Building Foundations for Permanent Supported Housing in Virginia

1
Building Foundations for Permanent Supported
Housing in Virginia

• Jeannie Cummins
• RPJ Housing Development Corporation

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RPJ Housing

• Nonprofit, 501(c)3 organization
• Mission to develop and preserve affordable
  housing for limited income individuals and
  families to strengthen communities in the D.C.
  metro area
• Affordable housing programs
• Affordable rental housing
• Transitional housing
• Volunteer home repairs
• Have built, renovated /or managed over 2,500
  units of affordable housing
• Currently operate 315 affordable rental units at
  13 locations (City of Alexandria Arlington,
  Fairfax, Warren Counties)
• 73 of our rental households make less than 50
  of the area median income

3
RPJ Housing Experience with Permanent Supported
Housing

• Rent units to persons with HIV/AIDS utilizing
  HOPWA vouchers
• Purchase homes partner with service provider
  (RPJ Housing performs renovations and provides
  ongoing property mgt.)
• Home for 4 adults with brain injuries (Partner
  Brain Injury Services, Inc.)
• Home for 6 adults with intellectual disabilities
  (Partner Fairfax-Falls Church Community
  Services Board)
• Home for 4 adults with intellectual disabilities
  (Partner Arlington County Department of Human
  Services)
• Home for 5 adults with chronic mental illness
  (Partner Psychiatric Rehabilitative Services,
  Inc.)
• Finance several 50 ami units in a multifamily
  property obtain vouchers or housing grants to
  further subsidize rents for persons with
  disabilities who have incomes at SSI/DI levels.
• Example Ft. Myer Apartments I II have VHDA
  below market financing, state HOME financing
  (principal and interest forgiven after 30 years),
  an Arlington County AHIF loan (residual receipts
  payment loan), and Arlington County Dept. of
  Human Services housing grant rental subsidies.

4
Key Features of Permanent Supportive Housing

• Housing and services are de-coupled
• Person can choose to leave housing without losing
  services
• Person can choose to change service provider
  without losing housing
• Housing cannot be conditioned upon the acceptance
  of services
• Person may terminate services, but is still
  responsible for complying with the lease terms
• Housing is inclusive
• it is a home in a neighborhood, not on a campus
  at the edge of town
• it is an apartment in an apartment building, not
  a unit on a wing of a facility
• Housing is affordable to persons with incomes at
  SSI/DI levels
• Housing meets the accessibility needs of persons
  with disabilities and allows them to age in place

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Barriers to Creating Permanent Supported Housing
in Virginia

• Shortage of substantial deep subsidy capital
  sources (e.g., forgivable loans, deferred
  principal and interest loans)
• Few rental subsidies available to persons with
  disabilities
• Inability to obtain real estate tax exemptions
  for permanent affordable housing properties owned
  by nonprofits in most jurisdictions
• NIMBY reactions in communities can slow or stall
  development process and add costs (HOAs are a
  particular problem)
• Lack of coordination at the local level between
  government housing agencies and case
  managers/service providers

• Lack of state coordination to obtain
• housing services funds in tandem
• No start up funds available for group
• homes or supported apartments (for
• furniture, vans, home mods, etc.)
• Restrictive zoning prevents housing
• models such as SROs
• Cannot use project-based Section 8
• with one disability
• Section 811 is overly restrictive
• (prevents integration)

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How Do We Move Forward?

• Breaking Down Barriers
• Support the creation of National and State
  Housing Trust Funds
• Leverage LIHTC Tax Credits find ways to partner
  with tax credit developers
• Seek ways to enable localities to grant real
  estate tax exemptions to nonprofit affordable
  housing projects
• Conduct needs assessments at local levels to
  inventory housing availability for people with
  disabilities, determine housing service needs,
  develop plans to coordinate getting both
  simultaneously, monitor the implementation of
  these plans
• Seek amendments to zoning ordinances that allow
  SRO housing as a use in certain zoning districts
  subject to appropriate use limitations
• Work with Congressional representatives to
  increase flexibility of project based Section 8
  and Section 811 programs

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How Do We Move Forward?

• Look to Approaches in Other States
• Housing Trusts (e.g., Wisconsin Initiatives in
  Sustainable Housing, Inc.) http//www.caahi.org/ca
  ahi/trusts/WISH-QuickSummary-Final.doc
• Cooperative Models for Housing Service Delivery
• http//thechp.syr.edu/hcoops.htm
• Cohousing
• http//www.cohousing.org/default.aspx

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Other Resources

• A Guidebook on Consumer Controlled Housing for
  Minnesotans with Developmental Disabilities
  http//rtc.umn.edu/guide/
• Fairfax County SRO Task Force Final Report
• http//www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dsm/raps/reports/sro
  report0705.pdf