Housing Committee - Regular Meeting

Welcome each and every one of you to the housing committee meeting. Madame Clerk, please call the roll.

All right I'd like to ask everyone to stand up and I thank Commissioner Vicky Lopez who will lead us with a short prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance.

Thank you Madam Chair. Bow your heads please. Heavenly Father thank you so much for bringing us together today to do your important work. We know as public servants we serve you first to serve those constituents that you have asked us to serve and so today as we address all the housing needs One of the largest things that we know are important to our constituency. We ask for your guidance and your direction. And so we ask all of this in your name. Amen. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, wi

All right. Thank you, Commissioner Lopez. All right, now I think it's time to open reasonable opportunity for the public to be heard.

So there's a non-public? This is a non-public?

All right, so I don't see anyone approaching. Reasonable opportunity is now closed. Any change in the agenda?

All right. All right. All in favor? Aye. All right. So now, Mr. Attorney?

Thank you. Public hearing on this item is now open. I have a list of names.

All right, Mr. Attorney, it doesn't seem like we have anyone for 1G1.

Okay. All right, so we have one. So when I call your name, you'll have one card for 1G1. When I call your name, please approach. You have two minutes to make a presentation. Start with your name and address for the record. And I have Ms. Renita Holmes. Madame Holmes?

Thank you, Madam Holmes. Anyone else on 1G1? Seeing no one approaching, public hearing on 1G1 is now closed. Now, colleagues, anyone has any comments on 1G1? Happy to move it. All right. Do we have a second?

Not a second, but I have some questions. Second the motion, but I'll second when it comes down to questions.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I guess this question is for Nathan. Director, if you can answer a few questions. I do notice on MDC 002, discuss the ideas of utilizing this newly established Miami-Dade Attainable Housing Corp Inc, the 501c3, into becoming a developer arm of Miami-Dade County Housing. My question to you is, how many meetings have you had and how many people actually turned out at these meetings to hear of the new plan?

So the public was never aware or notified of this outside of the legislative process?

Got it. Next question is, as it relates to the five year plan. Two public meetings. Two public meetings. How many people turned out?

And when you say not many, are we talking about 2, 3, 4, 100, 500?

And it's probably your position, Mr. Director, that this item must move forward with the Miami-Dade Attainable Housing Corp Inc. language included. I'm pretty sure is that your position? yes this is in order for hud to recognize that this is one of our activities um that we'll be performing that is correct so so outside of the outside of this particular vehicle it is your position that the miami-dade attainable housing corp inc cannot move separately

That is correct, right? Is there a is there a reason why there is? Almost as if there's a. a time, certain date that you have to have the Miami-Dade Attainable Housing Corp Inc. created now? Is there a reason why it came now as opposed to working more with the community leaders and commissioners to see exactly

We're particular in this Miami-Dade attainable program that it requires you to give notice to the district commissioners about particular lots that would be developed by this newly formed corporation.

Who were you, Nathan? Who are you addressing to?

So correct me if I'm wrong, so am I hearing you telling me there are going to be four entities part of this shared agreement? We're talking about potentially HUD, HCD, the board, and this newly created vehicle, this 501c3?

And I'm not trying to trip you up, Nathan. So I'm just trying to make sure I'm clear when I'm understanding this. The attainable, newly created vehicle, the instrumentality that you mentioned earlier, that would be one. vehicle the second vehicle will be hcd the third share part of the shared agreement would be with the commissioners and the fourth would be hud am i reading that correctly or am i misreading what i'm reading help me understand i'm not trying to trap you i'm just trying to get clarity here

I guess you see where I'm going, right? Because you're going to get into the developing world, but then there's also a reality that you're going to bring forth other developers to develop. So am I anticipating that you're gonna tell me at some point the economy of this is where you're going to take a percentage of future developers portion of their pie in lieu of you building out these parcels that you laid out as part of this new mechanism to develop housing for Miami-Dade County?

All right. And final question, um, as it relates to this item, uh, you're not proposing that the county create a, a general contracting team. Uh, you're just saying that you want the county to, you want this vehicle to serve as the developer only, like a name and not in a process, and then not the reality of actually constructing and being part of the general contracting team.

So the intent is just for this vehicle to serve as a developer.

No, I'll just say my comments are the same as I've said before. I'm very skeptical about government getting into the business of developing housing. And the reason why is because history has shown, especially where I grew up, that any time you have government actually building homes, normally they'll build it. Everything is great. They'll cut the ribbon. The resources really never stay there. It really never stays there to do the upkeep and the management portion of these homes, i.e., they become housing projects. And let's be absolutely clear, when it comes down to certain communities, and th

That's what I was going to ask you. Do you have a specific recommendation that you can give?

And this is why, again, for the record, I love this guy. By the way, this is my guy. This is my director, right? And we go back and forth like this. But is there a world where we can ensure that If the county does get into the business of developing, that the county has an A1 management company pool that they can choose from. And that we have the notification early on as to who you're potentially going to choose and whether or not we're going to have a say in it before I put forth any language. I just want to see if you have it that you can give to us and we can work that out.

