Canton, Ohio is located in the northeast portion of the State, south of Cleveland and Akron. It is part of Stark County and home of the Professional Football Hall of Fame. Canton also boasts a major cultural arts complex and symphony orchestra of a quality that would be expected of a much larger city.
The Consolidated Plan for Canton presents a 1-year action plan for the allocation of $3,911,000 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds, $809,000 HOME funds, $142,000 Emergency Shelter Grant (ESG) funds, $1,300,000 projected program income, and $530,000 of reprogrammed funds; for a total of $6,692,000. These funds will be spent primarily on housing, neighborhood improvements and economic development activities that are aimed at increasing employment opportunities.
A Stark County Consolidated Plan Task Force and a community survey were used to develop the city's Consolidated Plan by assuring participation of citizens, public, private and non-profit groups involved in housing and community development activities in the Canton and Stark County area.
Three citizens participation meetings were held in three locations in
Canton during October, 1994. Citizens were given information about the
Consolidated Plan process and were asked for their input to be presented at that
time or submitted in writing later. They were asked to identify what they
considered to be the highest priorities in housing and community development.
Participation was encouraged with the use of "game tables" where
citizens were asked to "spend" HUD Funny Money and "build"
houses on the various categories of community development and housing
activities.
Canton, a city that once relied heavily on the steel industry for its
employment, has been declining in population since 1950. Canton, with a
population of 84,161, is the county seat of Stark County. It had a peak
population in 1950 of 116,000. Canton's population continued to decline in the
1980's and 1990's with the 1990 Census showing a population of 84,161 nearly a
10 percent loss from 1980. The black population was 19 percent of the total and
2 percent were other races represented by Hispanics (1 percent), Native
Americans (0.5 percent), Asian (0.3 percent) and other races (0.2 percent).
Elderly persons comprise an ever increasing percentage; 16.4 percent of the
population. Persons per household for 1990 dropped to 2.44.
The population and number of housing units have declined since the 1950 Census. The population is older with each Census. Much of Canton consists of older, small homes on small lots. Many homes have been converted to multiple units creating overcrowding and lack of parking and private open space. The city's infrastructure is aging and becoming costly to maintain and repair.
The greatest needs for housing assistance in Canton are as follows:
The above figures represent the number of households that are cost-burdened in providing housing.
The number of housing units continues to decrease. In 1990 there were 36,527 units, a 7.4 percent loss from 1980. The overall vacancy rate is 8.4 percent and the rental vacancy rate is 9.7 percent. Factors contributing to both a decrease in units and a decline in the quality of conditions include incompatible land uses, break ups of neighborhoods with highways, parking and traffic congestion and a lack of public and private open space.
Median value of a home in Canton is $37,700, well below the Stark County median of $56,600. Median rent is $233 per month.
Approximately 6,435 (16.9 percent) housing units are in substandard condition with 4,251 considered suitable for rehabilitation
Canton needs to assist extremely low; very low and low-income owners and renters by:
A local homeless count in 1993 showed that there were 327 homeless people with an estimated 213 additional people temporarily housed but essentially homeless.
There are eleven shelter providers in Stark County providing temporary and transitional housing and supportive services. There is a need for shelter for 296 homeless persons.
Stark Metropolitan Housing Authority (SMHA) has a total of 2,568 public housing units and 1,401 Section 8 vouchers and assistance. There are 35 units provided through Shelter Plus Care. Presently SMHA has a waiting list of 2,340; of which 1,756 are families, 224 elderly, 332 disabled and 28 handicapped.
The city is continually reviewing its tax policies, land use controls such as zoning and subdivision regulations, building codes and fees. Some barriers exist in certain requirements of the building code and are being amended to alleviate those barriers. Neighborhood opposition is often a barrier to various types of assisted housing.
Fair Housing programs for the city of Canton are contracted to the Canton Urban League, which conducts counseling sessions for landlords and tenants. Fair housing education and training are also a part of a comprehensive fair housing program.
It is estimated that there are 10,243 rental units and 14,097 owner units with lead-based paint. The Canton Health Department estimates that there are 7,953 children in Canton who are at risk of having an elevated blood lead level.
Non-housing community development needs include the upgrading of parks and recreational facilities, street and sidewalk improvements in the downtown, provision of senior services, youth services, transportation services, fair housing counseling, child care services, health services, other public service needs, commercial-industrial infrastructure, other economic development needs, code enforcement reduction of lead-based paint hazards, for planning, community policing, education, and job creation.
Job creation opportunities for residents are largely dependent on regional collaboration among political jurisdictions to develop a regional industrial zone, share in the revenues generated, and reinvest those revenues within the area for infrastructure development and neighborhood redevelopment. A type of "revenue sharing", it could be modeled after economic development districts permitted under Ohio statutes that allow revenue sharing tied to agreements limiting annexation actions.
The Stark County Housing Task Force oversees all housing related
services. All local governments, SMHA, non-profit housing providers and many
financial institutions come together monthly to coordinate their activities. The
Consolidated Plan Task Force is comprised of planning staff from Canton,
Massillon, Alliance and Stark County and serves to coordinate housing related
activities and non-housing community development activities related to the
Consolidated Plan.
The city envisions a continued cooperation among housing providers and social service providers and an effort to provide a continuum of care in the community. Overall goals include the upgrading of existing housing stock and increase the supply of affordable housing.
Housing problems are usually related to an aging, deteriorating housing stock, low incomes and decreasing home ownership. Housing objectives are aimed at increasing affordable housing, encouraging home ownership and encouraging rehabilitation of owner and renter occupied housing. Removal of blighting conditions and revitalizing commercial industrial areas in order to improve living conditions and spur economic development and job creation are community development objectives
Community development priorities that the city intends to address include street and sidewalk improvements, parks/recreation improvements, providing senior services, health services, fair housing counseling, youth services, transportation services, child care services, commercial-industrial infrastructure improvements, lead-based paint hazard reduction, code enforcement, community policing and job creation.
A collaborative effort among agencies in Stark County will continue to work to encourage the development of a unified service system which works with families and individuals to empower them to meet their physical, emotional, intellectual and social needs. It is Canton and Stark County's strategy to "wrap around" services in a "continuum of care" system to allow for a more effective means to meet the needs of clients and to keep them out of poverty.
The primary federal resources to carry out the Consolidated Plan include CDBG, HOME, Section 8, public housing, Emergency Shelter Grant and Shelter Plus Care. There are numerous non-profit agencies, financial institutions, builders and service providers that will provide resources to carry out portions of the plan.
The city of Canton is responsible for administering most of the plan;
those activities that will be funded through the City's CDBG, HOME and ESG
grants. Section 8 and public housing activities are the responsibility of SMHA.
Coordination will continue through the Consolidated Plan Task Force and the
Stark County Housing Task Force. An annual performance report will be the major
part of the city's monitoring and assessment.
Canton's One-Year Action Plan outlines the proposed use of $6,692,000 in CDBG, HOME, ESG, program income and reprogrammed funds. Major programs include homeowner rehabilitation, rental unit renovations, homeowner downpayment assistance, emergency shelters and services, code enforcement and economic development.
Most activities to be carried out are within the Central Canton Project Area which closely coincides with the City's concentration of low income persons and minority persons.
Lead agencies are the City of Canton and SMHA.
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, unemployment levels, and proposed HUD funded projects.
MAP 5 is a map, sectioned by neighborhood, which depicts points of interest, low-moderate income areas, unemployment levels, and proposed HUD funded projects.
