Historically, landlords of multi-unit housing rental properties have been required to include 15% of “affordable” units for low and very low-income tenants. That is changing, in part due to a 2009 landmark court decision in Los Angeles (Palmer/Sixth Street Properties, L.P. v. City of Los Angeles). The court found that forcing landlords to provide low-income units without subsidies violated the Costa-Hawkins Act, which allows landlords to raise rents after tenants move out, effectively eliminating rent control. Why is a lack of Affordable Housing important? Consider… The jobless rate in Sacramento rose slightly last week to 11.4%.* About 93,000 jobless workers were recently notified tha

Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association recently hired Ryan Chin as Operations Manager. At Mutual Housing, he will oversee human resource, risk management, contracts administration, computer networks and systems, and office management. He also will play an integral role in organizational development of the nonprofit and be a member of Mutual Housing’s management team. Chin was formerly California State University, Sacramento, Publications’ Director where he managed the publications for the university, including the online version of Sac State Magazine as well as materials for the colleges and departments. As an Associate Director of Marketing at Stanford University, he promoted the St

David Watts Barton hosted his final “Insight” show on Capital Public Radio Tuesday, and we talked about a few stories that have caught the attention of Sacramentans recently, including arena financing, affordable housing and utilities rate hikes. After Mayor Kevin Johnson announced a tentative agreement to get a new arena built followed by a 7-2 vote by the City Council in favor of moving forward with the project, it looks like a done deal. But a local group called Sacramento Taxpayers Opposed to Pork is making an effort to put the kibosh on the deal with a new November ballot initiative. The initiative would require any public financing for the new entertainment and sports complex to g

With lenders tightening credit and the housing market still in flux, renters and homeowners are finding it hard to find an affordable place to live. Because funding is at all-time lows, nonprofit developers of multi-family and for-sale housing are looking for new ways to finance communities for people of modest means. Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association is no exception. The recent introduction of California bills like the HOMeS Act (Senate Bill 1220) could help. Introduced by Mark DeSaulnier (C-Concord) and Senate President pro tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) as well as co-author Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) on the Assembly side, the bill would generate an estimated $700 million

When 30-year Sacramento resident Tracy Underwood applied for a single occupancy unit in the soon-to-be refurbished Hotel Berry last month, his application was denied – despite having lived at the same address for the past 25 years and having been at the same job for 15 years – because he had more than one negative line on his credit report. “I need my rent based on my income so I can pay off some debt, save some money and then move so my studio will be available to the next person that needs help,” Underwood, 44, said in an email Wednesday. Many people affected by the downturn in the economy find themselves in need of more affordable housing, but getting access to that housing can be a l

Agency Will Continue Focus on Core Competencies of Affordable Housing, Community Revitalization, and Job Creation Sacramento, CA | Officials of the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA) have transferred assets and debts formerly held by the Redevelopment Agency to the City of Sacramento and the County of Sacramento as of February 1, the date on which all redevelopment agencies in California ceased to exist under AB 1X26, the Dissolution Act. “We’re not going to pity ourselves over the unfortunate demise of redevelopment because there is still a great need for the things that redevelopment was able to accomplish,” said La Shelle Dozier, SHRA Executive Director. “We’re still h

Mere days before the Feb. 1 deadline to end redevelopment, the City Council is faced with two important decisions: what role the city will take in the aftermath, and what will happen to agency staff when redevelopment ends. Although the City Council did not take any action at the meeting Tuesday, City Manager John Shirey outlined the next steps for council members as the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency winds down. Shirey is the former executive director president of the California Redevelopment Association. SHRA is the agency responsible for redevelopment in Sacramento County and the city. An important factor in the process is figuring out what responsibilities the city wil

Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association recently was chosen as a finalist for the Inspire Giving award, a program of the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce that encourages civic-minded leadership, volunteerism and philanthropic giving. The other finalists are Raft, Roseville Home Start, Seniors First and Soil Born Farms. Mutual Housing develops and operates permanently affordable housing in Sacramento and Yolo county that builds strong and stable communities through resident participation and leadership development. With more than 900 homes, it serves some 2,700 low- to moderate-income residents, half of whom are children. Raft helps educators transform the learning experience thro

SACRAMENTO, CA | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Regional Administrator Ophelia Basgal joined Congresswoman Doris Matsui in Sacramento announced on January 10 that Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency will receive a $300,000 Choice Neighborhoods Planning Grant. Sacramento is one of 13 cities nationwide receiving this funding to begin grassroots efforts to revitalize the Twin Rivers Community Housing, a distressed public housing development at 321 Eliza Street, and transform the Sacramento River District-Railyards neighborhood. “All across the country, local planners are serious about rolling up their sleeves to transform distressed neighborhoods into choice n

  SACRAMENTO, CA | For the first time in its history, the Housing Authority of the City of Sacramento has received a High Performer designation on the Public Housing Assessment System Score Report from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Housing Authority received a PHAS total score of 90 out of 100. The assessment period covered the fiscal year ending December 31, 2010. “This is a great accomplishment for the Housing Authority,” said La Shelle Dozier, Executive Director of Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, a Joint Powers Agency which includes the Housing Authority. “We redoubled our efforts to improve our performance in all of the scoring categories and

