DATE: June 7, 2022
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager/Executive Director
FROM: Patrick Prescott , Community Development Director/Assistant Executive Director
VIA: Simone McFarland, Assistant Community Development Director BY: Maribel Leyland, Housing Authority Manager
SUBJECT: Consideration to Continue and Expand the Lifting People Up Program Citywide to Eligible Households
RECOMMENDATION
Approve the updated and expanded Lifting People U p Program (LPU Program) in partnership with Home Again Los Angeles (Home Again), formerly Family Promise of the Verdugos, to eligible homeless households or households at risk of homelessness citywide.
BACKGROUND
On March 26, 2019, the City Council approved the LPU Pilot program in partnership with the Burbank Housing Corporation (BHC) and Glendale Communitas Initiative (Communitas).
1 The LPU Program was approved with the goal of assisting households with financial self-sufficiency though education and direct tenant participation . The LPU Program encompassed case management, education, job training, and supportive services to assist underempl oyed and fixed- income households that may be at risk of homelessness without rental subsidies for BHC’s tenants.
The LPU Program drew upon the goals of the existing federal Family Self Sufficiency and Moving to Work programs; both aimed at improving the financial stability of households through employment and earned income. The goals of those programs were coupled with Burbank specific needs, and targeted BHC households to assist them in gaining employment (possibly for the first time ), and/or improving financial stability; along with potentially leading to new housing options and opportunities.
1 Communitas was a nonprofit organization, founded in 2013 with experience in creating pathways out of poverty for individuals and families. Communitas was referred by Los Angeles County Supervisor Katherine Barger’s office. It is now a defunct organization. 2 Successor Housing Agency monies were utilized to fund the pilot LPU Program during Fiscal Year ( FY) 2018-20192 and the City Council approved funding for three years , ending in FY 2020-2021.
Below are the results of the three-year LPU Program administered by Home Again who took over the Program from Communitas from January 2020 to December 2021 along with the proposal to expand the programming citywide.
DISCUSSION
Program
The pilot LPU Program is aimed to providing financial self-sufficiency with the goals to:
• Increase financial independence
• Homelessness prevention
• Assist individuals and families to increase household income • As income increases, consider new housing options the participant could afford
It was envisioned that some households could increase income through education, enabling them to “move-up” in income designation. For example, moving from an extremely-low income designation to a low -income designation to a moderate income level and eventually out of affordable housing designations altogether. This movement through increasing income levels would create availability to those in need of lower - income units as the number available is limited.
The LPU pilot program ’s curriculum includes education on: Life Skills, Employment, Financial Planning, and Individual Mentoring to develop personal action plans . A summary of the different components that made up the LPU Program is in Attachment 1.
Communitas assisted with the development and implementation of the LPU Program in the first year; through December 2019. Home Again (Family Promise of the Verdugos at the time), implemented the program beginning in January 2020. Within two months of taking over the program ming from Communitas, the COVID-19 Pandemic (Pandemic) impacted the world.
BHC households experienced job loss and decreases in income resulting in changing needs. Home Again shift ed their curriculum to adapt and added in new assistance opportunities through the Housing is Key program . In lieu of meeting in person, v irtual classes were conducted via Zoom and recorded to be placed on th e YouTube Channel for maximum exposure. Office hours were offered to allow BHC residents to come in and engage (following all health department rules and guidance) in furthering their education.
The Pandemic brought to light that BHC residents love their BHC home and neighborhood. They do not want to move from BHC units. During the three- year pilot program, Home Again and partners worked with BHC households to increase income and
2 The Burbank Housing Authority as the housing successor to the former redevelopment agency may expend up to two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) per fiscal year for homeless prevention for individuals and families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
3 move to affordable units based on income (within BHC’s portfolio of affordable housing units). However, LPU Program participants did not move out of BHC units; an anticipated outcome at the start of the program.
With the ending of the current contract in December 2021, Home Again and BHC have continued their partnership beyond the LPU Program a nd are working together to raise private funds to continue to provide similar programs and supportive services specific to BHC households.
Results of Pilot LPU Program
Each component of the LPU Program had specific objectives that were tracked, monitored, and reported on a quarterly basis . T he Pandemic required Home Again to seek partnerships and leverage programming to assist households being affected by the Pandemic; therefore, the metrics of success changed and evolved to meet the needs of each family or individual participant . Attachment 2 s ummarizes the participation in and the successes of the LPU Program . Highlights of the three- year pilot LPU Program include:
1) Serving Burbank Housing Corporation households 705 times 2) Providing more than 60 virtual workshops in English and Spanish 3) The combined number of YouTube views of these workshops equates to more than 2,700
4) Assisted more than 50 households in receiving funding through the state’s Housing Is Key program
One success story to highlight is the help given to a mother of two who is the sole provider for the family and lost her job due to the P andemic. T hrough the LPU Program she received case management, a complete assessment of needs, registered for workshops and attended one-on-one sessions with a financial planning coach. This effort resulted in the family receiv ing available financial assistance and financial stability . Express Employment, a partner who provides access to employment opportunities, helped her to find a job at a local real estate office as a Real Estate Administrative Assistant. She shares “…I regained my faith and thanked God for directing me to this organization. I am excited that I was able to secure work and keep my housing. I always thought I would lose my home and have to move somewhere. I feel safe in Burbank, my kids feel safe, and I was afraid to lose my community.”
