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Record of Proceedings

Community Development/Housing/General Government Committee Meeting - September 9, 2024

Meeting Portal — Monday, September 9, 2024
BodyWinston Salem, North Carolina
SessionMeeting Portal
DateMonday, September 9, 2024
StatusFILED
Video Record
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0:00

Uh Clark and Councilmember Monday.

0:02

Where's Councilmember Sydney?

0:05

Okay.

0:06

But she see you.

0:08

We have four consent items and two general agenda items.

0:13

It is our practice to start with the consent agenda first.

0:17

And I have been asked to pull item C3.

0:21

Are there any other items that the committee would like to see your council members pull?

0:26

Move approval on the ballot.

0:29

Second.

0:30

Motion to approve the balance of the consent agenda.

0:33

With that being said, all would you please vote?

0:36

Are we doing aye?

0:39

You should be able to vote on your item.

0:43

Oh, consent is voice.

0:45

All of the labor letters say aye.

0:47

Aye.

0:49

Thank you.

0:50

City clerk, would you please call the first item?

0:53

Item C three.

0:54

Item C three, consideration of items pertaining to the buy-in discriminatory discretionary community project grant awarded to the behavioral evaluation and response bear team.

1:06

Chief Mayo.

1:07

Or is the city manager you gonna comment or fire department?

1:12

Kristen is gonna come up and comment on this one.

1:18

Yes.

1:20

And just just to say I I spoke to the mayor earlier, and I wish I didn't pull this off.

1:25

We just wanted to give a little bit of background on the bear program for those that might be watching to get a little bit of a better understanding of what's going on and to maybe answer some questions of the community has.

1:36

This is an ongoing program, and the money that's being appropriated in this item is the funds that have come from uh Congresswoman man.

1:44

So that's not a I don't think an issue, but we just want to give the bear team a little bit of time to talk about things that are going on.

1:51

Thank you.

1:52

Go ahead and state your name and your position with the city.

1:56

My name is Kristen Ryan, and I am the director of the behavioral evaluation and response team with the fire department.

2:03

And welcome everybody.

2:05

Um I appreciate the time to have a little uh to discuss the bear team.

2:09

Um we have been in service for a little over a year now, and I just wanted to share a few highlights of things that we have done to benefit the community this far.

2:20

Um at this time we've responded over 3,157 calls, and that call volume is combined with direct direct calls to the team and 911 calls.

2:33

So we have done a lot of outreach efforts to ensure that individuals can call us without having to go through the 911 system, and that success in our outreach has shown that we've gotten 112 calls in one month directly, and just 108 coming through 911.

2:51

So we're making an impact on trying to make sure that the bear team is accessible to everyone in the community.

2:57

We have also attended many community events and outreach events to help promote um any kind of wellness or services to provide direct um link services to individuals who may be homeless or are displaced in any way, and any kind of community events that are being held for suicide prevention.

3:19

Um we have gone to many of the apartment complexes, different meetings, everywhere we're invited, we attend.

3:27

Um, and that is to make sure that we are accessible and available to all the citizens of Winston St.

3:33

Our call, our response time remains about 17 minutes at this time.

3:38

Um the process is is if we you call us, we come.

3:43

And that and it really just is the bottom line with that because we don't do a lot of triage.

3:48

We it's a lot of times individuals will call and they don't really know how to explain what's happening, so we don't require that.

3:54

We say give us your address, tell us the base premises, and we show up and figure it out when we arrive.

4:00

So we want to make sure that we're getting a good assessment of what's going on, and once we arrive, we do process um what's going on with them and then provide several sometimes several follow-ups to ensure that they have all of the barriers removed for the the for the reason of their crisis.

4:18

So if it's transportation, if it's funding, bus passes, um getting the that communication link to their mental health providers, whatever it is that's been creating that crisis episode for them.

4:31

We work diligently to resolve with them.

4:34

Um we do we have remained very visible in the community in that way.

4:38

Um and we work along with all mental health partners and a lot, all first responders.

