U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Office of Community Planning and Development
Consolidated Plan Contact
CITIZEN'S SUMMARY
Action Plan
The 1995 Action Plan describes the projects and activities that will be funded under the 1995
Community Development Block Grant, the Emergency Shelter Grant and the HOME Investment
Partnership Programs. Projects funded under the Community Development Block Grant Program
total $4,464,000. The estimated entitlement for the Block Grant is $3,699,000 leaving a shortfall of
$765,000 to be made up with program income and contingency funds. There is currently $160,000
of program income available and the County expects to receive an additional $505,000 in program
income during the 1995 Program Year. The County currently has $139,000 in contingency funds
that will be used for cost overruns on existing projects or to fund new projects of a pressing nature
that are added by amendment to the 1995 Block Grant Program.
Citizen Participation
The Hamilton County Board of Commissioners delegated responsibility for the preparation of the
Consolidated Plan to the Department of Community Development. To solicit citizen input in the
development of the Consolidated Plan, Hamilton County adopted a new Citizen Participation Plan.
That Plan provided for two tracts whereby local communities identified needs, priorities, and projects
at a neighborhood level, and countywide needs were identified by a separate process managed by the
Community Development Department. In addition, the Board of County Commissioners appointed
a 29 member Housing Advisory Board (HAB) to advise the County on housing related matters. The
HAB has reviewed and provided comment to the Community Development Department during
drafting of the various parts of the Consolidated Plan. The County also held two public hearings, the
first on November 21, 1994 in conjunction with a meeting of the HAB to discuss needs and priorities
within Hamilton County. The second public hearing was held on November 30, 1994 by the Board
of County Commissioners, during which a draft of the Consolidated Plan was presented with specific
emphasis on the activities and projects to be funded during Fiscal Year 1995. As a result of those
hearings, a final draft of the Consolidated Plan was completed on December 14, 1994 and made
available for public comment between December 15, 1994 and January 14, 1995.
COMMUNITY PROFILE
The Hamilton County Consolidated Plan jurisdiction includes 30 municipalities and 11 townships.
Geographically, it is Hamilton County outside the City of Cincinnati minus Symmes Township,
Amberly, Evendale, Indian Hill, Mariemont, and Terrace Park, which do not participate in the Urban
County. Because the County covers such a large geographical area, one finds a wide diversity in the
communities that make up the Urban County. They range from old canal towns that were fully
developed by the turn of the century to farmland which is only just now experiencing significant
suburban development. The topography of the County also contributed to a varied settlement pattern,
with working class communities often located in close proximity to affluent communities that occupy
the high ground. Working class communities such as Addyston, Lincoln Heights, and West College
Hill also developed close to major employment centers.
Hamilton County enjoys a diverse economic base which has lent stability to the area. The decline of
some major manufacturing enterprises within the County such as Monsanto, General Electric, General
Motors, and a range of machine tool companies has resulted in a net loss of manufacturing/industrial
jobs. The decline of these industries within Hamilton County mirrors a similar decline in
manufacturing employment nationally. The growth of service jobs, health care, finance and
government has provided alternate employment opportunities and tax base though not necessarily in
the same communities nor to the same work force.
HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT NEEDS
Current Housing Conditions and Needs
The Hamilton County jurisdiction is comprised of both recently developed suburbs and older
municipalities. Between 1980 and 1990 the population and housing of the County grew slowly.
Population in the County jurisdiction grew at 3% over the 10 year period, but the minority population
grew at a significantly higher rate. The minority population in the County has grown 24% during the
period with Blacks (non Hispanic) representing 83%, Hispanic (all races) 5.5%, Asian 10%, Native
American 1% and Others .5% of the minority population. Further examination of the population
trends of the political sub-units of Hamilton County shows that most of the older and less affluent
municipalities are losing overall population while also experiencing an increase in minorities. The
increase in the number of housing units in relation to population indicates that household size is
decreasing over time.
Given the suburban nature of most of Hamilton County's participating community development
jurisdiction, the housing characteristics of Hamilton County fall into an expected pattern. Owners
make up approximately 75% of the households and renters account for 25%. Units requiring rehab
make up approximately 4% of both renter and owner occupied units. These units requiring rehab tend
to be older dwellings located in the inner ring of suburbs, with the outer ring of suburbs containing
newer and often more expensive dwellings. Because Hamilton County has enjoyed relatively stable
economic conditions combined with stable population demographics, the overall County housing
market is comparatively stable, with supply and demand in good balance. Generally, the housing
supply in Hamilton County is sufficient in number to meet the housing needs of the County
population.
