Building Up: Developing a Supportive Housing Project

1. Building Up: Developing a Supportive Housing Project Alison Recca-Ryan Leslie Wise John Rowland NATIONAL ALLIANCE TO END HOMELESSNESS CONFERENCE – JULY 12, 2005 Corporation for Supportive Housingwww.csh.org

2. Overview of the Agenda • Who is CSH • Defining Supportive Housing • What is Supportive Housing • Population served • Who Creates and Runs SH • Models of Housing and Services • The Environment for Supportive Housing • Systems Fragmented vs. Systems Integrated • Funding environment • Planning & Systems environment • Small Group Break-Out Discussion • Financing of SH

3. Our Mission CSH helps communities create permanent housing with services to prevent and end homelessness

4. CSH’s Core Services • Project development and finance assistance • Organizational/industry capacity building • Advocacy/public policy reform

5. What is Supportive Housing? A cost-effective combination of permanent affordable housing with services that helps people live more stable, productive lives.

6. A Distinctive Solution Supportive Housing • Stable, no time limits • Independent living • Belong to a community • Personal responsibility for behavior and rent • New approach to services Temporary/ Transitional Interventions • Uncertain length of stay • Program requirements • Isolated • Reinforce dependency

7. Who Lives There? • Formerly homeless individuals, families, youth • People with serious, persistent issues: substance use, mental illness, HIV/AIDS • People being discharged into homelessness from the criminal justice system or other institutional settings

8. Supportive Housing Worksfor people • 57%  emergency room visits • 85%  emergency detox services • 50%  incarceration rate • 50%  in earned income • More than 80% stay housed for at least one year

9. Supportive Housing Worksfor communities • Increased property values • Neighborhood beautification • Lower crime rates • Overall economic impact • More effective use of public resources

10. Supportive Housing Types • Dedicated buildings • Rent-subsidized apartments • Mixed-income buildings • Long-term set asides • Single-family homes

11. Services Make the Difference • Flexible, voluntary • Counseling • Health and mental health • Alcohol and substance use • Independent living skills • Community building • Vocational counseling and job placement

12. In Supportive Housing, Tenants Choose to: • Access appropriate care for and manage chronic health and mental health conditions • Take steps toward achieving and maintaining sobriety • Achieve housing stability • Work • Socialize • Be leaders in their community • Connect with the wider world • Pursue goals and interests

13. Tenant Commentary “I have 2 years clean and sober, a steady job, I pay my own rent – all of which I could not have done without supportive housing.” Charlie Miller, TenantCanon Kip, CA

14. Models of Supportive Housing

15. Models for Supportive Housing: Traditional Development • Creates a permanent asset to the community • Involves acquisition and construction and the full compliment of development activities. • Can take 2-3 years (or more!) to develop • Involves establishing on-going funding sources and providers for operating and services Creates a permanent asset to the community

16. Models for Supportive Housing: Traditional Development • Developing Project Concept/Assessing Feasibility • Building a Development Team • Identifying and Securing Resources • Program Design and Construction • Preparing for Operations • Lease-up

17. Center House,Asbury Park, NJ • 25 units • Urban, single structure • Combines Residential & Day Center • Homeless individuals with HIV/AIDS • On- and off-site services provided by consortium of local agencies • TDC $4.5 million; HUD SHP, LIHTC, HOME, Balanced Housing, FHLB

18. The Fortune Society “The Castle” • Targeted tenancy: Formerly incarcerated men and women, including PWAs • Model: Single-site supportive housing (41 units) and Shelter (18 beds) • Funding: • Capital: HHAP, LIHTC, Historic Tax Credits • Operating: HOPWA, HUD S+C (pending) • Services: HUD SHP, HOPWA SPNS, HOPWA, Existing agency services

19. Columbus, Ohio • 100 efficiency apartments • 50% for chronically homeless men and women, 50% for low income people • Community room, linkage to healthcare, education, and employment services • Faith-based sponsor

20. Models for Supportive Housing: Accessing Existing Housing • Sometimes referred to as “Housing First”, also might be referred to as Scattered Site Housing • Integrates residents into the community • Can “retrofit” existing affordable housing and add services in a single site • Once secure rental subsidy, can move very quickly • Involves establishing ongoing funding sources and providers for operating and services

21. Accessing Existing Housing:Opportunities Without Building • Turn-key development • Don’t develop, but get the building…. • Master Leasing • Often times fast and easy… • Scattered-Site • The model of choice for many residents

22. Models for Supportive Housing: Accessing Existing Housing • Accessing existing rental units in the community and adding wrap around services • Integrates residents into the community • Once secure rental subsidy, can move very quickly • Involves establishing on-going funding sources and providers for operating and services

23. Scattered Site: One Example • Using existing apartments in the community • Provider does not own units but might master lease • No rehabilitation or construction involved – take apartments “as is” • Owner of apartments typically private landlords who own large and small apartment buildings or 2-4 family houses

24. Direct Access to Housing in CA • The city of SF acquires sites for the DAH program through “master leasing” • Most units have private baths and shared cooking facilities • DAH housing presently includes: • The Camelot Hotel (51) • Windsor Hotel (78 units) • Star Hotel (54 units) • Pacific Bay Inn (75 units) • Le Nain Hotel (86 units) • Broderick Street Adult Residential Care Facility (34 units).

