City Hall Insider: Addressing HOME displacement concerns, shelter contracts on agenda

In their last meeting of 2023, the Austin City Council will take up around 100 items, including extending contracts with nonprofits operating city-owned homeless shelters and a resolution to address displacement concerns surrounding the HOME initiative.

Here are some of the items we're watching this week.

HOME adjacent resolution to address displacement concerns

Last week, the City Council approved phase one of the HOME initiative that will soon allow residents to build up to three housing units on some single-family lots. Supporters say it will help the city's housing affordability crisis by creating more housing. Those opposed to the initiative have expressed concerns about the further displacement of residents in the city's eastern crescent.

During a Dec. 5 news conference about HOME, District 4 Council Member José "Chito" Vela talked about the resolution the council is considering on Thursday and the HOME initiative, saying, "Today, the worst thing we can do for Black and brown families in Austin is nothing."

"Gentle density, done right, means giving homeowners the freedom to build needed housing on their property to help themselves and their families," Vela said at the news conference.

The resolution, sponsored by District 3 Council Member José Velásquez, would direct the city manager to begin drafting an ordinance that would provide financial assistance to low- and middle-income earners who want to add an additional housing unit on their property.

District 1 Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison, District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes and Vela, whose districts make up the city's eastern border, have all signed on as co-sponsors to the resolution.

Contracts for city operated homeless shelters

The City Council will vote on extending two contracts with non-profits that operate city-owned homeless shelters — the downtown ARCH shelter and the Southbridge shelter.

The first contract up for vote Thursday would extend Urban Alchemy's contract to operate the ARCH shelter, a downtown men's only shelter with 130 beds. Urban Alchemy has been operating the facility since the city abruptly ended its contracts with Front Steps in 2022.

The contract would be for a nine-month term starting in January for around $2.6 million with the option of extending for four year-long terms at around $3.5 million per year.

If renewed for a second term, the contract includes a 20% match from the nonprofit, which Homeless Strategy Officer David Gray said is going to be the standard for shelter operators moving forward.

"We are paying 100% of the cost to operate our shelters, and that seemed out of alignment with what other cities do and what some of the national best practices are," Gray told the City Council during a work session on Tuesday. "Moving forward, we are asking, and going to begin to actually requiring, our shelter operators to do some type of match when it comes to the funding."

Urban Alchemy will soon run the former Salvation Army shelter which was recently purchased by the city. The shelter, located next to the ARCH, will serve women and individuals who identify as transgender.

The second item would extend the city's contract with the Austin Area Urban League for three months to operate the Southbridge homeless shelter starting in Jan. 2024 for around $1.3 million. The Austin Area Urban League has run daily operations at the shelter since 2022.

The city in October put out an open bid for social service providers to run daily operations at both the Northbridge and Southbridge shelters with an anticipated start date of March 1, 2024.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin council to talk HOME displacement, homeless shelter contracts