The adequacy of the housing stock must be balanced against the availability and appropriateness of
that housing stock to the population. In this regard, cost of housing, or from a household's point of
view, inadequate income, is the most significant problem within Hamilton County. The housing
affordability gap can be most efficiently met through the provision of rental assistance programs.
While rental assistance programs are the most efficient means of meeting the shelter needs of low
income persons, other support services are also crucial, particularly for special need populations and
dysfunctional families.
Affordable Housing Needs
Based on an analysis of 1990 census, there are a significant number of very low income households
within the County that are affected by both significant costs burdens and deficiencies in the housing
stock. These households are almost equally divided with 14,035 renter households and 14,185 owner
occupants. The low income population of Hamilton County experiences significantly fewer housing
problems, 29% vs. the 77% for very low income households. This group also experiences significantly
less cost burden with only 27% of the households having a burden greater than 30% compared to
76% of the households in the very low income category. Low income households are also more likely
to be owners with 18,001 households than renters with 10,931 households.
Homeless Needs
All of the homeless shelters and most of the services utilized by homeless persons are located within
the geographic boundaries of the City of Cincinnati. Rather than duplicating these facilities and
services, Hamilton County has chosen to provide some support for shelters within the City that serve
a homeless population that may have originated in the County outside the City, and to provideprimary focus on providing transitional housing for homeless families. The focus on transitional
housing is appropriate in that it provides a place for homeless families to move during that
intermediate step between a homeless shelter and private market housing.
Public and Assisted Housing Needs
There are 234 public housing units owned and operated by the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing
Authority, located in the Hamilton County jurisdiction. These units include one conventional project,
Marianna Terrace, which has 75 units, and 159 scattered sites. In addition to traditional public
housing, there are also 1938 units in the County assisted under the Section 8 program and 1,010 units
with project based assistance from earlier federal programs. This inventory of publicly owned,
privately owned, and tenant based assistance meets only a small proportion of the total housing need
that exists within Hamilton County.
Barriers to Affordable Housing
Because Hamilton County is focusing on tenant based assistance strategies, the utilization of the
existing housing stock, and new construction on a scattered site basis, the lack of available multi-family zoned land within the County should not prove to be a major impediment. The low rent
structure and limited acceptance of Tenant Based Assistance Programs is a barrier in selected areas
of the County.
Fair Housing
Both Hamilton County and the City of Cincinnati contract with Housing Opportunities Made Equal
for fair housing services. This agency provides region-wide fair housing services that assure prompt
investigation of fair housing complaints, the resolution of the complaints, and testing of both realtors
and rental agents to identify incorrect discriminatory practices. In addition, the agency also provides
a wide array of fair housing education programs to schools, realtors, and other groups.
Lead-Based Paint
It is estimated that 4,680 units that are occupied by very low or low income families with children
under the age of six contain significant lead hazards within the County. This represents approximately
2.5% of the occupied housing units within the County. Based on reported cases of lead poisoning,
the lead hazard appears to be concentrated in the City of Norwood, the Springfield Township/Mt.
Healthy area, and the older industrial communities of the Millcreek Valley.
Community Development Needs
Because Hamilton County is an urban county made up of 41 different political subdivisions, it is
difficult to generalize about County needs. Despite the variability of community development needs,
some needs are noteworthy in that they are identifiable within most communities of the County. These
needs include senior centers, public infrastructure improvements, public services particularly related
to housing, handicapped accessibility and economic development issues.
HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY
Housing and Community Development Objectives and Priorities
The County has chosen to focus its housing resources into a few priority programs. First, Tenant
Based Assistance strategies will primarily be used to meet the needs of elderly and small family
renters. The needs of large family renters will be met through a combination of Tenant Based
Assistance strategies and the development of new or rehabilitated units. Low income homeowners
will be assisted through a combination of repair and rehabilitation programs aimed both at providing
them with improved housing conditions and maintaining the stock of housing available to future low
to moderate income home buyers. Community Development objectives include meeting the social
service, public infrastructure, and public facility needs of low income persons within the County.