25. LA: “No Fail” Housing • Lamp Lodge is the permanent housing component of LAMP Inc.’s continuum of housing opportunities for people with mental illnesses in Los Angeles • All are homeless when they arrive, and have a history of mental illness; they may have substance use issues as well • LAMP focuses on a philosophy of “no fail” housing and a “non-linear case management” model

26. Sunshine Terrace: A Partnership with a PHA in Ohio • Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority and the YMCA of Central Ohio partnered to convert Sunshine Terrace into supportive housing • 50 units for formerly homeless, services and security, retraining of on-site staff • Project is now fully occupied

27. Who Creates Supportive Housing

28. Who Creates Supportive Housing • A wide variety of entities can create and operate supportive housing • The deciding factors include the type of SH and the population to be served, the organization’s experience and capacity, the competitive environment, and even the funding sources • Partnerships are also prevalent in SH creation

29. Who Creates Supportive Housing • Mental Health and other Service Providers • Homeless Service Providers • NFP Affordable Housing Provider • Public Housing Authorities • Private Developers and Private Landlords • SH providers who only create and run SH

30. Who Creates Supportive Housing In some locales, there is a targeted initiative which creates the environment for supportive housing creation: • In CT, the state agencies came together to create a Demonstration and then the PILOTS initiative • In NJ, the state created a “Long Term Support Program” and put out an RFQ to find providers • In CA, San Francisco and surrounding counties have done targeted SH initiatives called HHISN

31. The Environment for Supportive Housing

32. Systems Fragmentation vs. Systems Integration: Challenges to Supportive Housing • Integrated services and supportive housing are products with proven effectiveness ending chronic homelessness – but without a system to produce them • Siting/NIMBYism • Services funding • Sustainability • Results take time • Political will and support • Often, success means using money for purposed that weren’t officially intended

33. Systems Fragmentation vs. Systems Integration: Many systemsshare responsibility and serve many of the same clients • Homeless services • Social services • Employment • Child welfare • Education • Mental health • Substance abuse • Housing development and finance • Rent subsidy • Hospitals, clinics, public health • Criminal justice

34. A Vision for a Better System • Supportive housing as “standard response” • New and reliable sources of funding • Streamlined process for approving service and housing funds • Supportive housing as a tool for community development

35. Funding Environment • New federal, state, and local investments • Increased corporate and foundation funding • Pressure to access Medicaid and other mainstream funding sources for services and operation • Services for Ending Long-Term Homelessness Act • Modifications to Existing Sources – LIHTC, HUD McKinney-Vento Homeless Asst., DOL

36. National Momentum • New federal, state, and local investments • Increased corporate and foundation funding • U.S. Conference of Mayors • Interagency Council on Homelessness • New Freedom Mental Health Commission • Samaritan Initiative • Services for Ending Long-Term Homelessness Act

37. Local Planning & Momentum • City, County and State 10-Year Plans to End Homelessness • State Interagency Council on Homelessness • Continuum of Care Planning Groups & Process • State Policy Academies on Chronic Homelessness and Family Homelessness

38. Small Group Discussion Supportive Housing Development In Your Community: Key Partnerships and the impact of Federal, State, Local Environments

39. The Financing of Supportive Housing

40. Financing of Supportive Housing • Supportive housing requires the financing of three distinct components – development, operating and services • Generally the projects require deep subsidies and ongoing intensive services • The average # of funders for a supportive housing project is 7 but it can range from 2 to 10

41. Financing Plan

43. Identifying & Securing Resources

44. Funding Considerations • Type of project • Population served • Eligible applicant • Experience and team • Compliance/regulations • Geography

45. Capital – The Bricks and Mortar Capital costs are directly tied to the acquisition and development of the project, including “hard” costs and “soft” costs.

46. Capital Potential Funding Sources

47. Operating Subsidy The difference between the rents paid by the tenants and the cost of operating the completed building

48. Operating Subsidy Potential Funding Sources

49. Support Services What services will be made available to building residents • General Supportive Services • Independent Living Skills • Health Medical Services • Substance Abuse Services • Vocational Services • Services for Families

50. Support Services Potential Funding Sources