Good evening, everyone.

Welcome to the City of Tempe Housing Authority meeting.

Item number one's called order.

Well, we don't have to go through all the other stuff.

I guess that we can wait for the uh regular council meeting in 30 minutes, which means we'd item number two, which is call to the audience.

The housing authority board welcomes public comment at this time only for items listed on this agenda.

There was a three-minute time limit per speaker.

Uh, Madam Clerk, do we have any cards this evening?

Mr.

Mayor, none for this meeting.

Thank you.

Thank you very much, which moves me to item number three approval of City of Tempe Housing Authority meeting minutes for November 13th, 2025.

Do I have a motion?

It's okay.

It's been moved by board member Amberg and seconded by board member Hodge.

Let's see, please vote.

If I can get my screen back here.

There we go.

I know the feeling exactly.

And let's see, is our is our resident member Moss online?

Yes, she is virtually.

Okay, uh Ms.

Moss, can you hear me?

Okay, um, Ms.

Just I'm just looking for a vote on item three A.

Can you give me a thumbs up, perhaps?

No, I can't see the screen.

Yes.

Yes, okay, great.

Yes, she put her hand up.

Perfect.

Okay.

And so that item passes seven to zero with board member Keating absent.

Next up, item four A, Tempe Housing Authority Governing Board quarterly update, quarter ended December 31st, 2021.

And I will look to our Irma Holamy Kane, our Deputy Human Services Director for Housing for an update.

Good evening, Irma.

Thank you, Mayor.

Council members, Ms.

Tee.

I'm here on behalf of the Tempe Housing Authority to provide you an update as to what housing's been up to over the last quarter.

Our work in community health and human services is directly linked to your strategic priorities and associated performance measures as demonstrated on the screen.

Housing voucher types are broken out on the screen, all in.

We have the capacity to assist 1243 households with housing assistance.

First, we're going to discuss voucher performance, taking your attention to the left of the slide.

So this slide compares Tempe's leasing performance with the average performance of all housing authorities or in Arizona.

So Tempe's on the left and Arizona is on the right.

If I may turn your attention to the blue highlight, you'll see that our leasing performance compared to the balance estate.

All of us housing authorities ideally we'd be leasing at a 95 to 98% leasing rate.

And so if I can turn your attention to the green highlight, this is our attrition rate.

And as I mentioned earlier, ours is 6.92.

The balance of state is closer to 10%.

As for budget uh performance, if I can take your attention to the left of the slide, um, as of September, uh, we have administered over 18 million in housing assistance.

Um we're utilizing 100% of our uh budget, and our average per unit cost is uh reported now at 1,503 and 70 cents.

So this high compares Tempe's budget performance with the average performance of all Arizona housing authorities, Tempe being on the left and Arizona is on the right.

A how a high performing um housing authority would achieve at least a 98% utilization rate of its annual budget authority.

So that's funds and unit months available, meaning that the housing authority should spend 98% or more of its allocated funding.

Tempe and other housing authorities are largely meeting this mark.

And so if I could turn your attention to the green highlight, you'll see that our budget performance is compared to the balance of the state, Tempe, and the state average is meeting the mark.

In other housing services division updates, I'd like to let you know that the uh US Department of Housing and Urban Development has already obligated funding for the housing choice voucher program through the end of January.

Um, and according to our analysis, voucher payments to property owners on behalf of low-income tenants are expected to continue through the end of this month.

Of course, we understand that at the end of this month, we either need we, as in the federal government, needs a continuing resolution to keep the government going or the ability to pass a new budget.

It's highly likely that it would be through continuing resolution.

Um, otherwise, um, what we'll find is another government shutdown.

Uh, with respect to the continuing resolution, it has been announced that funding for the housing choice voucher program through continuing resolution will be a little the funding will be a little bit higher than it was last year.

In other news, I want to uh let you know that um in 2025, our family self-sufficiency program served a total of 73 participants, with seven families successfully graduating after meeting all of their self-sufficiency goals.

So participants earned an oppressive 109,773 dollars through escrow disbursements, reflecting a measurable increase in their earned income and reduced reliance on subsidy assistance.

Additionally, I'm proud to say that one of our graduates actually achieved home ownership.

Yeah, and successfully exited the housing choice voucher program.

Um, and just a shout out to my team tonight.

We are having a graduation ceremony for our Tempe and other East Valley Family Self-Sufficiency participants.

So kudos to them.

In other news, we welcome Brandon Bruce as a new neighborhood revitalization coordinator who joined our team just uh about a month ago, and he's already making big improvements on our team.

Um he is brought here to revive our home rehabilitation programming, and he's already making an impact.

As of August of 2025, outreach has been conducted to 19 households for our targeted AC program in our home repair programming, and three have completed determination and will be on their way to having their home issues addressed.

Um the larger home rehabilitation loan program that we'll be rolling out will be rolled out either at the end of this month or next month.

Um, and we'll be targeting 49 households that are currently on our wait list for substantial home improvements, um, and also addressing any of the leftover micro burst emergency home repair inquiries that we received.

That concludes my housing authority presentation, and on behalf of the Tempe Coalition for Affordable Housing, in your packet is the TEMPE Coalition for Affordable Housing's September 2025 packet.

Of course, if you have any questions, I would be happy to take them later.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Irma, appreciate it.

Uh board member Hodge.

Thank you.

The presentation is always promising.

Thank you for all the work that you and your team does in the city of Tempe to make sure that you know that our housing program is not just standard, it's above standard even for the state of Arizona.

I do look at that our retention rate is almost at less than seven percent, where the city where the state is almost at closer to 11%.

So I just um I just want to say that um it it it it warms my heart, and you know why um it's always going to be a part of um what Tempe is embodied in.

That there's people from all over the state that wants to come just to be in our housing program because not only do we give them a place to live, we also give them an opportunity to bring this step up.

So I just appreciate all the work that you do.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Councilmember Hodge.

I'll be sure to bring that message to my team.

Yes.

Thank you very much.

Uh, board member Garland.

I I just love what you guys do.

Um, how well you work together and how well you work in our community and serving those people who really need it.

So thank you.

Um, adding on to just another thanks for what you do.

Um, I I was wondering um one question with the federal government and the um whether we have federal funding, we don't have federal funding, we have some, we don't have all.

Where are other areas that you're concerned with as far as making sure that we continue to get that federal funding?

Is there anything being taken back from us?

Thank you for that question.

Um, Councilmember Garlet, Vice Mayor Garlet.

Um you think on that a little bit?

Yep, no, no worries.

I'm just it just it worries me when I've been to other meetings uh at MAG and have listened to issues with federal funding, and uh it just makes me nervous.

I just want to make sure we get everything we can get, and we continue to get that number.

But anyway, you I can you can get that to me later.

I appreciate it.

Thank you.

I do want to say that when you sit in other news, I'm waiting for you to sit at a news desk in other news.

We have weather today in Tempe.

Thank you for my your presentation.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh anyone other else from uh council or from the board, I should say, who has further comments or questions for Irma.

Um Madam Clerk, anything online?

No, I do not see any.

All right.

One with their hand raised, thank you.

Sounds good.

All right.

Well, I guess that's good, Irma.

Thank you so much.

Appreciate the presentation.

All right, that item once again is only for uh update only, no action is necessary, which brings me to item number five, which is adjournment.

The next scheduled Tempe Housing meeting will be on April 6th, 2026.

Uh, we are adjourned and we will be back at 6 p.m.

for the beginning of the regular council meeting.

So we are adjourned.