Number
211741
Version
Reference
201188, 210711
Sponsor
ALD. COGGS, DIMITRIJEVIC, HAMILTON, MURPHY, PEREZ AND LEWIS
Title
Resolution endorsing the goals and recommendations of Milwaukee’s Collective Affordable Housing Plan.
Analysis
This resolution endorses Milwaukee’s Collective Affordable Housing Plan that has been prepared by the Community Development Alliance, and directs City departments to work towards implementation of the Plan when carrying out activities related to affordable housing development.
Body
Whereas, In 2018, the City of Milwaukee (“City”) established a goal of creating or improving 10,000 units of affordable housing over a ten year period by implementing a diverse array of strategies to achieve this goal; and
Whereas, In addition to the affordable housing efforts led by the City, Milwaukee has an extensive array of community based organizations, for-profit, and non-profit developers that it often partners with to rehabilitate and develop affordable housing, as well as provide housing counseling services, often to low and moderate income homeowners, and an extensive network of government, philanthropic, lender, and neighborhood partners committed to creating affordable housing within the City; and
Whereas, Since the adoption of the Comprehensive Plan in 2010, there have been multiple City and neighborhood-led planning efforts that have made recommendations related to affordable housing including the City’s Strong Neighborhoods Plan, “A Place in the Neighborhood” Anti-Displacement Plan, Equitable Growth through Transit Oriented Development Plan, and 2020-2024 Consolidated Five Year Plan, as well as numerous neighborhood led strategic and quality of life planning efforts identifying neighborhood-specific housing priorities; and
Whereas, The City’s annual Housing Affordability Report documents the ongoing challenges experienced by Milwaukee residents in securing affordable housing, including findings that more than 71,000 renter households in the City are housing cost burdened, with the highest percentages of cost burdened residents being low-income households, and that Milwaukee has experienced a continuing decrease in owner occupancy since the great recession, exacerbating racial disparities in homeownership; and
Whereas, On January 19, 2021, the Common Council of the City of Milwaukee adopted File No. 201188 directing the Department of City Development (“DCD”) to collaborate with the Community Development Grants Administration (“CDGA”), the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (“HACM”), and local housing stakeholders to develop a comprehensive interagency housing plan; and
Whereas, The Community Development Alliance (“CDA”) is a collaborative body led by local philanthropic and government agencies that are engaged in funding affordable housing efforts, and the CDA is committed to carrying out strategic efforts “advancing racial equity by providing a quality and affordable home for every Milwaukeean;” and
Whereas, The City of Milwaukee is a member of the CDA, and CDA partners have a goal of creating a coordinated approach to addressing affordable housing needs within the City that leverage additional resources, maximize the impact of investments, and are strategically tailored to address Milwaukee’s most critical affordable housing needs; and
Whereas, During 2021, the CDA led the development of Milwaukee’s Collective Affordable Housing Plan to be used as a guiding document by all CDA members in their housing funding and implementation activities; and
Whereas, This Plan was developed under the leadership of an Executive Committee with membership from DCD, CDGA, HACM, the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, the Zilber Family Foundation, the Northwestern Mutual Foundation, Bader Philanthropies, the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, LISC-Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, Children’s Hospital, the Greater Milwaukee Committee, and resident leaders; and
Whereas, This Plan utilized the recommendations contained within past city-wide and neighborhood planning efforts and data from the City’s Housing Affordability report as a foundation, and refined those into priority goals and strategies through an Action Committee process involving more than 70 local housing practitioners and community based organization leaders; and
Whereas, The Plan utilized a racial equity analysis framework to recommend a set of strategies designed to address the two overarching goals of eliminating the gap in homeownership rates between white, Black, and Latino families, and to create and preserve rental housing units affordable for low income households; and
Whereas, The Plan incorporates many strategies already included within various adopted City plans that incorporated significant public outreach; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Common Council of the City of Milwaukee endorses the goals and recommendations of Milwaukee’s Collective Affordable Housing Plan; and, be it,
Further Resolved, That City departments and agencies shall collaborate with the CDA and other partners working on the creation of affordable housing toward implementation of the Collective Affordable Housing Plan; and, be it,
Further Resolved, that the Department of City Development, in collaboration with the CDA and other partners, shall report to the Common Council on a quarterly basis efforts to implement the Plan.
Drafter
DCD:Samuel.Leichtling:spl
03/01/22/A
Amended
03/15/22
Chris Lee