Agenda - 02-19-2019 8-a - Minutes

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8 1 He said things are happening in individual towns, but how can the entities talk and work 2 together. He would like to see where collaboration will make the biggest impacts...funding, 3 communications, resources, etc. He said everyone is walking in the same direction, but not 4 necessarily pulling the ropes together. 5 Mayor Hemminger said there is great collaboration with on-going monthly meetings 6 between senior staff and the housing collaborative. 7 Chair Rich said at the BOCC retreat, Commissioner Greene mentioned the need for 8 more policy focus, and they are missing the policy guidance. 9 Commissioner Greene said the idea of expanding the home consortium with a broader 10 charge came out of one of the AOG meetings years ago. She said former Commissioner 11 Bernadette Pelissier suggested tasking the Managers to come up with a structure that is 12 somewhat similar to the Partnership to End Homelessness (PTEH). 13 Commissioner Greene said that her suggestion was to add the non-profit partners at 14 these meetings, but it occurred to her later that this may prove a conflict as non-profits are 15 applying for funds. She said Roger Stancil, former Chapel Hill Town Manager, had the idea for 16 the HOME framework, but she is not sure if this format is exactly what the original request 17 intended. 18 Commissioner Greene said there needs to be more of a policy priority list and some 19 concrete ideas to come out of these discussions. She said it is not like the PTEH as the 20 elected bodies are not really involved, but with affordable housing all entities need to agree on 21 some priorities to give this group a more robust charge. 22 Alderman Seils said there is also opportunity to recognize how much affordable housing 23 policy is limited by the state legislative level. He said he would like to explore the possibilities of 24 partnering with jurisdictions outside of Orange County, who share similar values and goals 25 regarding affordable housing, as well as advocating together at the state level. 26 Commissioner Price said she would like some numbers identifying the needs around the 27 County, in the towns and otherwise. She said it is important to know the need, where people 28 are going, and where they are able to live. She said the factual information is needed to 29 undergird the policies. 30 Commissioner Marcoplos said the biggest collaborative impact can be made on 31 affordable housing by focusing on the Greene Tract. 32 Hillsborough Town Commissioner Ferguson said they have not leveraged well the 33 Triangle J Council of Governments (TJCOG). She said TJCOG serves as Chatham County's 34 affordable housing expert. She said they are expanding and have the legislative ability to serve 35 as a housing authority. She said TJCOG has a stated goal both as a legislative action as well 36 as policy and data acquisition perspective of getting the data to which Commissioner Price 37 referred. She said affordable housing is a regional issue, and it is wise to utilize some of these 38 other resources. She said other counties are taking advantage and the technical staff has 39 experience within Orange County specifically. 40 Hillsborough Town Commissioner Weaver said having more policy clarity is needed, and 41 at some point there may be a legislature that will give more tools, and if a clear voice on can be 42 put forward on this, all can be prepared when more tools are made available. 43 Councilmember Buansi said Orange County and Chapel Hill staffs have been meeting 44 periodically regarding relocation strategies for the residents of mobile home owners. He said 45 this is a good example of collaboration, and an update may be beneficial at some point. 46 Commissioner Dorosin said there is good collaboration at the staff level, but not so 47 much at the policy level. He said affordable housing is an across the lines issue and is one of 48 the highest deficiencies that exists in Orange County. He said there should be a strategy that 49 recognizes this deficiency, and if work is being done in one part of the County, all entities