You'll be willing to meet with Nathan? Absolutely, Madam Chair. Absolutely. That he will present next time this comes forward. Yeah. Happy to. Thank you so much, Nathan. Commissioner Regalado, you're recognized.

Thank you. Thank you. And thank you, Nathan. I was just going to say, and, you know, Commissioner McGee, I think we all understand the historic issues, right? And it's not just the county, it's also the federal government, which is why we had a movement towards RAD. I think when the item was presented, and Nathan is correct, this document by law must mirror everything that the Board of County Commissioners has approved, full stop. That's all it does. It mirrors everything that we've approved. The item was approved. Now, when the effectuating agreement for the item comes to the board, I think t

Thank you. Commissioner. We're going to add, though, consider Bermudez you recognized.

I'll be brief, but I understand the concept of having it. Uh, in your whatever, uh, in your holster, so to speak. But I agree with, uh, you know, vice chairman McGee. Uh, this is a question of philosophy and, uh. Making sure that the supposed grand plans that we have actually work. and in the end we're going to have to look at that because I come from his perspective which is if you cannot and he's lived it himself so he just as he so mentioned if we are not going to be able to provide if this is not something that's going to turn out to be it's going to be simply another What's happened in th

Thank you, Commissioner Bermudez. Commissioner Lopez, you will go next. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Yes, so just in keeping with what the Vice Chairman said, I've never been a proponent of government trying to do something that the private sector has done well and that the government has failed to do well. And so thank you for your examples, real live examples of where you lived. I think it's the role of government to provide the collaboration, the funding. but also the oversight and the carrot and the stick. I agree with you. I have buildings now that have bad actors managing the buildings. And I'm working with HCD. I'm so grateful for their leadership as well in addressing the problem in t

Thank you, Commissioner Lopez. It seems like you might also be interested in partaking in this meeting, so maybe it has to be a sunshine meeting where other commissioners can partake and then share their information. All right. No one else? Would someone like to move it? I had moved it and he- You did move it, second. Madame Clerk, there's someone else on 1G1?

you may reopen it it's your discretion madam chair okay let's reopen it quickly second public hearing and once you want to use again open She could have stayed where she is, but yeah. Can someone help her with the mic, please?

Thank you. Please state your name, address for the record.

Thank you so much. Anyone else on 1G1? All right. Public hearing on 1G1 is closed for a second time. Second and final time. I'm clerk. Please call the roll.

Yes. Can you go ahead and read that? Do you have the access to that right now, Mr. Attorney? Yes. Please go ahead and read it.

Thank you so much. Now, public hearing on 1G2 is open. I have a few cards. I'm going to call a few names. Please come and line up. You will have two minutes. State your name and your address for the record. We're going to start with Ms. Oliver. She left? Did she leave? She also signed for 1G2. Well, she's still here. She can come back if she wishes to present on it.

Did I say one? Two minutes. You have two minutes. Mr. Alex Jean-Joseph. Please approach. Paul Christian . Alza Vignale, I hope I'm pronouncing your name correctly.

Kerry Feet. And Ahmed Morey, forgive me if I butchered your name. You can line arms on both mics. Mr. Alex, you can start.

Thank you so much. Jose Mortimer. or Martinez, is this? All right, I think you probably signed two cards. All right, okay. Anyone else? There's someone else coming? Oh, two different people, okay, all right. So Jose F. Martinez.

I do not have any more cards. However, if there's anyone, anyone. um who wishes to speak on 1g2 it is your time make sure you come you fill out a card madame someone could also bring her card to her

Thank you. Anyone else? Seeing no one coming, public hearing on 1G2 is now closed. And I know my colleagues probably have comments or questions. I'm going to start with Commissioner Lopez. You are recognized.

Thank you, Madam Chair. So I have a couple of questions. So the first question I have is, I don't know if this amendment does it, but Nathan, it appeared from the public input that Florida Housing Finance Corporation made several revisions to align it and match it to Senate Bill 594. What we have before us, is it aligned exactly like that?

Okay, good. So there's no misalignment. With respect to the $10,000 of relocation assistance, how did we come up with that amount?

So how much, if we didn't adjust it, given the restrictions of 65% and 75%, what is the pot that we're talking about? 1.5 to 2. 1.5 to 2 million.

Correct, so I guess this is a question I'll have for Florida Housing Finance Corporation. When they give their guidance, and I've worked with them a great deal, the question always is, is it commensurate to Miami Dade County versus Liberty County, for instance? And where housing costs are much greater, where relocation costs are much greater. And so I don't know if they took that into account. That's something I'll take up with them, because it sounds like they're giving you guidance. But I'm not certain that they said, well, in Miami-Dade County, it's going to cost a whole lot more, potential

I think that would be helpful. And then to answer the questions about whether they get the funds early versus after they've been evicted, because I have to tell you, once I'm in the street, we're placing people on the street before they get the benefit of assistance. Does this plan allow us, or does Senate Bill 594 have any restrictions on when we offer it to the mobile home park owner that is leaving?