4:43

So whoever identifies the individual first, which it may be EMS, fire, law enforcement, um store owners, anybody in the community, they call us and we come.

4:55

So it really we've made it that simple for the community.

5:00

We want to make sure that everybody knows about our direct number, and we do send out flyers and make sure that we're publicizing as much as we can.

5:10

Okay.

5:11

Any comments or questions from the committee government?

5:14

Council.

5:15

Oh, sorry, Mayor.

5:16

Mayor Joyce.

5:18

Since you pulled it.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████████████████████52%
Mental Health Awareness███████████13%
Public Engagement█████6%
Procurement and Contracts█████6%
Engineering And Infrastructure████5%
Budget Equity Analysis███4%
Procedural███3%
Homelessness███3%
Racial Equity███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Community Development/Housing/General Government Committee Meeting - September 9, 2024

The Community Development/Housing/General Government Committee of the City of Winston-Salem met on September 9, 2024, from 4:00 PM to 5:23 PM in Committee Room 101 North Main Street. Chair Denise D. Adams presided, with members Annette Scippio, Kevin Mundy, and Robert C. Clark present, along with Mayor Joines and Council Members Larson, Hanes Burke, and MacIntosh. The meeting covered a consent agenda (three items, one pulled for discussion) and two general agenda items: a right-of-way donation and an update on the affordable housing development process.

Consent Calendar

  • C-1: Resolution awarding a purchase with installation contract for replacement of four bus lifts to Alan Tye & Associates for $821,843.59. Approved unanimously.
  • C-2: Resolution awarding a purchase order for sixty Ford Interceptor Police Pursuit Vehicles to Deacon Jones Ford for $2,395,974.00. Approved unanimously.
  • C-4: Ordinances amending the FY2024-2025 budget ordinances. Approved unanimously. (Item C-3 was pulled for discussion and considered separately.)

Discussion Items

Item C-3: Byrne Discretionary Community Project Grant for BEAR Team Expansion ($700,000)

Mayor Joines requested the item be removed from the consent agenda for discussion. Kristin Ryan, Director of the Behavioral Evaluation and Response (BEAR) Team, reported that the team has responded to 3,157 calls in just over a year, with a 17-minute average response time. The team operates 24/7 and responds independently (without law enforcement co-response), making Winston-Salem a leader in North Carolina. The $700,000 grant from Congresswoman Kathy Manning will fund four additional crisis counselors, sustaining the 24/7 model. Council members expressed strong support; Kevin Mundy suggested a community feedback session to evaluate the program. Barbara Hanes Burke highlighted the team's work with unhoused individuals and partnerships with Baptist Hospital. The resolution was approved unanimously (4-0).

Item G-1: Acceptance of Donation of Surplus Right-of-Way from NCDOT (South Ward)

Jeff Fansler, Director of Transportation, presented a donation of approximately 1.9 acres of surplus right-of-way from the North Carolina Department of Transportation, located west of Liberty Street on both sides of Salem Parkway. The property includes part of the realigned Strollway and carries a reversion clause requiring it to remain in public use. Council members discussed its use as public green space and compatibility with the Peter Oliver project. The resolution was approved unanimously (4-0).

Item G-2: Update on the Affordable Housing Development Process

Shantell McClam, Neighborhood Services Director, presented a new annual application process for affordable housing funding, developed in response to a council request in May 2024 for a clear, equitable process. Key elements include:

  • Alignment with the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency's Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) schedule.
  • Improved scoring matrix incorporating location scores (proximity to schools, grocery stores, greenways).
  • Developer training on software and forms.
  • An annual application cycle with predictable deadlines.
  • Approximately $10 million in available funds (ARPA replacement, state ARPA, CDBG, HOME, and leftover bond funds), with a recommendation to reallocate $2 million from an unused construction loan fund.
  • An 80/20 funding split between multifamily and scattered-lot projects.
  • A $35,000 per-unit cap on gap financing.

