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


Consolidated Plan Contact

CITIZEN'S SUMMARY

The city of Yakima is located in the center of the state of Washington, 136 miles east of Seattle and 168 miles west of Spokane. The city of Yakima, located on the western edge of the Columbia River Plateau is the economic, commercial and cultural core of Central Washington. The city of Yakima serves as the county seat and provides the urban center of the Yakima Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), covering the entire Yakima County as designated by the US Census Bureau.

Action Plan

The city of Yakima Consolidated Plan presents a strategic vision for housing and community development in this unique, multi-cultured metropolitan district. It includes a one year action plan for spending $1.4 million of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and $542,000 HOME investment partnership program in 1995. These funds will primarily be spent on housing and neighborhood revitalization activities.

Citizen Participation

An interagency meeting requested by the Office of Housing and Neighborhood Conservation (OHNC) was responsible for initiating public comments and agency input on community needs. Six meetings were held in low income areas to solicit comments from community residents. OHNC prepared a draft to summarize the community's vision of needs, agency services and available resources. A formal 30 day public review process was established and advertised in newspapers and on television and radio stations in both the English and Spanish languages. Draft copies of the Consolidated Plan were made available at many public locations for review and comment. The plan was presented and accepted on December 20, 1994 by members of the Yakima City Council after a formal public meeting forum.


COMMUNITY PROFILE

Yakima was comprised of 57,660 persons in 1990 with a median income in 1994 of $33,000. Over one-half of the households earned less than $25,000 annually. The 1990 Census indicated that 88% of the population was at or below the federally established median income level. The 1990 Census showed a 15.7% increase in population from the 1980 Census. This increase is due largely from the city's annexation policy and the 1986 Immigration Reform Act that significantly increased our Hispanic population.

Minority households were disproportionally represented in the very low, and low income with poor housing conditions. Federally funded programs are primarily located within the defined target area which includes a population with the lowest income, highest unemployment, oldest housing stock and minority households. The targeted area includes six census tracks (#1, #2, #5, #6, #7 and #15).


HOUSING AND COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT NEEDS

Conditions

Yakima's primary employment opportunities are in agriculture and retail sales. This accounts for low paying entry jobs and seasonal employment which is reflected in the fluctuation of high, and seasonal unemployment. Unemployment rates continue to be above the national average.

Housing Needs

Two critical housing needs are identified in our target area. They are:

To address affordability housing needs, rental assistance is offered to reduce the cost burden. To address the limited number of low income housing units, subsidies and partnerships need to be developed as a vehicle to increase the number of available units.

Of low income, owner households (incomes 50% or less of federal median income), large minority families have the greatest housing need followed by the elderly and small families as it relates to renter households.

Market Conditions

The jurisdiction of the city of Yakima has 24,000 housing units with a vacancy rate of 1%-3%. The housing stock is comprised of 82% of 1-4 unit single family homes and 18% of five or more multi-family units. Of the existing housing stock, 28% are in need of rehabilitation and 2% are determined unsuitable for repair or rehabilitation.

Due to the tremendous housing need in our community, Fair Market Rent (FMR) statistics reflect an increase of rents from 11% to 40% over a two year period in rental units. The average real sales costs have risen to an average of $78,000 per unit and new construction cost are averaging $108,000 per unit.

Affordable Housing Needs

Much of the single family housing built in the last few years is beyond the price range of low income households. Construction of multi-family housing units resulted from the high demand in the market. The high cost of construction resulted in rents that were unaffordable for households with the highest need, and a higher vacancy rate.

Households with incomes at or below 50% of MFI (24% of all households) have the greatest housing cost burden. They need rental assistance and/or affordable housing options, and owners need rehabilitation assistance. Low-income, first time homebuyers need downpayment assistance, credit counseling, and home maintenance training.

Service providers for special needs population indicated the following needs, in addition to affordable housing:

Homeless Needs

During 1992, more than 1,000 families, nearly 3,000 persons, spent the night in homeless shelters and an equal number were turned away. Another 1,000 to 1,500 non-transients camped-out. Shelters for homeless single men reported sheltering 50 to 100 men per night. Additional resources to help the homeless in Yakima are identified as one of the community's top priorities. Agency records show a 25% increase in the number of families requesting emergency shelter every year since 1989.

Two levels of housing needs are required for the homeless:

Specific housing programs are geared towards special needs population such as the frail-elderly, HIV/AIDS infected persons, individual persons with physical disabilities, runaway youth and victims of sexual abuse.

Public and Assisted Housing Needs

Yakima Housing Authority (YHA) owns 150 public units located on 11 sites, housing 600 persons. This agency also owns and manages 44 units of farmworker housing units within the Yakima Urban Area. A total of $1.2 million rental assistance Section 8 subsidies are paid to private landlords assisting over 500 families.

In 1990, YHA embarked on a program of modernizing existing public housing units. YHA annually has 35 units undergoing capital improvement through an apprenticeship programs. This program is upgrading units and providing resident initiated employment training.

Yakima Housing Authority's waiting list consist of 900 families for Section 8 subsidy assistance, approximately 1,000 for public housing and 103 families for farmworker housing.

Barriers to Affordable Housing

Barriers of affordable, decent housing for our community are both real and perceived in relationship to the ability to develop and implement housing within the community.

Barriers to affordable housing have both time and action restraints due to the complexity of their content, as identified by housing agencies:

Impediments to the creation of affordable housing opportunities also include high unemployment, costs of renovation/rehabilitation of many of the city's older residential structures and shortage of public funds.

Barriers to providing an adequate number of rental units include few incentives for private market construction, increased competition for public funds, the continual rise in the low income eligible family population, short supply of affordable land and increased cost in zoning and development standards.