Certainly, as soon as they know that they're being evicted or that the land is being sold, it gives people proper notice. I mean, I don't know that anyone can find a place and uproot their whole families in a matter of seconds. I mean, they need to know, am I going to have 10,000? Am I going to have 5,000? And then they can go out and look. for proper housing. And lastly, I guess, I don't know, a lot of people have talked about the responsibility of the landowner to give money so that this isn't in lieu of, but complementing. Is there anything that requires a landowner of a mobile home park to

Thank you, Commissioner. Anyone else? Commissioner Regarado, you're recognized.

Thank you, and I just wanted to make a few points. And thank you for everyone who came out. First of all, the City of Miami does have SHIP funding, so I'm glad, Nathan, that you qualified that. And just so that you know, the City of Miami actually prioritizes their SHIP money into three buckets, different from the county, housing retention and repairs, emergency home repairs, and housing rehabilitation. Um, down payment and closing cost assistance and affordable housing production. So I would tell you 1st, and foremost to go to the city of Miami and have them change their rules to comply with

happy to move it thank you um thank you mr vice chair uh thank you thank you madam chair i do have a few questions and i would love to also be considered uh co-sponsor the item this is a really good item um so my question is to mr director nathan so the mobile home preservation program is that what we're talking about do we have one that's already etched out because from my understanding senate bill 594 did two things right it removed the 20 cap and also delegated the responsibility of creating protection for mobile home tenants and land owners it gave us the opportunity to create a mechanism

All right. And if that is accurate, then is there a world where if our mobile home preservation program isn't, as we heard from Commissioner Regalado, the City of Miami has one on deck, is there a world where we can mirror that but at the same time analyze the number of mobile homes that are inside of the unincorporated area and use that number and have it as a basis for the amount of money that you have left over in this this stash this pot this one to two million dollars and make a calculation as to how much of the county can afford for the unincorporated area

And instead of bill 594, actually. In a sense, it gives you a wide latitude to come up with a game plan that would be beneficial and advantageous to the current mobile homeowners and renters who are actually experiencing the setbacks that they're experiencing today due to owners selling properties for a higher rate. Is there something that we can find, and I think Commissioner Lopez said it earlier, maybe we go towards the best practice and look at other counties and cities and find out what can we borrow from them so that we can speed this up so that they don't have to find themselves in limb

I think west of us there are, we have like the St. Pete area, the Tampa area, they have a lot of mobile homes. Jefferson County, and I think we can look at those areas And see what they're talking about over there, and I think that would give us a nice guidance. Because if I'm looking at this correctly, they're equally situated as far as opportunities for hurricanes, the amount of hurricanes, the fact that the market is actually changing as it relates to real estate value. And I think they'll give us a great indicator of what we can do and what we can't do.

Thank you, thank you so much. Anyone else? You have something else, Commissioner Regalado?

Yes, since Commissioner McGee mentioned that, I would just say there is a Florida mobile home relocation trust fund. So, Nathan, while we're looking, if we're going to do an audit, right? I mean, we're asking for an audit. I think it's a great idea so we can evaluate the risk, right? So we're looking at a particular pot of money. We're going to do an audit to evaluate the risk. Look at the trust fund also because that's another state vehicle that we should add when we look at that. And there is a radius associated to that trust fund. So maybe that's a path forward also to establish a radius an

Thank you, Madam Chair, to respond. Also, in agreement with Commissioner Regalado, I do believe Senate Bill 594 actually provides for that six month window, that 180 day window. Right, so is there a world, and again, I'm talking out loud before I'm actually thinking about the answer. And I know as a lawyer, we should never ask the question we don't know the answer to, but I'm thinking out loud here. Is there a world, since we have broader control, since the state gave it to us, is there a world where everything can literally start at the 181st day as it relates to support of those who are impa

Yeah, yeah. Is there a world where we can do that? Maybe that's a question to the attorney. Is there a world where we can do that? If it starts at 181, let's start at 181. If we only have 180, let's look and see if we can somehow expand so that we can benefit them more.

But we can combine programs. So when it stops at 180, we can pick up another one.

Anything else? Vice Chair? Thank you so much. Does legal have anything?

Thank you. That would be helpful. So thank you so much. All the residents who came here to speak, I really appreciate that. I want to let you know that I encourage you to come back, and back again, because your voices matter. To Nathan, you do have a wealth of resources with us today, and I'd like to start by thanking Community Justice Project, And also, Eagle Services of Buddha Miami, Jeffrey, thank you so much. But you also have them. I'd like you to really reach out to them to look into other alternatives. You also have the residents that you can engage. So to the residents, I heard you ver

It is limited. So look into best practices and engage, meet with the community to see how best you can help them. And I don't know if my colleagues remember, we called that last year. I did make an urging for... the Florida legislature to increase the assistance to the Florida mobile home you know board so hopefully this is something that we can follow up on it was made last year so there is clearly a need for it so my advice is to schedule a time meet with the with the with the community organizations and meet with the residents And I want to tell you, those of you who came to speak, it is a