1901 Fairview St., Berkeley, CA 94703

Telephone: (510) 981 5470 Fax: (510) 981 5480

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Berkeley Housing AuthorityBerkeley Housing AuthorityBerkeley Housing AuthorityBerkeley Housing Authority Fiscal Year 2010Fiscal Year 2010Fiscal Year 2010Fiscal Year 2010----11111111

Highlights Highlights Highlights Highlights

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BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

Carole Norris, Chair Valerie Agostino ~ Katharine Gale ~ Richilieu Hemphill

Dorothy Hunt ~ Adolph Moody Marjorie Cox, Vice Chair

STAFF

Tia M. Ingram, Executive Director

Administrative Staff Celinda Aguilar-Vasquez ~ Patricia Baker Rhonda Clark~ Rachel Gonzales-Levine

Housing/Leasing Services Tilda Barnes ~ Linda DeShazier ~ Tracy Jackson Veronica Jefferson ~ Althea Maybon

Finance Staff Jayla Fuenctilla ~ Virgilio Ocampo Jesusa “Jesy” Yturralde

Legal Counsel Jennifer Bell, Goldfarb and Lipman

Inspection Services Sterling Inspection Co.

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I. AGENCY AWARDS

BHA’s administration of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher and Low Income Public

Housing Programs is evaluated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

(HUD) annually.

In April 2011, BHA was awarded “PHA of the Year” by the HUD, SF Region

Office. This award recognized (1) the Berkeley City Council and Berkeley City Manager for

making the very difficult decision to allow BHA to become an independent

entity; (2) the BHA Board for the leadership over the past 4 years; and (3) the

staff of BHA for its extraordinary achievements in the Section 8 Housing Choice

Voucher Program.

The annual Section Eight Management Assessment Program (SEMAP)

assesses BHA performance in the Section 8 Program through 14 Indicators.

These indicators score BHA on 1) Wait List; 2) Reasonable Rent; 3)

Determination of Adjusted Income; 4) Utility Allowance Schedule; 5) Housing Quality Standards;

6) Housing Quality Standards Enforcement; 7) Expanding Housing Opportunities; 8) Payment

Standards; 9) Timely Annual Reexaminations; 10) Correct Tenant Calculations; 11) Pre-contract

Inspections; 13) Lease-Up; and 14) Family Self Sufficiency. BHA self-certified to 90+ points and

“High Performer” status for Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2010. HUD affirmed a score of 93%, and

for the first time in BHA history, awarded “High Performer” status.

The annual Public Housing Assessment System (PHAS) assesses BHA performance in the Low

Income Public Housing Program by 4 Indicators. These indicators score BHA on 1) Physical

Condition; 2) Financial; 3) Management and 4) Resident Satisfaction. BHA self-certified to 71 of

the possible100 points in the PHAS certification for Fiscal Year ending June 30, 2010. HUD

affirmed a score of 71, awarded “Standard Performer” status, and removed

BHA from the troubled list.

II. ADMINISTRATION

It starts with Governance. The Authority has benefitted greatly from a high level of

involvement and engagement by the Board of Commissioners.

The Board grappled with several complex policy issues – and worked hard to

grasp the concepts, and to make the right decision for all the parties. Despite

demands in their personal and professional lives, a quorum of the Board was

present for each of the 15 meetings convened, including 4 special

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meetings/workshops. The average meeting consisted of two hours of active discussion, and

action on items ranging from adoption of new policies to recognition of accomplishments.

Automation. BHA successfully implemented the “Handheld Inspection Module” in our PHA Software system, and transitioned from paper inspections, to electronic

inspection results. This change provides for a more efficient inspection, less confusion for the

reader, and consistent and uniform comments from inspection to inspection.

Website.... We expanded use of the BHA website to

disseminate information to our clients, and to record and publish

actions taken by the Board of Commissioners. Last year we entertained

over 1,100 visitors. Three of our most popular items are the

“Available Unit Listing” report that is updated weekly, and

visited frequently by families looking for an available rental; Commission Agendas and Reports, visited by those interested in tracking action by the Board, and “Owner and Tenant Forms” that allow clients to provide notice or request service without first visiting

the office.

The Dollars and Cents. BHA is a valuable economic factor in the City

of Berkeley ~ for low-income families, and the landlords who house them. Over the

past five years we have successfully pumped between $18 and $22 million into the local

economy each year.

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Financial Stewardship. BHA’s independent audit was performed by Patel and Associates. The audit was completed on schedule, with no

delays or complications. For the third consecutive year, BHA received a

clean audit report with no findings, and this year – there were no comments

in the management letter.

