U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
Office of Community Planning and Development


Consolidated Plan Contact

CITIZEN'S SUMMARY

Fort Bend County is part of the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, Texas Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area (CMSA) as defined by the U. S. Bureau of the Census. According to the Census Bureau, a metropolitan area (MA) is a geographic area consisting of a large population nucleus together with adjacent communities which have a high degree of economic and social integration with that nucleus. The Houston CMSA includes Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller counties. In 1990, the population of the Houston CMSA totaled 3,711,043 persons.

Currently, Fort Bend County's service area includes the unincorporated areas of the county and the cities of Arcola, Beasley, Fulshear, Kendleton, Meadows, Missouri City, Needville, Orchard, Pleak, Richmond, Rosenberg, Simonton, Stafford, and Thompsons. The Fort Bend County service area excludes the communities of Houston, Katy, and Sugar Land.

Fort Bend County is named for the river bend where some of Stephen F. Austin's colonists settled along the Brazos River. The county was created in 1837 from Austin County and organized in 1838. Fort Bend County covers 886 square miles. Approximately 875 square miles are land and 11 square miles are water area. The City of Richmond is the county seat. Fort Bend County includes seventeen incorporated cities, towns, and/or villages. The unincorporated areas of the county, especially the areas on the eastern side closest to the City of Houston, contain several large master-planned communities and suburbs including First Colony, Greatwood, New Territory, and Pecan Grove. Suburban growth has also occurred in the northern part of the county along Interstate 10. The remainder of Fort Bend County has managed to retain much of its rural, small town flavor.

Action Plan

The overall goals of the community development and planning programs covered by the Fort Bend County Consolidated Plan are to strengthen partnerships with jurisdictions and to extend and strengthen partnerships among all levels of government and the private sector, including for-profit and nonprofit organizations, to enable them: The one-year action plan includes spending approximately $2.9 million of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnership program, and Emergency Shelter Grant (ESG) funds in program year 1995.

Citizen Participation

During the preparation of the 1992, 1993, and 1994 Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategies (CHAS), Fort Bend County established a CHAS Task Force to provide input regarding the housing and related needs of lower-income families in the development of the county's housing strategy. This task force was also used in the development of the 1995 Consolidated Plan. The 1995 Consolidated Plan Task Force included representatives of local public agencies, private organizations, and persons having knowledge of local housing issues.

The staff of the Fort Bend County Community Development Department (FBCCDD) managed the Consolidated Plan development process, collected the required information and data, and wrote the actual Consolidated Plan document. The Consolidated Plan Advisory Group and the FBCCDD staff collaborated on the selection of housing priorities and the strategies the county will implement during the period covered by this Consolidated Plan.

During the 30-day public review period, draft copies of Fort Bend County's Consolidated Plan were available for review at the offices of the Fort Bend County Community Development Department, at County Commissioner's offices, and at county libraries. In addition, FBCCDD mailed notices regarding the availability of the draft Consolidated Plan to members of the Consolidated Plan Advisory Group, nonprofit organizations, private agencies, local governments, and interested citizens for their review and comment. Comments received during this process are included in the public comment section of the Consolidated Plan submitted to HUD.

COMMUNITY PROFILE

Fort Bend County is one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. In the last 20 years, the population of Fort Bend County has quadrupled. The largest total population change in the county's history occurred between 1980 and 1990. During this 10-year period, the total population of the county increased by 72.28 percent. By 1990, the population of Fort Bend County was 53.88 percent White, 20.32 percent Black, 19.33 percent Hispanic, 6.20 percent Asian, 0.17 percent American Indian, and 0.10 percent Other Race population.

HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT NEEDS

Conditions

Fort Bend County encompasses 15 municipalities, including a portion of the giant city to the northeast: Houston, the largest city in Fort Bend County. Since 1988, more than 50 new firms have located new or expanded facilities in Fort Bend County, creating some 5,700 new jobs. The county population grew by more than 72 percent between 1980 and 1990, making Fort Bend County one of the fastest growing white-collar addresses in America.

Housing Needs

The Consolidated Plan documents a full continuum of housing needs from rental to ownership. The needs vary by community and neighborhood and also by income group. The greatest needs appear to be for housing for the elderly, frail elderly, persons with disabilities, persons with alcohol/drug addictions, and persons with AIDS because facilities are either very limited or nonexistent in the county for persons in these groups. There is also a great need among renters for affordable and standard housing.

Housing Market Conditions

The analysis found that there were more than 77,000 housing units in Fort Bend County in 1990. Of this total, 82 percent were single-family units, 69 percent were owner-occupied, and 29 percent were in substandard condition.