Fair Housing

Fair housing as defined in the context of equitable and fair housing opportunities are being remedied in our community using the following:

Lead-Based Paint

Over 20% (3,926) of the housing stock was constructed before 1940. Of that, 90% contained lead based paint. Residents living in these units are 55% renters and 45% homeowners. The very-low and low income households are the majority residing in these units.

The state of Washington Department of Health is currently doing a study to determine the lead blood level of children in the target area. Upon confirmation of this presence, procedures to remedy the conditions will be determined by the appropriate authorities. Sprays used in the local agricultural areas have been identified as another contributing source of lead contamination.

Other Issues

The agricultural economy of our community was based on the need for transient workers, but evolved into a labor population that settled in the valley and require support services. Seasonal, settled-in, workers now represent 85% of the valley's employment with 15% hired from outside the community during harvest. This issue in conjunction with the Immigration Act has tremendously influenced our population.

Community Development Needs

The city of Yakima has assumed leadership for the development and coordination of the overall economic development strategy focusing on the development, expansion and stabilization of the job market, upgrading of public infrastructure and facilities. These actions will be accomplished through public and private partnerships.

Providing technical assistance on available resources to small business owners is an important element for the city's economic development strategy. Identified infrastructure needs will be placed into a capital improvement program and federal funds solicited for completion of these projects to support and solicit new employment in our community.

Coordination

The city of Yakima Division of Housing has taken the leadership role and assumed responsibility in the coordination of the Consolidated Plan. Through this process, the Housing Division coordinates agency requests for partnerships, supports and/or provides technical assistance. Quarterly meetings with agencies and the area's community providers have assisted in the development of services, identified gaps in services and made assessment of accomplishments.

Survey questions are solicited once a year and all draft plans are developed by the lead agency and distributed for review, amendments, and additions.

This overall coordination allows the partnerships to maximize leveraging of resources which benefit our community.


HOUSING AND COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY

Vision for Change

The city of Yakima and its urban area's housing goal is to "encourage a variety of decent, safe and sanitary housing in a good environment to all segments of the community at a price residents can afford."

Housing and Community Development Objectives

Our primary housing need is to provide additional, affordable, and adequate rental units. The city's intent is to encourage public and private partnerships to construct low income housing using loan subsidies and stimulate the development and ownership of special need housing by non-profit agencies. Rehabilitation of existing single family housing, new homeownership opportunities with subsidized loans will be made affordable by partnerships with private lenders and the state of Washington.

Housing and Community Development Priorities

The city of Yakima will develop non-profit partnerships to prioritize transitional housing for the homeless. Priority will be given to develop additional, affordable housing units and acquire rent subsidies to prevent homelessness, and subsidize private market housing developments of units for low moderate income families.

Housing Priorities

The housing priorities in Yakima include: the provision of additional, affordable, decent, safe housing units for very low and low income families, address the housing needs of minority, large family households, provide a solution for the lack of adequate housing units for the frail elderly and special needs population, develop adequate transitional and supportive housing for the homeless.

Non-Housing Community Development Priorities

The city of Yakima has declared economic development a priority in an effort to assist residents in achieving adequate "family wage" jobs. The desire for well paying jobs was a pressing need expressed in community meetings. Yakima continues to have the highest unemployment rate in the state of Washington.

Anti-Poverty Strategy

The city of Yakima promotes and actively encourages the attraction of economic development activities to our community. These activities will alleviate current economic restraints which inhibit a disproportionate share of our community households from acquiring adequate rental housing or homeownership.

The city recognizes the critical role of infrastructure improvements in attracting increased private investment within its block grant target area neighborhoods. The city of Yakima Wastewater Diversion Program will institute an annual program for the installation of a sewage collection system in low-income, residential neighborhoods with a history of septic failure and high ground water pollution. Several city neighborhoods fit the profile for this program. Infrastructure needs are being pursued to provide the start up subsidy of economic development to future community job opportunities.

Housing and Community Development Resources

The city of Yakima will continue its efforts in the leveraging of additional public and private resources with the use of federal entitlement programs. Our Rental Rehabilitation Program will attract agreements from eight local lenders, for a total of $1 million to match federal funds to rehabilitate private rental units for low moderate income residents. Our single family rehabilitation program will use federal funds to reduce private lender loans for the repair of existing owner-occupied, low moderate income units. The Senior and Disabled Persons Home Repair Program will combine federal resources and other agency partnerships to make health and safety repairs to owner-occupied, low moderate income units. The administration program will use discounted service cost, private contributions and other program resources to reduce the administrative cost for program delivery.

Coordination of Strategic Plan

OHNC is responsible for the Consolidated Plan activities, but a variety of public and private agency partnerships are involved in the plan's implementation and success.


ONE-YEAR ACTION PLAN

Description of Key Projects

The city of Yakima One Year Action Plan outlines the proposed use of approximately $1.4 million in CDBG and $500,000 in HOME. In addition to program income, these funds will be spent on the following housing and neighborhood revitalization activities:

Locations

These programs are community wide if a direct benefit to low/moderate income families, and an indirect benefit if the programs are exclusive to the target area.

Lead Agencies

Housing - City of Yakima Office of Housing and Neighborhood Conservation

Homeless - Yakima County Coalition for the Homeless

Economic Development - City of Yakima Department of Community and Economic Development

Housing Goals

Maps

MAP 1 depicts points of interest in the jurisdiction.

MAP 2 depicts points of interest and low-moderate income areas.

MAP 3 depicts 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.

TABLE (without associated map) provides information about the project(s).

To comment on Yakima's Consolidated Plan, please contact:
Dixie L. Kracht,
Block Grant Manager
Phone Number: (509) 575-6101
Return to Washington's Consolidated Plans.