The New”Depression”.... These are tough economic times – not just for BHA, but

for a number of organizations of all sizes throughout California, and across the Country. Under

the watchful and keen eye of the Board and Staff, we were able to employ a combination of cost

savings measures, including concessions from our employee unions, that allowed us to avoid

layoffs and avoid significant reductions in service.

There were at least two reductions in monthly benefit amounts for households receiving

SSI and/or TANF (welfare assistance). Each change impacted over 900 of our

assisted households – necessitating an interim certification to reduce the family rent portion, and

increase the BHA rent portion. The question wasn’t “if we have to process a change” – the

question was “how fast can we process the change”. Thanks to the dedication of

staff, we completed the transaction for most families within 3 weeks of submission.

Complaints/Inquiries/Lawsuits. In addition to the garden variety of

complaints that we typically receive, we were taxed with a Fair Housing complaint; lawsuits from

two former Section 8 Program participants; and 3 congressional inquiries on behalf of current

program participants. Well documented files, strong testimony from staff, and expert advice

from legal counsel, Goldfarb and Lipman, BHA prevailed in each of the cases.

Work Place Safety. A safe staff is a productive staff. The

BHA management team goes to great lengths to insure workplace safety,

create and maintain an environment where staff can feel free to exercise

good judgment and think outside the box, and incorporate fun into the work.

As a result, we enjoy a true sense of “family” in the office – and can report 0 workplace injuries; 0 worker compensation claims; and no employee grievances.

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III. PARTNERSHIPS

The name of the game is collaboration. BHA continued its efforts to develop relationships with

various City and community stakeholders including:

Legal advocates. To a large extent, there is an overlap in the families served

by BHA, Bay Area Legal Aid and East Bay Community Law Center (EBCLC). As in the past, there were occasions where we were advocating for

different outcomes in Informal Hearings. There were other situations where our interaction

resulted in both parties winning , such as our collaboration on the Annual Plan, Violence Against

Women (VAWA) Policy , S8 Foreclosure crisis, and our in-service staff trainings.

Health and Housing. For the second year, BHA partnered with Children’s Hospital, facilitating a quarterly lecture on housing issues – as part of the

training program for Medical Interns. The program director noted “this is the

most popular of our programs” – and asked to continue this collaboration

another year.

Community First. Our commitment to being a good neighbor was strengthened

significantly this year by our ongoing collaboration with the Berkeley Police Department and the Berkeley City Manager’s Office of Neighborhood Services. Through this collaboration we have

been able to address crime and nuisance behavior neighborhoods and

specifically in buildings where there is interest by a Landlord to preserve or

begin receiving Section 8 rental subsidies. This past year we investigated over

32 complaints. Equally important, we have sent a consistent message to the

community that assisted households have a responsibility to their neighbors,

and that BHA will bring every necessary resource to the table to ensure assisted families have a

safe and decent place to live and that landlords act responsibly.

City Collaboration. Not exactly a Sister City relationship – but BHA benefitted greatly

from the technical expertise shared by various City departments. Invaluable assistance was

received from (a) the Rent Stabilization Program on issues related to current rent

trends, the LIPH disposition project and Informal Hearings; (b) the Housing Department

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on issues associated with the LIPH disposition and Section 8 Project Based assistance; (c) the

City Auditor on issues related to Payroll services; and (d) the Human Resources Management Department on alignment of various employee benefit programs.

IV. SECTION 8 HOUSING CHOICE VOUCHER

The Voucher program is BHA’s single largest program, with a HUD allocation of 1,841 Vouchers to serve senior, disabled, family and single person low-income households. BHA maximized the available

funds, and assisted close to 1,900 families during the course of the Fiscal

Year with an average rental subsidy of $1,016 per month.

An annual review (certification) is required to ensure the family is eligible for assistance,

and to determine the benefit amount. BHA processed over 1,900 such certifications, while

maintaining an on-time HUD reporting rate between 97 and 100% each month.

A physical inspection of the rental unit is performed at least

annually as a means of ensuring the family is residing in safe and decent housing.

More than 3,300 inspections (including reinspections) were performed. We

grappled with a “no-shows” rate of approximately 15%, and an additional 11% of

units that fail the initial inspection and require at least one additional inspection to clear the

violations. In spite of the challenges, we maintained a HUD reporting rate of 95% or better

for the year.

The beauty of the Section 8 voucher Program is the fact that families can chose where to live, and can move to different units as their needs change, without having to

sacrifice affordability. This past year we processed over 250 new contracts, to facilitate

families moving from one unit, to another, with rental assistance.

There simply isn’t enough quality, affordable rental housing for financially distressed

families. To this end, BHA utilized the Section 8 Project Base Program to add 44 long-

term affordable rental housing units in the City of Berkeley. This was accomplished by the award

of Project Based vouchers to non-BHA owned units serving families, seniors and disabled

households at 4 different locations in the City. An additional 75 project based vouchers were

awarded to BHA for the BHA owned large family rental units.