Affordable Housing Needs

Approximately 5,243 households in Fort Bend County were classified as extremely low-income in 1990. Although there has been a great deal of housing built in Fort Bend County in the last few years, most of this construction has been of homes costing $90,000 or more. Very little of the new housing built in the county has been targeted to the low- and moderate-income population.

In addition, there have been few multi-family housing developments constructed in the county. This lack of multi-family developments can be attributed to the lack of large tracts of land with adequate infrastructure, as well as community opposition.

Homeless Needs

Although there are no current estimates of the homeless population in Fort Bend County, the facilities and services for the homeless within the county often operate at capacity. As the overall population of the county continues to grow, the number of homeless persons and families and the population at risk of becoming homeless will continue to grow.

Public and Assisted Housing Needs

There are no public housing developments in Fort Bend County's service area. Only two communities in the county's service area have Section 8 Tenant-Based Certificate programs. These communities are Rosenberg and Needville. The Rosenberg Public Housing Authority administers the Section 8 Certificate Program within the City of Rosenberg. The program in Needville is administered by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs.

There are only two Section 8 project-based assistance facilities located in Fort Bend County. The Pecan Park Apartments is a Section 8 Loan Management Project. The entire project contains 273 total units. Approximately 85 units are reserved for the Section 8 program. There are no vacancies in the Section 8 units and there is a waiting list. The Kings Arms Apartments is a Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation Project. The entire project contains 120 total units. Approximately 69 are reserved for the Section 8 program. There are no vacancies in the Section 8 units and there is a 2- to 3-year waiting list for units.

None of these units are expected to be lost from the Section 8 inventory because of prepayment, termination of federal assistance, or other reasons.

Barriers to Affordable Housing

The cost associated with providing and maintaining water, sewer, and other utility services in the unincorporated area within the county significantly impacts the provision of housing for low- to moderate-income persons. It is also determined that there are no public policies which may constitute barriers to afford ability in the county.

Fair Housing

The county will provide information from the Texas Commission on Human Rights to residents. This commission is responsible for enforcing fair housing provisions in the State of Texas. There are no current court orders, consent decrees, or HUD-imposed sanctions that affect the provision of fair housing remedies.

Lead-Based Paint

The key variable in estimating the number of housing units with lead-based paint is the age of housing. Approximately 25,189 housing units, or 32.68 percent of the total housing units in Fort Bend County, may contain potential lead-based paint hazards. There are eight areas within Fort Bend County where over half of the housing units may contain lead-based paint hazards. Overall, 76.37 percent of the housing units with potential lead-based paint hazards are located in the incorporated areas of the county.

Community Development Needs

Within the unincorporated areas of the county, there are about eight areas that do not have sanitary water and sewer facilities. Survey results of the cities indicate that water, sewer, flood drain, and street improvements are needs of the county.

Coordination

There are several entities that will assist the county in carrying out its housing and community development plan. These entities have been classified as either private industry, nonprofit organizations, public institution, or local governments.

There are several institutional gaps in Fort Bend County's consolidated planning strategy. The major gap identified is the lack of public, nonprofit, and private organizations with the administrative capacity, experience, and financial resources to successfully plan, administer, and manage projects. During the period covered by this five-year Consolidated Plan, the FBCCDD will attempt to strengthen the institutional structure of the delivery system in Fort Bend County. FBCCDD will continue to provide interested organizations with information on community development and housing-related training programs and conferences and increase the amount of technical assistance provided to neighborhoods as part of the effort to facilitate the development of neighborhood-based organizations. In addition, FBCCDD will encourage proposals for competitive programs from existing nonprofit organizations interested in developing or expanding programs.

Fort Bend County will use the assistance provided by programs created by the National Affordable Housing Act (NAHA) to leverage private and non-federal public resources to achieve its consolidated planning goals. The county will explore using resources offered by nonprofit agencies, such as the United Way and the Fort Bend Housing Finance Corporation, and private resources such as banks and foundations to implement the goals outlined in the Consolidated Plan. Fort Bend County expects resources to be made available from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, and the Texas Housing Trust Fund to develop and support existing and new community development and housing programs.

Fort Bend County will make every effort to support applications from other entities. The Fort Bend County Community Development Department will provide technical assistance and staff support for these applications.

HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY

Vision for Change

The overall goal of the community planning and development programs covered by the Consolidated Plan is to develop viable urban communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment and expanding economic opportunities principally for low- and moderate-income persons. The primary means toward this end is to extend and strengthen partnerships among all levels of government and the private sector, including for-profit and nonprofit organizations, in the production and operation of affordable housing.

