ACTION REQUESTED:
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Communication from the City Manager and Community Development Director with a Request to APPROVE an INCUMBENCY CERTIFICATE and RESOLUTION Accepting a Grant from the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) for the Blight Reduction Program (BRP), in the Amount of $770,000.00, and AUTHORIZE the City Manager to Executed the TRI-PARTY AGREEMENT.
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BACKGROUND:
The Blight Reduction Program (“BRP”) was created in 2014 by the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) under the Hardest Hit Fund Program, a U.S. Treasury funded resource dedicated to foreclosure prevention and neighborhood stabilization. IHDA utilizes BRP to decrease preventable foreclosures and stabilize neighborhoods by supporting Illinois Units of Local Government and their Not-For-Profit Partners as they target blighted, vacant, residential properties in specific communities for demolition, greening, and eventual reuse or redevelopment.
In September 2015, IHDA released applications for round two of BRP funding. The City partnered with Peoria Citizens Committee for Economic Opportunity (PCCEO) and submitted an application for $962,000 in funding targeting the LISC established Community Core areas in the East Bluff and South Side.
In February 2016, IHDA announced the City/PCCEO BRP grant award of $770,000 for the acquisition, demolition and greening of 22 properties.
The maximum per property reimbursement is $35,000. BRP funds will reimburse the following eligible costs:
− Acquisition (purchase price, lien extinguishment, legal costs, title, recording and transfer fees)
− Demolition
− Greening
The following costs will be front funded to the City and PCCEO:
− Maintenance ($3,000 per property)
− Administrative expenses ($1,750 per property)
The City and PCCEO have started to identify the units to be demolished and will continue to organize the program logistics. IHDA has released the draft of the Tri-Party Agreement to be executed between the City, IHDA and PCCEO for the BRP funds. The Agreement is due back to IHDA on or before April 22, 2016. It is anticipated that BRP funds will be available in July 2016 and must be expended by May 2018.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: The City, in partnership with PCCEO, will receive a grant from IHDA in the amount of $770,000 for the acquisition, demolition and greening of 22 properties.
NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERNS: There is a continued need for additional resources to mitigate blighting influences, such as abandoned and vacant properties, in the City’s neighborhoods. While no direct comments have been received by City staff, it is anticipated that these funds would be a welcomed resource to increase capacity to demolish such structures.
IMPACT IF APPROVED: The City, in partnership with PCCEO, would have an additional $770,000 in grant funds from IHDA for the acquisition, demolition and greening of 22 properties.
IMPACT IF DENIED: The City would not have an additional resource for property demolition and would have to rely on the current allocated funds to continue demolition activity.
ALTERNATIVES: None identified.
EEO CERTIFICATION NUMBER: N/A
WHICH OF THE GOALS IDENTIFIED IN THE COUNCIL’S 2014 - 2029 STRATEGIC PLAN DOES THIS RECOMMENDATION ADVANCE?
1. Attractive Neighborhoods with Character: Safe and Livable
WHICH CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR(S) FROM THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN DOES THIS RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENT?
1. Reinvest in neighborhoods.
DEPARTMENT: Community Development