City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: SEPTEMBER 15, 2026
FROM: HOUSING AND HUMAN SERVICES WARD: 1
SUBJECT: AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES SUBRECIPIENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT AND WAKELAND HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION FOR REIMBURSEMENT OF UP TO $500,000 FOR ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS RELATED TO SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE AND TRANSIT-RELATED AMENITIES AS PART OF THE ENTRADA AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT LOCATED AT 1701 SEVENTH STREET ISSUE:
Consider approving an Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Subrecipient Agreement between the City of Riverside Public Works Department and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation for reimbursement of up to $500,000 for eligible project costs related to Sustainable Transportation Infrastructure and Transit-Related Amenities as part of the Entrada affordable housing project, located at 1701 Seventh Street.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Approve an Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Subrecipient Agreement between the City of Riverside Public Works Department and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation to provide reimbursement of up to $500,000 for eligible Sustainable Transportation Infrastructure (STI) Transit-Related Amenities (TRA) as part of the Entrada affordable housing project; Authorize the Public Works Director, or designee, to sign and execute the attached Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Subrecipient Agreement between the City of Riverside Public Works Department and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation, including making minor and non-substantive changes; Authorize the City Manager, or designee, to sign and execute the attached Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Subrecipient Agreement with the City of Riverside Public Works Department and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation, including making minor and non-substantive changes; and Authorize the City Manager, or designee, to amend the agreement with the State and City of Riverside Public Works Department, to add, remove, or substitute eligible projects, subject to grant administrator approval and within the available budget, if a project is unable to proceed and funding must be promptly reallocated to another eligible project.
BACKGROUND:
On February 4, 2020, the City Council approved Resolution No. 23542, authorizing the submission of a joint application by the City and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation (Wakeland) to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for funding under the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program. The application sought funding for the Entrada affordable housing development and related sustainable transportation and pedestrian safety improvements. Pursuant to AHSC program guidelines, the City was required to serve as a co-applicant because it is the entity with legal authority to implement the proposed Sustainable Transportation Infrastructure (STI) projects. Accordingly, a City Council resolution authorizing participation in the joint AHSC application was required as part of the complete application package.
In August 2020, the City received notification from HCD and the Strategic Growth Council (SGC) that the joint AHSC application has been awarded funding in the total amount $22,121,206. The award included $13,003,254 in Program Loan Funds for the Entrada housing development and $9,117,952 in program grant funds for associated street and transportation improvement projects.
In early February 2022, the City and Wakeland executed an AHSC Co-Applicant Agreement, which formalized the terms and conditions governing the use of the program grant funds and established the City as an active participant in the planning and implementation of the transit-related components of the AHSC-funded improvements. The total amount of the grants under the City’s STI and Transit-Related Amenity projects totaled $5,130,352 and were allocated as follows:
City (STI projects): $4,126,495
City (TRA projects): $1,003,857
On April 6, 2022, the City, Wakeland, and HCD entered into Standard Agreement 20-AHSC-14692 related to the Program grant funds in the amount of $9,117,952. The STI and TRA projects included the following improvements:
Construction of high visibility crosswalks, overhead lighting, parklets, and murals along Park Avenue; Construction of a Class IV bicycle lane on Linden Avenue between Chicago Avenue and Iowa Avenue; Installation of high-visibility crosswalks, accessible pedestrian signal buttons, a diagonal crosswalk, and bus stop improvements at University Avenue and Chicago Avenue; Construction of a pedestrian flashing beacon and crosswalk at Patterson Park; Installation of advanced signal detention at Iowa Avenue and University Avenue; Construction of a pedestrian signal at Chicago Avenue and Seventh Avenue; Construction of a solar shaded walkway in partnership with GRID Alternatives, along Chicago Avenue from Seventh Street to University Avenue; Expansion and construction of the Vine Street Mobility Hub, including enhanced rider and driver amenities; Improvements to three bus stops along Chicago Avenue and University Avenue; and Urban greening components serving Riverside Transit Authority (RTA) Route 22 and Omnitrans Route 215.
On August 15, 2023, the City Council approved an AHSC Subrecipient Agreement with Wakeland for the disbursement of Program grant funds to RTA. The agreement authorized funding in an amount not to exceed $1,500,000 for STI projects and $453,826 for TRA projects. These projects included the expansion and construction of the Vine Street Mobility Hub, improvements to three bus stops along Chicago Avenue and University Avenue, and urban greening components serving RTA Route 22 and Omnitrans Route 215. RTA expended a total of $1,600,000 under this agreement, resulting in an unexpended balance of $353,826. The remaining funds have since been reallocated to the Public Works Department.