Housing and Community Development Objectives

The objectives are as follows:

Housing Priorities

Affordable housing for persons in the extremely low-income, low-income, and moderate-income populations is the need most frequently cited in the service area. Fort Bend County's priority is to increase the supply of affordable housing to extremely low-income, low-income, and moderate-income households.

Non-Housing Community Development Priorities

The activity with the highest priority is the neighborhood facility. The activity with a medium priority is parks and recreational facilities. All other activities such as senior citizens centers, youth centers, child care centers, health facilities, and other public facilities were rated as low priority needs because these facilities already exist within the county. The problem is that facilities and agencies are scattered throughout the county, which prevents them from meeting the needs of the community efficiently and effectively. A neighborhood facility would encompass all public and private social service activities in one central location and provide a comprehensive range of coordinated and easily accessible health and social services for low-income families.

Fort Bend County consists primarily of rural towns and cities. The social services that are available to families who reside in these areas are inaccessible because services are not provided in a comprehensive and coordinated manner. Some services are duplicated and there are gaps in others. During the development of the Consolidated Plan, Fort Bend County surveyed the 14 cooperating cities to determine priorities for infrastructure improvements. The infrastructure needs of the unincorporated area of the county were considered. Water, sanitary sewer, and storm drainage facilities were found to be inadequate in some areas of the county.

The priorities identified for public service needs are transportation services, employment training, senior services, child care services, and health services. The economic development priority needs for the county consist of assisting individuals, neighborhoods, and businesses through the utilization of human resources such as education and job training within the extremely low-income, low-income, and moderate-income groups.

Anti-Poverty Strategy

According to the 1990 census, there were 19,660 persons, 5,615 households, and 4,075 families living in poverty in Fort Bend County. Individuals and families are classified as being above or below the poverty line by the use of an index. The poverty index is based solely on money income and does not reflect the fact that many low-income persons receive non-cash benefits such as food stamps, Medicaid, and public housing. The poverty threshold varies by family size.

Housing and Community Development Resources

During FY 1995, Fort Bend County expects to receive a total of $2,897,000 from HUD in formula entitlement funds. In addition, the county plans to support all applications by other entities except HOPE I, Public Housing MROP, and Public Housing CIAP. No applications are expected for these programs since they supply funds to public housing projects and Fort Bend County does not have any public housing.

Coordination of Strategic Plan

Fort Bend County will use the assistance provided by programs created by the National Affordable Housing Act (NAHA) to leverage private and non-federal public resources to achieve its consolidated planning goals. The county will explore using resources offered by nonprofit agencies such as the United Way and the Fort Bend Housing Finance Corporation, and private resources such as banks and foundations to implement the goals outlined in the Consolidated Plan. Fort Bend County expects resources to be made available from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs, and the Texas Housing Trust Fund to develop and support new and existing community development and housing programs.

Fort Bend County will make every effort to support applications from other entities. The Fort Bend County Community Development Department will provide technical assistance and staff support for these applications.

ONE-YEAR ACTION PLAN

Description of Key Projects

The Fort Bend County one-year action plan outlines the proposed use of more than $2.8 million in CDBG, HOME, and ESG funds. These funds will be spent on a variety of housing, public service, and infrastructure projects. Some of these projects are listed below:

Locations

All of the public facilities and improvements being constructed are located within low- and moderate-income areas, either within cooperative cities or unincorporated areas of the county. Public services funded with CDBG funds are being administered countywide. The emergency shelter renovations are being carried out at an undisclosed location.

Lead Agencies

The Fort Bend County Community Development Department will be the lead agency in the consolidated planning process. Many public improvement projects are being carried out by the county, participating cities, or through partnerships between these cities and the county. Other organizations assisting the county in carrying out the annual plan include seven nonprofit and two public institutions.

Housing Goals

Fort Bend County's housing goals for the first year include providing rehabilitation grants to 20 low- and moderate-income homeowners, connecting 131 homes to water and sewer systems, making 20 single-family units available for purchase by first-time low- and moderate-income homebuyers and rehabilitating an emergency shelter for abused women and their children.

Maps

MAP 1 shows points of interest in Fort Bend County.

MAP 2 shows points of interest in Fort Bend County with low- and moderate-income areas shaded.

MAP 3 shows areas of minority concentration with low- and moderate-income areas outlined.

MAP 4 shows unemployment data (1990) by block group, with low- and moderate-income areas outlined.

MAP 5 shows selected CDBG projects to be funded by Fort Bend County during its 1995 program year, with unemployment data shaded by block group and low- and moderate-income areas outlined.

For more information, contact Marilynn Kindell at 713/341-4410.
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