Discussion included concerns from Council Member Scippio about the rigidity of the cycle potentially excluding developers with different timetables, and the need for clear housing goals and quality standards. Council Member Hanes Burke noted the Northeast Ward has an existing revitalization plan and argued special state legislation allows bypassing RFP requirements; she also questioned defunding the construction loan program for small businesses and nonprofits. Council Member Clark emphasized the importance of aligning with the LIHTC cycle to leverage state funding. Mayor Joines supported concurrent cycles for this year to avoid delays.

The item was informational; no vote was taken. Staff will incorporate feedback and bring a refined proposal to the committee in October 2024, with the goal of issuing a Notice of Funding Opportunity in November 2024.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Agenda (excluding C-3): Approved unanimously (4-0).
  • Item C-3 (BEAR Team Grant): Approved unanimously (4-0). The resolution accepts the $700,000 Byrne grant and amends the budget.
  • Item G-1 (Right-of-Way Donation): Approved unanimously (4-0). The resolution authorizes acceptance of the donation with a public use restriction.
  • Item G-2 (Affordable Housing Process): Received as information. Next steps: Council members to submit feedback to staff; a revised process to be presented for approval at the October 2024 committee meeting.

Meeting Transcript

Uh Clark and Councilmember Monday. Where's Councilmember Sydney? Okay. But she see you. We have four consent items and two general agenda items. It is our practice to start with the consent agenda first. And I have been asked to pull item C3. Are there any other items that the committee would like to see your council members pull? Move approval on the ballot. Second. Motion to approve the balance of the consent agenda. With that being said, all would you please vote? Are we doing aye? You should be able to vote on your item. Oh, consent is voice. All of the labor letters say aye. Aye. Thank you. City clerk, would you please call the first item? Item C three. Item C three, consideration of items pertaining to the buy-in discriminatory discretionary community project grant awarded to the behavioral evaluation and response bear team. Chief Mayo. Or is the city manager you gonna comment or fire department? Kristen is gonna come up and comment on this one. Yes. And just just to say I I spoke to the mayor earlier, and I wish I didn't pull this off. We just wanted to give a little bit of background on the bear program for those that might be watching to get a little bit of a better understanding of what's going on and to maybe answer some questions of the community has. This is an ongoing program, and the money that's being appropriated in this item is the funds that have come from uh Congresswoman man. So that's not a I don't think an issue, but we just want to give the bear team a little bit of time to talk about things that are going on. Thank you. Go ahead and state your name and your position with the city. My name is Kristen Ryan, and I am the director of the behavioral evaluation and response team with the fire department. And welcome everybody. Um I appreciate the time to have a little uh to discuss the bear team. Um we have been in service for a little over a year now, and I just wanted to share a few highlights of things that we have done to benefit the community this far. Um at this time we've responded over 3,157 calls, and that call volume is combined with direct direct calls to the team and 911 calls. So we have done a lot of outreach efforts to ensure that individuals can call us without having to go through the 911 system, and that success in our outreach has shown that we've gotten 112 calls in one month directly, and just 108 coming through 911. So we're making an impact on trying to make sure that the bear team is accessible to everyone in the community. We have also attended many community events and outreach events to help promote um any kind of wellness or services to provide direct um link services to individuals who may be homeless or are displaced in any way, and any kind of community events that are being held for suicide prevention. Um we have gone to many of the apartment complexes, different meetings, everywhere we're invited, we attend. Um, and that is to make sure that we are accessible and available to all the citizens of Winston St. Our call, our response time remains about 17 minutes at this time. Um the process is is if we you call us, we come. And that and it really just is the bottom line with that because we don't do a lot of triage. We it's a lot of times individuals will call and they don't really know how to explain what's happening, so we don't require that. We say give us your address, tell us the base premises, and we show up and figure it out when we arrive. So we want to make sure that we're getting a good assessment of what's going on, and once we arrive, we do process um what's going on with them and then provide several sometimes several follow-ups to ensure that they have all of the barriers removed for the the for the reason of their crisis. So if it's transportation, if it's funding, bus passes, um getting the that communication link to their mental health providers, whatever it is that's been creating that crisis episode for them. We work diligently to resolve with them. Um we do we have remained very visible in the community in that way.

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