Proposal for Expansion and New Program
Learning from the Pilot program and adapting to life post -Pandemic, Home Again has submitted a proposal to expand the program citywide (Attachment 3). The expanded program will serve all eligible residents in Burbank who want support with increasing income, securing employment, maintaining their housing, and leveraging existing programs offered at Home Again and with their community partners. Home Again will work with partners in the city for referrals (including the City’s S ocial Worker housed at the Burbank Public Library), who provide similar case management services, but not the workshops and other services as summarized in the next sections of the report.
4 Finally, Home Again is proposing a name change to “Lifting People Up - Citywide!” or LPU-Citywide! which aligns more with the proposed program goals.
Expanding Program Proposals
The following is a summary of the salient points of the proposed LPU–Citywide! Program:
Upon approval staff will complete a Professional Services Agreement (PSA) with Home Again.
1) Funding: $50,000 will come from the Successor Housing Agency FY 2022-2023 budget. Home Again will leverage their own funds ($44,300) to total funds $94,300. 2) Target Population: households (adults or families) citywide at risk of experiencing homelessness at or below 50% of the Area Median Income.3 3) Enhancements: Home Again will leverage existing housing programs for enhanced housing stability for participants through partnerships with the County of Los Angeles and the State of California.
4) Programing: The proposed LPU-Citywide! Program is a unique, “one-stop-shop” that focuses on an array of components specific to each participant household with the goal of stabilizing the household for homeless prevention. 5) Locations: Home Again will utilize available locations citywide for programming; including BHC Activity Centers as available.
Goals and Metrics of Success
Home Again will conduct pre and post surveys for clients to track knowledge, self-esteem and other improvements and track all client outcomes who participate in the program (i.e. household information, financial goals, employment goals, etc.). They will report program progress quarterly to city staff as summarized below:
Target Outcomes of Community Education Workshops
1) 50% of those participating in workshops will engage in one-on-one case management to help build a stability plan
2) 75% of those participating in workshops will achieve the goals they set forth during the initial case management session with our case manager 3) 100% of all qualified participants will apply for available appropriate social, educational and health benefits (i.e. General Relief, Cal Fresh, Department of Rehabilitation, TANF, etc.)
Target Outcomes of One-on-One Case Management
1) 100% of clients seeking one-on-one case management will create a personalized stability plan
2) 75% of clients will achieve at minimum of one goal from their stability plan 3) 50% of clients will increase household income based on the resources Home Again was able to secure for the clients.
3 This is the very-low-income category as established by HUD or 50% of the Area Median Income (AMI). Income limits change every year as published by HUD. In 2022, as an example, a one person very-low-income person (50% of AMI) would have an income of no more than $41,000 a year. The income limit for a two-person household is $47,650. 5 Finally, Home Again staff will conduct weekly internal audits to track effectiveness based on client experience and growth. These internal audits will include team meetings, including staff as necessary . A sample Reporting and Metrics of Success template is included as Attachment 4.
FISCAL IMPACT
There will be no fiscal impact to the City’s General Fund. The total cost of the expanded program for FY 2022-2023 is included in the proposed Housing Authority Budget in the amount of $50,000 to be funded with available Successor Housing Agency funds.
CONCLUSION
As part of the City’s goals to provide subsidized housing units to lower -income households and homeless prevention services, the pilot LPU Program provided case management, education and job training, and supportive services to assist underemployed and fixed-income households in BHC units. Successor Housing Agency funds were utilized to fund the pilot LPU Program for three years for homeless prevention efforts. Based on lessons learned from the Program, Home Again has submitted a proposal to expand the LPU Program, rebranding it as LPU -Citywide! to assist eligible households in the community who need support with increasing income, securing employment, maintaining their housing, all the while leveraging existing programs offered at Home Again to stabilize their household for homeless prevention.
The proposed LPU-Citywide! Program is unique as it focuses on an array of components under one organization to assist one household at a time. In the long-term, Home Again expects the program will be self-sustaining through possible partnerships with employers, and with available county, federal or other funding. Staff will continue to work with Home Again to monitor and report the outcomes of the expanded program to meet the changing needs of the community.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Lifting People Up Pilot Program Summary
Attachment 2 – Program Summary 2019-2021
Attachment 3 – Lifting People Up – Citywide! Proposal
Attachment 4 – Reporting and Metrics of Success Sample Template