Following completion of the Entrada affordable housing development and the expansion of the Vine Street Mobility Hub, the City and the project developer encountered significant challenges in implementing the Solar Walkway component of the AHSC-funded improvements. Despite outreach to multiple qualified contractors, all proposals received exceeded $1,000,000 – substantially higher than the allocated budget of $550,031. The elevated cost estimates were primarily due to the need for custom engineering, specialized fabrication, and transportation requirements. As a result, the developer was unable to secure a contractor capable of completing the Solar Walkway within the approved budget.
Approved Revisions to the Scope of Work
On December 5, 2024, Wakeland submitted a request to SGC to revise the AHSC project scope. In early February 2025, the City and Wakeland were notified that SGC had approved the requested revisions, which are as follows:
Elimination of the solar walkway and night art installation, with reallocation of associated funds to the design and construction of:
A new Class III bicycle route on Kansas Avenue;
Nineteen (19) high-visibility crosswalks with associated audible pedestrian push buttons; and Bus stop improvements at the intersection of University Avenue and Chicago Avenue.
Reallocation of mural and crosswalk improvements, as described in Wakeland’s letter dated December 5, 2024.
Detailed scope revisions, including specific crosswalk locations, are provided in Attachment 2.
Additional Approved Scope and Schedule Revisions
On May 7, 2026, the State approved a request by the City for a two-year extension of the project timeline (Attachment 3). The new project milestones for STI and TRA are as follows:
Completion of construction: March 30, 2028
Completion of work and disbursement of all funds: July 30, 2028 The extension will allow the City to complete the revised project scope, including final design, environmental review, utility coordination, procurement, construction, project closeout, and reimbursement of eligible grant-funded expenditures, in accordance with the revised AHSC project schedule.
Additionally, the grant includes construction of a Class IV bicycle lane and the installation of solar-reflective ("cool pavement") coating along the bike lane on Linden Avenue between Chicago Avenue and Iowa Avenue. Since the City has an existing Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) project that includes pavement rehabilitation and striping along this same segment of Linden Avenue, implementing the cool pavement improvement at that location would overlap with the planned CDBG work. To avoid duplication of improvements and better coordinate the two projects, the SGC approved the relocation of approximately 2,600 linear feet of cool pavement treatment from Linden Avenue to Kansas Avenue. This revision preserves the intended environmental and active transportation benefits of the AHSC grant while improving project coordination and efficiency.
Revisions to the Scope of Work Not Approved:
In addition to the modifications above, Wakeland already completed the design plans for the additional scope modifications which include constructing a traffic circle at the intersection of Park Avenue and 12th Street, speed feedback signs, edge-lit stop signs as traffic calming measures including ADA ramps along Park Avenue between University Avenue and 12th Street. These improvements were not ultimately approved by SGC but align with community requests. The city plans to add these improvements as an optional alternate bid item in the construction bid package and evaluate available infrastructure funding sources to deliver the improvements. The city will provide available funding sources at the time of the award of the construction contract. If the construction funding is not available, then the optional alternate bid items will not be considered. The correspondence from SGC regarding the revised scope of work which is not approved is attached.
DISCUSSION:
As a result of the approved scope revisions, Wakeland incurred eligible design and engineering costs associated with redesigning the transportation improvements to reflect the revised AHSC scope of work. Under the existing grant agreement, reimbursement of these costs requires a Subrecipient Agreement between the City of Riverside Public Works Department and Wakeland.
Approval of the proposed Subrecipient Agreement will authorize the City to reimburse Wakeland for eligible design and engineering costs that have already been incurred and paid, using AHSC grant funds in accordance with the approved SGC scope of work and grant budget. The Subrecipient Agreement will also establish the framework for reimbursement of any additional eligible costs incurred by Wakeland during the completion of the revised TRA improvements, consistent with the grant requirements.
Approval of the proposed agreement is necessary to allow the City to disburse AHSC grant funds to Wakeland for eligible project costs and continue implementation of the revised grant-funded improvements.
The Public Works Director concurs with this report.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The total fiscal impact of the action is $500,000. Funding is budgeted and available as shown in the table below.
Table 1. Project Funding Accounts
Fund
Account
Account Number
Amount
Development Grants
AHSC Entrada – PW Infrastructure
9342530-440210
$ 303,460
AHSC Entrada – PW Amenities
9342540-440210
$ 196,540
Total
$500,000
Prepared by: Andrea Robles, Housing Project Coordinator Approved by: Michelle Davis, Housing and Human Services Director Certified as to
availability of funds: Julie Nemes, Finance Director
Approved by: Kris Martinez, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: James Johnson, City Attorney
Attachments:
AHSC Subrecipient Agreement
SGC Approval Letter, January 30, 2025
SGC Approval Letter Dated May 7, 2026
AHSC Subrecipient Agreement – Public Works Department & Wakeland Housing and Community Development ● Page 2