To: Honorable Chair and Commissioners
From: Rick Tooker, Community Development Director
Prepared By: Lark Ferrell, Housing Manager
TITLE:
Title
Manzanita Family Apartments, a Proposed 51-unit rental Project located at 2951 Soscol Avenue
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendationle
Adopt a resolution approving an award of 20 project-based vouchers to Satellite Affordable Housing Associates for the Manzanita Family Apartments Project, and determining the Project is exempt from CEQA.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The Housing Authority of the City of Napa (the "Authority") provides Section 8 rental assistance throughout the County of Napa. Typically, this rental assistance is in the form of Housing Choice vouchers which are tied to the tenant. However, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) allows a housing authority to set aside vouchers for a specific project ("project-based vouchers" or "PBVs"). This means the PBVs are tied to a property rather than to a tenant. The Authority's Five Year Plan identifies funding PBVs as a strategy to expand housing opportunities for lower-income households.
PBVs have several advantages over Housing Choice vouchers. First, because the vouchers provide for higher rents than are typically received for rent restricted affordable units, PBVs allow an affordable housing developer to borrow a larger mortgage, which in turn helps fund development of the affordable housing project. Thus, PBVs help finance construction of additional affordable housing in the community. Second, in a tight rental environment, such as currently exists in Napa County, tenants with Housing Choice vouchers often have a very difficult time finding housing. Because the the PBVs are tied to the units, the tenants do not have to compete on the open market for units.
As a general rule, a housing authority may allocate up to 20% of its annual budget authority for PBVs (with some exceptions). For the Authority, this equates to 269 PBVs. T...
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