HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0805.001 1996-1998
' ZV Of /,qw
Stephen K. Yamashiro
Mayor
Cunnfg nttft7ttt
OFFICE OF HOUSING AND
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
50 Wailuku Drive • Hilo, Hawai'i 96720-2484
VITT (808) 961-8379 • FAX (808) 961-8685
April 22, 1998
MEMORANDUM
TO: The Honorable James Y. Arakaki
Chairman, Hawai'i County Council
FROM: Edwin S. Taira Assistant Housing Administrator
SUBJECT: Resolution for the 1998 Action Plan for the Community
.Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment
Partnerships (HOME), and Emergency Shelter Grants (ESG)
Programs
The Office of Housing and Community Development did not include
the summary of comments for the 1998 Action Plan. Hale Aloha
O'Hilo Habitat for Humanities submitted a letter during the
comment period for the 1998 Action Plan.
Please include the enclosed attachment to the end of the 1998
Action Plan. Please note that this does not change the
recommended projects for funding. Therefore, no change to the
resolution is necessary.
Should you have any questions, please call me or Leah Yanagi at
ext. 8379.
Encl.
xc: Stephen K. Yamashiro, Mayor (w/o encl.)
Al Smith, Vice Chairman
•O
Hawaii County Council (w/o encl.) fQULUL his.
John L. Santangelo, Chairman M16 Mrs.
Hawaii County Housing Agency (w/o encl.) 11
'fn'
!ri! .
tx:. I1ate°___APR .2 bdd.
6393C.LHY
EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY
'M EOUA OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER'
SUMMARY OF CITIZEN
COMMENTS
Summary of Comments
The OHCD received one letter dated April 2, 1998, commenting on
the draft 1998 Action Plan. The letter was written by Anthony D.
Vidana, President of Hale Aloha O'Hilo Habitat for Humanities.
In summary, Mr. Vidana requested that the OHCD reconsider their
application for HOME funds. The letter states that
"homeownership programs are vastly more successful than rental
assistance programs" and that "it breaks the cycle of poverty
that traditionally gets passed down from parents to their
children and so on."
In addition, the letter also transmits a letter dated March 28,
1998, to Councilman Al Smith. This letter explains that the
Habitat's project was not included in the 1998 Action Plan. Mr.
Vidana stated that he was disappointed that the funds were going
toward rental assistance. He stated that there is a person in
the Paradise Park subdivision that has a reputation of being a
"slum lord." In summary, Mr. Vidana stated that this person owns
at least 20 lots and builds low income rentals that are in
violation of laws (i.e., set backs, two homes sharing one
cesspool, rules for duplexes, etc.), only rents to people on
welfare, has been cited for cheating his tenants by claiming
higher rents than he was actually charging, and turning a
neighborhood into a slum.
Mr. Vidana also stated that "many believe that the action plan"
was decided on long before any grants were even submitted. He
requested that Councilman Smith reconsider Habitat's grant
application.
RESPONSE:
The following is a summary of the OHCD's response to Habitat's
letter:
1. His comments were received on April 8, 1998, after the
deadline of April 7, 1998; therefore, the summary of
comments were not attached to the 1998 Action Plan.
2. The OHCD explained that the Habitat's application did not
meet the minimum threshold factors as explained in the
V - 20
application packet. These requirements are eligible project
cost, matching requirement, project schedule, environmental
consideration. The OHCD offered technical assistance to
work with the Habitat to improve its application for next
year.
3. The OHCD explained that rental assistance is the first
priority and that homeownership is the fourth priority for
the HOME Program for the State's and County's Consolidated
Plan. The OHCD also explained that the County has funded
homeownership projects with HOME funds. The OHCD suggested
that the Habitat should provide comments on the priorities
to the State Consolidated Plan. The County's priorities
mirror the State's priorities because the County is a
subgrantee of the State and must comply with the State's
priorities for funding.
4. The OHCD also informed the Habitat that HUD has a special
allocation for habitat projects and suggested that the
Habitat look into this source of funding.
5. The OHCD also requested that Mr. Vidana submit the name of
the landlord, location of units and other details. If the
units are under the County's rental assistance programs, the
OHCD will pursue the matter.
On April 20, 1998, Mr. Vidana called to inform the OHCD that he
"hand delivered" the letter to the OHCD on April 3, 1998. The
OHCD checked its records and found that Mr. Vidana was correct.
The OHCD received a hand-delivered letter from Mr. Vidana on
April 3, 1998, and on April 8, 1998, received the same letter by
mail.
Therefore, the OHCD wrote to the Habitat on April 21, 1998,
informing the Habitat that the summary of the comments will be
attached to the 1998 Action Plan.
V - 21