Austin Housing Finance Corporation (AHFC) Transcript – 12/8/2022 Title: ATXN-1 (24hr) Channel: 1 - ATXN-1 Recorded On: 12/8/2022 6:00:00 AM Original Air Date: 12/8/2022 Transcript Generated by SnapStream ================================== Please note that the following transcript is for reference purposes and does not constitute the official record of actions taken during the meeting. For the official record of actions of the meeting, please refer to the Approved Minutes. [12:07:47 PM] ended. Mayor, that concludes all the consent speakers. Ms. Joseph vegged for ahfc and we have another in-person speaker. >> Mayor Adler: I'm going to go ahead and recess the city council meeting here at 12:07. I'm going to convene the Austin housing finance corporation meeting here on December 8, 2022. It is 1208. We are in city council chambers. We have a quorum of the directors that are present. I would point out that we have late backup in item 13. And I think that's the only item in the ahfc that we have late backup. How many items do we have on the agenda? >> They have 13 items on the agenda. We also have two public speakers, one remote and one in-person. >> Mayor Adler: Let's take the two speakers. Will we be able to take all the items up on consent? >> Yes, we will, I hope. >> Mayor Adler: Please call the two speakers. [12:08:48 PM] >> Zenobia Joseph. >> Thank you, mayor and council. I'm Zenobia Joseph speaking on item 7, which is your candlewood suites hotel conversion in district 6. My opposition is as it has always been, this project lacks transparency. I'll just recall on may 3rd, 2021, you actually did a bait and switch and you changed this from being just permanent supportive housing. You then held a press conference on may 18th, 2021 and then you changed it. It was going to be safe alliance and now somehow or another, August 2021 it was going to be a domestic violence center and then the name changed to apple pie hotel and now here we are about to approve 28 vouchers from family elder care through payment assistance contract. I want you to recognize that you have 171 permanent supportive housing units at [12:09:49 PM] 1934 Rutland where capital metro unilaterally eliminated 240 Rutland. The people who live there will have to walk. The people who are living over here you have cherry picked the senior citizens to live in northwest Austin. You're not even equitable when it comes to the homeless. I would ask you to recognize that this project is discriminatory. You have cherry picked it. It's not correct. In northeast Austin you have over 100 units of permanent supportive housing, but everywhere else in the city it's less than 50. I'm just deeply disturbed, mayor. And this project is one that I opposed for quite some time now and I will continue to oppose it. And if it means filing a title VI complaint, I will. This is one year with 14 one-year renewals. In other words, this will just continue long past your departure. And it is not an equitable project and so I would just ask you to recognize that [12:10:50 PM] you need to be equitable when it comes to the homeless and disburse the permanent supportive housing west of loop 1 too. There's lots of land over there. South of U.S. 183 over at the Ryan property and elsewhere it's less than 50 units. And it's not equitable. So please don't talk about equity because you don't mean it. [12:11:53 PM] The project is anchored by 8500 square feet of public art space and, Ann kitchen. 15 unit are re-housing the in partnership with echo. This serves primarily artists with and without disabilities and we're also engaging district 3 govalle residents who are at risk for displacement. So today's decision is the culmination of an rfp process and we are ready to break ground in February of 2023. I want to thank you for your continued ongoing support and just also let you know that I am here for questions if you have them. Thank you so much. >> That concludes all the speakers. >> Mayor Adler: Can we annual all 13 items on consent? >> We sure can. >> Mayor Adler: Is there a motion to approve the consent agenda, items 1 through 13? Made by council member Renteria, seconded by councilmember harper-madison. Is there anything you need to tell us before -- >> I only want to draw your attention to a couple of [12:12:54 PM] really important items. One is item 2, which is authorizing staff to move forward with the acquisition of nine naturally occurring affordable housing developments in districts 7 and 9, in central Austin in proximity sometimes right next to project connect lines. That's item 2. We're doing that in partnership with affordable central Texas a non-profit equity fund had which this will be our second partnership with them. Item 3 through 6 are related to forming the profit corporations to steward those properties. And then I will note that items 7 through 10 are really the launch of our local housing voucher program for people experiencing homelessness. This is authorizing us to move forward with a housing contract with the city of Austin to manage the distribution of those vouchers for our first three properties, which include pecan gardens, 28 local housing vouchers, 25 local [12:13:55 PM] housing vouchers at Katy lofts in district 9 and sea Brooke square at 2513 manor road, 16 vouchers all that support permanent supportive housing. >> Mayor Adler: Thank you. That's really good work. Councilmember tovo. >> Tovo: Thank you. I wanted to commend the housing staff for really all of this tremendous work. It's great to see Katy lofts moving forward. Thank you to our partners in the community on that and thank you to I and the housing staff for working on number 2, which you've mentioned. That's going to by my quick calculations I think it's going to involve about 150 units in district 9, mostly in Hyde park. Maybe entirely in Hyde park. Some of those it sounds like will be offered for for sale opportunities but the others will remain as affordable units. So this is a great example of how we can leverage the resources of the city as well as with our private partners to really create opportunities in areas that are pretty costly to live. >> Thank you. I should note that the nine [12:14:56 PM] properties are actually it's 270 units in total. So -- >> Tovo: I was counting the ones in -- I was counting the ones in Hyde park. >> The remainder in d7, but a great opportunity and we're really excited about it. >> Mayor Adler: Motion for consent. It's been moved and seconded. Those in favor please raise your hand. I'm sorry? Those in favor please raise your hand, those opposed? It's unanimous. Thank you for your great work. I'm going to adjourn the meeting of the housing finance corporation.