Fremont City Council Meeting: 07/08/25 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Human Services Department Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Agreements and Contracts
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 5422) DOC ID: 5422
Updated: 7/3/2025 8:16 AM by Dina Lewis Page 1
AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE FEDERAL HOME GRANT FUNDING AGREEMENTS – Authorize the City Manager to execute HOME Funding Agreements to Fremont Family Resource Center and Abode Services Contact Persons:
Name: Robert Lopez Arquimides Caldera
Title: CDBG Administrator Human Services Director
Div/Dept: Human Services Department Human Services Department Phone: 510-574-2043 510-574-2056
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: The purpose of this staff report is to request that the City Council authorize the City Manager to execute the following two agreements to provide Federal HOME funds, retroactive to July 1, 2025:
1. A HOME Grant Agreement with the Fremont Family Resource Center, for FYs 2025/26 and 2026/27, for the Stay Housed Program, in an amount not to exceed $342,860.
2. A HOME Grant Agreement with Abode Services, for FYs 2025/26 and 2026/27 for its Rapid Rehousing Program, in an amount not to exceed $150,000.
BACKGROUND: The purpose of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) is to expand the supply of decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable housing for very low and low-income households. In general, HOME funds can be used to acquire, rehabilitate, finance, and construct affordable housing, as well as provide Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) to prevent families from falling into homelessness.
Since 1991, Fremont has participated in the Alameda County HOME Program Consortium (Consortium) to receive Federal HOME funds. Members of the Consortium include the cities of Fremont, Alameda, Hayward, Livermore, Pleasanton, San Leandro, and Union City, as well as Alameda County which represents the unincorporated portions of the County.
Alameda County administers the HOME funds on behalf of the Consortium. HOME Funds require cities to provide a 25% match, which Alameda County calculates and reports on to HUD on behalf of the Consortium.
On June 6, 2023, the City Council approved the City’s continued participation in the Consortium for Federal Fiscal Years 2025/26 and 2026/27, respectively, for the purpose of securing federal HOME funding. The City Council’s approval of the City’s continued participation in the HOME consortium did not commit the City to any specific project or activity. However, the Consortium agreement provides that all projects to be funded with HOME funds must have prior approval of the City Council before the County will allocate the funds.
The City has utilized its HOME funds primarily for TBRA, with Abode Services and the Fremont Family Resource Center providing rental subsidies for low-income households Council Staff Report (ID # 5422) Meeting of July 8, 2025 Updated: 7/3/2025 8:16 AM by Dina Lewis Page 2
(0-60% of Area Median Income (AMI)) to quickly regain stability in permanent housing after experiencing a housing crisis and/or homelessness.
The City has a total of $246,430 in FY 2025/26 HOME funds available for allocation to HOME eligible projects and anticipates an additional $246,430 in FY 2026/27 HOME funding to be awarded through the Consortium.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS: Staff believe that the continued use of HOME funds for the following programs is valuable for the Fremont community and will help meet the needs of many households who are in precarious housing situations. These programs also align with the City’s Homeless Response Plan Goal A to stop the growth of homelessness.
Fremont Family Resource Center Stay Housed Program
Since 2013, the City’s Human Services Department, through the Family Resource Center (FRC), has provided HOME TBRA rental subsidies through its Stay Housed Program. To date, the Stay Housed Program, with an original allocation of $400,000, has served a total of thirty families, for up to 24 months, who were at risk of becoming homeless due to temporary financial setbacks. Of the thirty families who participated in the Stay Housed Program, twenty-three families retained permanent housing. Although the FRC is close to spending down the entire fund balance, families in Fremont continue to be confronted with job loss and other crisis situations that lead to eviction and eventual homelessness.
Therefore, the Human Services Department wants to continue to have a source of funding to be able offer tenant-based rental assistance, to help families get through a crisis and remain housed.
The Stay Housed Program rental assistance is offered in conjunction with the FRC’s SparkPoint self-sufficiency program. SparkPoint assists families to achieve long-term financial stability while receiving rental assistance, by reducing expenses, increasing savings, and increasing credit scores. Each Stay Housed Program participant works with a Sparkpoint coach or a FRC Family Support Specialist to create an individualized step -by-step self-sufficiency plan/agreement to set and achieve personal financial goals and stabilize their housing situation.
Staff recommend funding the FRC’s Stay Housed Program for FY 2025/26 and FY 2026/27 using $342,860 in HOME funds ($171,430 each fiscal year). This will help the FRC assist 13-16 new Fremont households in both fiscal years. The proposed HOME Agreement will be retroactive to July 1, 2025.
Abode Services Rapid Rehousing Program
In FY 2010/11, Abode Services re-designed its Winter Relief Program, which previously sheltered homeless families in local churches, to be the Rapid Rehousing Program with a focus on placing homeless families already on Abode’s shelter waiting list directly into permanent housing. Since the Rapid Rehousing Program began, Abode has received a total of $150,000 in HOME funds from the City to finance rental subsidies, which has helped Abode serve a total of 45 Fremont households. Abode clients may receive rental subsidies for up to 24 months, but typically average 12 months.
Council Staff Report (ID # 5422) Meeting of July 8, 2025 Updated: 7/3/2025 8:16 AM by Dina Lewis Page 3
Abode needs additional funds to continue the Rapid Rehousing Program. With the high cost of rent in the Bay Area, many homeless families continue to need housing subsidies to be able to get back into the local housing market. The use of HOME funds for rapid re-housing efforts is also showing promising outcomes with an average of 80% housing retention rate after exiting the Rapid Rehousing Program.
Staff recommends funding Abode’s Rapid Rehousing Program for FY 2025/26 and FY 2026/27 using $150,000 in HOME funds ($75,000 each fiscal year). This is projected to serve 8-10 Fremont households (singles and families) in each fiscal year. Abode provides supportive services and other housing stabilization assistance, which will satisfy the matching requirement for HOME funding.
The proposed HOME funded projects have a proven track record in providing TBRA assistance using HOME funds and are also aligned with the priorities stated in the City’s Homelessness Response Plan. With the high cost of rent in the Bay Area, staff anticipate many low-income households will continue to have a need for rental subsidies.
FISCAL IMPACT: As part of the FY 2025/26 Operating Budget, the City Council appropriated sufficient funding for the recommended programs in the HOME Grant Fund (Fund 103). The City’s family support services expenditures satisfy the City’s match requirement for HOME funding. FY 2026/27 funding will be contingent upon the City receiving its FY 2026/27 allocation from the Consortium.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: The proposed HOME Grant Agreements are exempt from and not subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because, without limitation, it is not a “project” as defined in CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(2) , 15378(b)(4), and/or 15378(b)(5), and because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant effect on the environment per CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), each as a separate and independent basis for CEQA compliance. The proposed HOME Grant Agreements are also not subject to environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as tent-based rental assistance programs are categorically exempt activities under NEPA Regulations Section 50.19(b)(11) because they do not alter physical conditions in a manner or to an extent that would require review under NEPA.
ATTACHMENTS: None.
RECOMMENDATION: Authorize the City Manager, or designee, to execute:
1. A HOME Grant Agreement retroactive to July 1, 2025, with the Fremont Family Resource Center, for FYs 2025/26 and 2026/27, for its Stay Housed Program, in an amount not-to-exceed $342,860.
2. A HOME Grant Agreement with Abode Services retroactive to July 1, 2025, for FYs 2025/26 and 2026/27, for its Rapid Rehousing Program, in an amount not-to-exceed $150,000.