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Homeless no more – the face of the “homelessness” has changed, and now

includes more seniors, disabled, and families with children. BHA was fortunate

to be 1 of 3 Housing Authorities in California included in a National program to

evaluate various models for transitioning individuals and families from shelters

to permanent housing. Through our participation we were able to assist 10

such households by providing permanent, Section 8 rental assistance, while

earning additional income for the Authority.

More than a Voucher. It was a very moving moment for staff

and BHA Commissioners as 84 year old S8 participant Evelyn Wilson stood

to receive her certificate and shared how it was possible to accomplish what she

didn’t believe was possible, all because a BHA staff member made her believe in

herself ~ and she learned to read!

V. PUBLIC HOUSING

We did it! We put our money where our hearts had been – and we hired a public housing resident to fill a short-term vacancy in our office. In HUD-speak

this is a qualifying “Section 3” hire – where BHA first considers Public Housing

Residents, then Section 8 program participants for economic opportunities that

arise in Housing Authority operations. The experience was positive for the

Resident who came to better appreciate the complexities of our Agency, and we

benefitted from her skills and commitment to service.

With more empty nester households, and the active cooperation of our residents, we were

able to reduce the amount of trash ending up in a landfill somewhere. We reduced the size of

our waste containers from 64 to 32 gallons, provided larger recycling containers – and our

residents got aggressive in increasing their commitment to recycling.

We believe, thus we can achieve. With great honor, BHA recognized the academic accomplishments of 3 public housing residents including Nya Sandeford a 4th grade student at Longfellow Elementary School;

Jasmeen Kelly, a high school graduate heading off to the University of

California at Berkeley; and Gregory Green, upon the award of

Doctorate of Divinity from American Baptist Seminary of the West.

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It is hard to call it “home” – if your mobility impairment makes it

difficult and unsafe to travel to and from your unit. This year we completed

the long awaited street and sidewalk repairs, and ramp renovations serving one of our disabled units at the Sojourner Truth

location. We are glad we made it happen.

It is okay to play in the dirt; sometimes. We are excited about our

collaboration with residents to develop a community garden where residents

of all ages can participate in growing fresh fruits and vegetables. While still in

its infancy, the excitement of the residents involved – and the bounty of food

being grown, is very exciting.

Quality Living Units. Progress was made on the path to transitioning

the 75 units of BHA owned housing to a developer who can assemble the finances necessary to

bring ALL of the units up to market standards AND preserve the affordability for low- and modest

income households. Of greatest significance is the commitment the Board made to ensure that

the project meets the following goals:

1. At least 75 units would be preserved as permanently affordable rental units;

2. There would be rental protections for existing tenants to ensure that no resident is

required to pay more than 30% of adjusted income for rent; and,

3. The units will be rehabilitated to modern standards.

While change is always difficult, we are starting to get excited about the

improvements that will be made to the units, and the increased comfort and pride residents will have in these affordable, market

units.

VI. CUSTOMER SERVICE

As an Agency, we realize it is not about us. In the best case there would be no need for a

Housing Authority, because everyone would have access to safe, decent housing. Until that day –

we remain committed to appreciating our clients, and providing the best possible service.

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Landlords. Without the 900 or so landlords participating in our

Section 8 Voucher Program – there would be no program. In October the

Board recognized three owners for their active and long-term participation in

the Program: Elson Nash, Barbara Davis, and Samuel Scott.

Rental Subsidy Payments. HUD regulations require BHA to

make regular and timely payments of the rental subsidy to participating landlords provided (a)

the unit meets minimum Housing Quality Standards and (b) the unit is occupied by an eligible

family. We meet and exceed this requirement by

processing a 1st of the month check run, AND weekly check runs for

additional payments. This discretionary weekly check run minimizes the

time an owners unit is occupied without payment. It is just one way we

have of saying “thank you for your participation”.

Reasonable Accommodation. It is more than a word, and more

than a law. True Reasonable Accommodation involves listening to the individual, and using the

available tools to level the playing field so that the disabled individual

has equal access to the services offered by the Housing Authority. Last year

BHA processed over 45 requests on behalf of households with one or more

disabled members.

Safety First. We were on the cutting edge in stressing safety in ALL units assisted by

BHA. Preceding the January 2012 law that will require Carbon Monoxide detectors in

rental units – we added this requirement to our Housing Quality Standards in March 2009, and

began requiring a devise in all assisted units in January 2010.

May I Help You? BHA offices are open Monday through Thursday. Staff is

generally available by appointment only. Notwithstanding these two criteria,

BHA greeted an average of 753 visitors each month. We are very

pleased to report receipt of 4 written accommodations for service rendered

by our receptionist and 17 for other staff.