These needs may be very extensive, both in number and geographic concentration, in some very low
income communities such as Elmwood Place and Lincoln Heights, or they may be found in small
pockets of poverty in otherwise affluent areas such as Blue Ash and Loveland.
Anti-Poverty Strategy
A number of governmental and non-profit agencies operate programs within Hamilton County to
reduce dependency and poverty among County residents. Primary among those agencies is the
County Department of Human Services, which offers a wide array of educational and training
programs to assist welfare recipients in acquiring the training, education and skills needed to obtain
and hold jobs. In addition, the Cincinnati-Hamilton County Community Action Agency operates a
Head Start Program, an adult education GED Program and other smaller programs to assist their low
income clientele. To supplement these programs that provide broad based assistance to poor families,
there are also programs operated by Hamilton County that tie antipoverty efforts to the housing
stock. First, the Transitional Housing Project that is being developed within Hamilton County
utilizing HOME funds will attempt to address the needs of homeless families. The families will be
eligible to remain in the transitional housing for a period up to two years, during which time the non-profit operator of the facility will provide counseling and appropriate referrals for social services,
education, and training. At the end of the two year period, it is hoped that the families will be able
to move back into the private housing market. Second, Hamilton County and the Cincinnati
Metropolitan Housing Authority both operate Family Self Sufficiency Programs that provide an
individualized five-year program of support services to move families from dependency to
independence. Third, the Special Rehab Program operated by a non-profit, provides work experience
to welfare recipients while rehabbing dilapidated housing in one area of the County.
Housing and Community Development Resources
In addition to the resources provided by the Department of Housing and Urban Development that are
the subject of this plan, other significant resources utilized in meeting the needs of low to moderate
income persons include federal and state funds administered by the Department of Human Services,
State of Ohio Housing Trust Funds, Council on Aging funding, and the United Way Community
Chest.
Coordination of Strategic Plan
The Hamilton County Department of Community Development has been charged with both preparing
and coordinating activities funded under the Consolidated Plan. The Department also acts as a
housing agency under contract with the Department of Housing and Urban Development in the
administration of over 1400 units of Section 8 Certificates and Housing Vouchers. This allows for
the integrated delivery of both housing and community development services through a single point
of contact within Hamilton County.
ONE-YEAR ACTION PLAN
Description of Key Projects
A total of 45 project activities are funded utilizing Community Development, HOME, and Emergency
Shelter Grant funds. Significant projects include:
- Public infrastructure projects:
Street and sidewalk rehabilitation in Addyston for $60,000, Bruestle Avenue rehabilitation in the City of Cheviot for $140,000, Magee Street sidewalk repairs in the Village of Lincoln Heights
for $13,000, Lincoln Avenue reconstruction in the City of Mt. Healthy for $50,000 and
improvements to St. James/Parkview Avenues in the City of Silverton, $130,000.
- Handicapped Accessibility Projects:
County Buildings at $65,385, City of Wyoming $60,000, Village of Woodlawn $29,000, City of Springdale $70,000, City of Sharonville $36,000, Village of Greenhills $50,000 and Delhi
Township $226,000.
- Housing Improvement Programs for Homeowners: $480,000 to People Working Cooperatively
for countywide repair and emergency assistance, and $650,000 for countywide housing rehab.
- Other Housing Activities: Tenant Based Assistance at $700,000, Transitional Housing at
$113,000 and Family Rental Housing at $270,000.
- Public Service Activities: Norwood Service League at $12,000, Mt. Airy Shelter at $170,000,
Better Housing League at $55,000 and the FreeStore at $100,000.
From the partial listing of projects noted above, it should be evident that projects are located
throughout Hamilton County in an attempt to serve the needs of all low income persons regardless
of where they reside. This is done through a combination of individual projects targeted to areas of
low income concentration, as well as countywide projects that serve income eligible. The housing
projects noted above are consistent with the County strategy for housing assistance.
Maps
MAP 1 depicts Hamilton County and selected points of interest.
MAP 2 depicts the concentrations of low and moderate income persons in the County.
MAP 3 depicts areas of higher unemployment in the County.
MAP 4 depicts the distribution of racial minorities within the County.
MAP 5 depicts project locations.
For more information on the Hamilton County, Ohio Consolidated Plan, please contact:
Dan Domis, Director
Hamilton County Community Development
138 East Court Street
Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
Return to Ohio's Consolidated Plans.
