City of Lawrence, Kansas
April 14, 2015 Minutes (Lawrence City Commission Room)
Members present: Brad Cook (Bert Nash Homeless Outreach Team), Laurie Hooker (LDCHA), Trent McKinley (LPD), Becky Peters (Family Promise), Cary Strong (Lawrence Business Community)
Members absent: JoAnne Bair (LMH), Michael Brouwer (Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Re-Entry Program), Lt. Matt McCluer (Salvation Army), Margaret Murphy (Boys & Girls Club of Lawrence)
Staff present: Danelle Dresslar, Brad Karr
Public present: Anna Van Schoelandt (Willow Domestic Violence Center), Natasha Derakhshanian (Mid America Assistance Coalition), Brooks Dozier (LCS), Stacy Downey (VA Homeless Programs), James Dunn (Landlords of Lawrence)
The meeting was called to order at 8:32 a.m. by Chair Cook.
ITEM NO. 1 Introductions
The members of the HIAC and public introduced themselves.
ITEM NO. 2 Approval of Agenda and the December 9, 2014 Minutes.
Motion by Strong to approve the December 9, 2014 meeting minutes of the HIAC; Seconded by Peters.
The motion passed 5-0.
Strong stated that several members of the public had asked him if the meeting time of the HIAC could be changed, possibly to an afternoon time. Dresslar said it would depend on if the City Commission Room was available. The committee would have to pass a motion for staff to explore the option of changing the meeting time.
ITEM NO. 3 Receive the 4th Quarter (2014) Bert Nash Performance Report.
There were no questions about the report.
ITEM NO. 4 Election of Chair and Vice Chair.
Strong made a motion to nominate Brad Cook for Chair of the HIAC. The motion was seconded by Peters. Cook accepted the nomination. No other nominations were made. The motion passed 5-0.
Cook made a motion to nominate Cary Strong for Vice Chair of the HIAC. The motion was seconded by Hooker. Strong accepted the nomination. No other nominations were made. The motion passed 5-0.
ITEM NO. 5 Housing Vision Reports.
A. Non-Housing – 2015 Point-in-Time Count
Dresslar stated that the 2015 Point-in-Time Count was in the finishing tabulation stage. Each region in the state has its own spreadsheet, and every agency in the state has its own worksheet entry in the region spreadsheet. The Housing Inventory Count has been cross checked with the Point-in-Time Count, with only a few agencies needing more information. The report is due at the end of April, so it will be ready for the next HIAC meeting.
Cook asked if the results would be presented at the Homeless Summit in Wichita. Dresslar said she thought so. Cook indicated that he felt the survey was quicker and simpler this year.
B. Emergency Shelter/Temporary Housing – LCS update
Brooks Dozier, Assistant Executive Director of the Lawrence Community Shelter spoke on changes and updates at LCS. The shelter had a 12% increase in the number of people served in 2014 over 2013. To better serve new clients, the intake process will now include transitional paperwork from LDCHA. Weekly classes will be held with LDCHA staff to assist in filling out the required housing application. LCS staff will also participate in training on the MAACLINK system.
Dresslar added that the ESG application for LCS, Willow Domestic Violence Center and Catholic Charities would be on tonight’s City Commission agenda for approval.
C. Transitional Housing/Supportive Services – LDCHA
Hooker said there were no new updates for LDCHA, just waiting for the new grant year to begin in August for the transitional housing program. Cook asked if there had been an increase in applications recently. Hooker said there was not an increase presently, but applications could increase once the new intake process and classes are implemented at LCS.
D. Permanent Supportive Housing – Project Able
There was no report.
E. Permanent Housing – No report
ITEM NO. 6 Calendar/Miscellaneous
Natasha Derakhshanian spoke about MAACLINK and the need to bring more partners on board to move forward with coordinated assessment. Funding depends on having all of the required agencies using the system, but to make it an extraordinary system, all non-required agencies would also begin using MAACLINK.
Hooker asked what agencies are currently using the system in Lawrence. Derakhshanian indicated that LCS, LDCHA HOPE Program, Catholic Charities, Bert Nash and the Salvation Army currently use MAACLINK. She said that Willow uses a non-connected system to maintain client privacy.
Peters asked if there was a timeline on coordinated assessment, since Family Promise uses its own database. Derakhshanian and Dresslar both indicated that an exact date has not been specified, but it could be in this calendar year.
Dresslar asked if the committee wanted to further discuss changing the meeting time of the HIAC. Strong said he would like to explore ways to get more people from the community to attend the meetings and become involved. McKinley indicated that it works better for him to have the meeting either first thing in the morning or at the end of the day. Hooker agreed that first thing in the morning works better for her. Cook said it is more important to have a time that works for committee members to attend to achieve a quorum.
Dresslar explained that JoAnne Bair (LMH) would be stepping down from the committee, and will be replaced by Teri Smith (Douglas County Emergency Management).
The next meeting of the HIAC will be July 14, 2015. Peters indicated that she will not be able to attend the next meeting.
ITEM NO. 7 Public Comment
James Dunn spoke to the committee about landlord issues relating to homelessness. He asked if there were any statistics on the length of stay of a tenant in relation to the amount of funding they receive. His experience has shown that as soon as the tenant is no longer 100% funded under a permanent housing program and is asked to contribute a portion of their income to rent, they move out instead.
He also told of problems at properties that he owns near downtown, including police having to be called about individuals passed out in the yards. He said these usually correspond with days that LINK is providing services.
Dunn discussed problems that he has with the City’s Rental Registration Program. He was concerned that his units would not pass inspection due to tenant caused damage, which would lead to the tenant’s lease not being renewed and therefore forced into homelessness. Hooker asked if the landlord is allowed to notify tenant and conduct a yearly inspection to fix the deficient items before the city inspects the property. Dunn said he provides pest control when needed, so he does enter some of his units.
Stacy Downey spoke to the committee about the VA Homeless Programs. She handed out a brochure about the HCHV Safe Haven program containing a program description and her contact information. Dresslar indicated that Downey will be on the Agenda for the next HIAC meeting to provide more information about VA programs and services.
ITEM NO. 8 Adjourn
Motion by Cook to adjourn the April 14, 2015 meeting of the HIAC; Seconded by Peters.
The motion passed 5-0. Meeting was adjourned at 9:15 a.m.
Attendance Record
|
Members |
03/14 |
06/14 |
09/14 |
12/14 |
01/ 15# |
04/ 15 |
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Michael Brouwer |
+ |
E |
+ |
+ |
+ |
U |
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Brad Cook |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
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Matt McCluer |
U |
U |
+ |
+ |
+ |
U |
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Trent McKinley |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
U |
+ |
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Cary Strong |
U |
U |
+ |
+ |
U |
+ |
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Laurie Hooker |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
+ |
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Becky Peters |
+ |
E |
+ |
+ |
U |
+ |
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JoAnne Bair |
E |
E |
E |
U |
U |
U |
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Margaret Murphy |
|
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*E |
E |
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X - Meeting Cancelled Due to Inclement Weather
E - Excused Absence
U - Unexcused Absence
() – Last meeting in term.
* - First meeting in term.
^ - Last Meeting
# - Meeting not official – no quorum