Q. My brother is going to get out of jail soon, and we were planning on him moving in with me, but his parole officer told him he couldn’t because he has to register as a sex offender and I live too close to an elementary school, which is against “Megan’s Law” or “Jessica’s Law” or something like that. Isn’t there anything we can do? I’m afraid if he doesn’t live with me he will be homeless. Jerri A. California’s Megan’s Law requires anyone convicted of a wide range of crimes, including forcible sex crimes involving non-consenting adults and most sex crimes involving children, prostitution, and child pornography, to register as a sex offender upon release on parole or probation or discha

For families barely making ends meet, holidays are a difficult time. Many parents at Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing communities are having a hard time providing gifts for their children this year. “This time of year can be especially trying for parents in our communities,” said Rachel Iskow, Executive Director of Mutual Housing. "In fact, half of Mutual Housing's 2600 residents are children." People can help by dropping off non-perishable food and new, unwrapped children’s gifts at the Mutual Housing office, 8001 Fruitridge Road, Sacramento 95820 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, until Thursday, December 22nd. “We will make sure your donation gets to a family right away,” sa

Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association celebrated the grand opening of the Highlands yesterday. The celebration included tours of the 90-apartment community and a ceremony honoring Darrell Steinberg, State Senate President Pro Tem and author of the California Mental health Services Act (Proposition 63) that provides partial operating support for the development. Located on a 3.5-acre parcel in the McClellan Redevelopment Area, the Highlands has 66 efficiency apartments for formerly homeless people and 12 studio apartments and 12 three-bedroom ones for people of modest means. The complex has a community room and kitchen, a computer lab and conference room as well as offices for staff.

Sacramento, CA | The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced that Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency is a recipient of a $150,000 Community Challenge Planning Grant from the Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities. The Agency will administer the grant on behalf of the Housing Authority of the County of Sacramento and is one of only two grantees in the state of California. The highly competitive 2011 Sustainable Communities grants totaled $97 million. Only 27 communities and organizations will receive the Community Challenge grants. The goal of the Sustainable Communities grants is to help communities improve their economic competitiveness by connect

Rich Ciraulo has been hired as the Director of Asset Management by Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association. In this role, he is responsible for planning and monitoring the operations and financial performance of Mutual Housing’s 15 regional communities. Ciraulo will handle acquisitions, refinancing and rehabilitation to preserve the portfolio as well as develop and maintain investor and lender relationships. He also will implement long-term strategies to improve performance that meets the nonprofit’s goals. Prior to joining Mutual Housing, Ciraulo was a Senior Project Manager at Mercy Housing California. At Mercy, he oversaw the planning, financing, design and construction of their mix

Mindy Romero has been appointed the new chair of the board of directors Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association. She replaces Greg Chew, who remains on the board. A researcher at the Center for Regional Change, University of California, Davis, Romero also is a doctoral candidate in the UCD Department of Sociology. Romero has been on the board for the past three years and was with the Yolo Mutual Housing Association’s board before the two nonprofits affiliated. She lives in Davis. Mutual Housing develops and operates well-designed rental housing for modest-income households. The communities have 2,600 residents, half of whom are children. Through Mutual Housing’s focus on leadership,

Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA) has been named a 2011 recipient of the prestigious National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) Merit Award for its efforts to reorganize electronic database waiting lists for the Sacramento region. SHRA received the award for the Access Code for Wait List in Administrative Innovation category. The award recognizes outstanding achievement in housing and community development programs throughout the nation. “I am very proud of this unique model that the Sacramento Public Housing Authority has developed for our applicants,” said SHRA Executive Director La Shelle Dozier. “This process has created greater efficiency and

The future of development and affordable housing projects in Sacramento is starting to look pretty grim. Gov. Jerry Brown signed the state budget into law June 29, putting two new bills into effect that significantly impact redevelopment agencies: ABx26 and ABx27. “There is no good news in any of this,” said La Shelle Dozier, executive director for the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA). “It’s very detrimental, given the fact that we have an economy that’s struggling.” The two bills go hand-in-hand. ABx26 says redevelopment agencies can opt to discontinue redevelopment activities and be dissolved. ABx27 says that if redevelopment agencies pay a first-year lump sum paymen

With the approval of the 700 block project on K street, developers Bay Miry and Ali Youssefi are closer to realizing their long-awaited vision. But that vision has changed in some unexpected ways since its initial proposal. First, that vision “got a lot bigger,” Miry said. When Miry and Youssefi were awarded the project in July 2010, they didn’t have access to the interior of the buildings at the project site. “The initial proposal was very conceptual in nature,” Youssefi said. “We knew that if our team was selected we'd have the opportunity (later) to refine the project design based on a thorough inspection of all the buildings.” Once they were handed keys in late August, they had a

Officials from the County Redevelopment Agency (www.shra.org) and developer BRIDGE Housing Corporation broke ground today on a new 138-unit apartment complex for low income seniors in the Old Foothill Farms community at 5400 Auburn Boulevard, the site of a former Kmart retail center. “I think this project is going to be a great synergy for the community and for this corner,” said Supervisor Susan Peters whose district includes the Old Foothill Farms community. The development is the first project that BRIDGE Housing will build in Sacramento. President and CEO Cynthia Parker says the apartments will be a catalyst for revitalizing the area. “This is a first step to attracting other develo