail trade is the second largest industry, employing over 16 percent of the workers. The unemployment rate for the area, based on the 1990 census, was 5.1 percent.
There are two primary housing needs: the need to abate overcrowded conditions, and the need to make housing more affordable. The 1990 Census indicates that 2.7 percent of the area's owner-households and 9.1 percent of the area's renter-households can be classified as overcrowded. Additionally, it is estimated that 25 percent of the area's owner-households and 39 percent of the renter- households overpaid for housing (i.e., paid more than 30 percent of their gross income for housing).
According to the 1990 Census, Washoe County had a housing stock of 112,193 units, with a majority of the housing (55 percent) concentrated in the City of Reno. Approximately, 49.3 percent of all households live in owner-occupied units; 41.9 percent live in renter-occupied units; and, 8.8 percent of the units were vacant (however, 4.6 percent of these units are not primary residences). The adjusted for-sale vacancy rate is less than 1 percent and for-rent vacancy rate is 3.3 percent -- well below the "ideal" rate of 3 percent for owner units and 5 percent for rental units.
Much of the single-family housing built in the last few years is beyond the price range of low income households. Very low rates of multifamily housing construction have resulted in decreased vacancy rates. Households with incomes at or below 50 percent of the MFI (45 percent of all households) have the greatest housing cost burden.
The Consortium has identified high priority homeless needs in the areas of outreach assessment, emergency shelters, transitional shelters, permanent supportive housing, and permanent housing. The homeless population exceeds 1,000 people. Sixty percent have alcohol and drug related problems. The estimated funds necessary to adequately address homeless needs exceeds $30 million.
The local housing authority assists approximately 2,412 households with their housing needs. Of these units, 717 are public housing units and 1695 are under the Section 8 rental programs. Additionally, there are approximately 1,700 units which receive assistance from a variety of other federal programs.
The housing authority documented that during 1994 the Section 8 waiting list contained 1,476 households and the public housing waiting list contained 1,216 households. Approximately 30 percent of the tenants assisted by the housing authority were employed.
Many initiatives are being undertaken in the community to eliminate the barriers to affordable housing. Additionally, there is a statewide coalition which is actively addressing statewide barriers.
Fair housing activities for the area are provided through the nonprofit agency, Truckee Meadows Fair Housing (TMFH). The Consortium is currently working with the TMFH to complete the assessment of fair housing needs and issues within the County.
The City of Reno, as lead agency, will broaden the lead- based paint testing program used in its Neighborhood Rehabilitation Program for use throughout Washoe County. Additionally, in 1994, the Washoe County Health Department developed a protocol for handling cases of child lead- poisoning, which will include the reporting and tracking of screened children, referrals to appropriate health agencies and provisions for follow-up care.
In addition to addressing a variety of physical infrastructure needs, the
region also addresses the human infrastructure needs. There is ongoing
coordination among the nonprofit human service providers. And public
representatives ensure there is a continuum of care for homeless and near
homeless persons. The Human Services Consortium, along with the United Way and
other community partners, encourages collaboration of services to those families
in need through intensive case management to ensure that issues such as
counseling, education, employment training, affordable child care, and youth
services, etc., are addressed.
Housing problems in the area are primarily related to affordability; housing objectives focus on increasing the supply of affordable housing. Community development objectives focus on improving the infrastructure in low- income neighborhoods and accessibility improvements for physically impaired residents.
Housing priorities include increasing the supply of affordable housing and reducing housing cost burdens for low-income households, improving the living environments of lower income residents, and increasing housing choices for low-income and minority residents.
Priorities for homeless persons include provisions for adequate emergency shelter, transitional and permanent housing alternatives, and support networks and services to persons at risk of becoming homeless.
Priorities for community development activities include public facilities improvements, infrastructure improvements, accessibility improvements, and a complement of integrated support services.
The overall anti-poverty strategy is to reduce the number of persons living in poverty through a variety of activities and programs. Such providers and activities include: the Head Start Program, the Job Training Partnership Act Program, self-sufficiency activities, programs for public housing residents, and comprehensive assistance to families in crisis.
A variety of public and private partners provide needed services to area residents. Federal CDBG, HOME, and ESG program funds are essential for ensuring that there are funds available to augment state, local and private funds committed to the provisions of services throughout the area.
Washoe County and the cities of Reno and Sparks work cooperatively to
implement activities contained in the Consolidated Plan. Additionally, there
are many other public and private partners that assist the jurisdictions with
these efforts. Moreover, the consolidated planning process has increased the
interaction between these groups and brought new partners to the table.
The Washoe County HOME Consortium is a partnership between the City of Reno, the City of Sparks and Washoe County. The City of Reno will be the Lead Agency for the Consortium. The Consortium has three main functions: (1) establish a regional housing plan, which will include policy, needs and action programs; (2) review affordable housing proposals; and, (3) provide administrative oversight. Technical staff from Reno, Sparks and Washoe County will cooperate to implement overall policies, establish threshold criteria for funding affordable housing projects, and establish an appeal process.
To address the array of housing needs identified, the City of Reno will undertake a variety of activities, such as: housing rehabilitation, real property acquisition, new construction, and home-buyer assistance. These activities will help low- and moderate-income owners and renters maintain their units and live in standard housing conditions. They will help homeless persons become stable through provisions for sheltered housing and related services. And, lastly, they will help increase the number of homeowners within the community.
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.
MAP 6 depicts Neighborhood Segments and proposed HUD funded projects.
Pamela Barrett
City of Reno
PH: (702) 334-2220
