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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRES 4238CITY OF RENTON, WASHINGTON RESOLUTION NO. 4 2 3 8 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF RENTON, WASHINGTON, AUTHORIZING AN APPLICATION FOR A U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT CHOICE NEIGHBORHOODS INITIATIVE IMPLEMENTATION GRANT FOR THE SUNSET AREA TRANSFORMATION PLAN. WHEREAS, the Sunset Area (as reflected in the attached Sunset Area Vicinity Map) is one of Renton's older commercial and residential areas and is in need of revitalization; and WHEREAS, since the late 1990s, the City has viewed the Sunset Area (a.k.a. the Highlands) as a high-priority redevelopment area targeted for improvement and investment; and WHEREAS, in June 2009, the City commissioned a Community Investment Strategy study to prioritize additional public investment in the 269-acre Sunset Area study area which resulted in the City Council's adoption of the Sunset Area Community Investment Strategy in November 2009;and WHEREAS, the highest priorities for the Sunset Area Community Investment Strategy included support for the Renton Housing Authority's Sunset Terrace Redevelopment; and WHEREAS, in June 2010, the City and the Renton Housing Authority partnered together to conduct a Sunset Area Community Planned Action NEPA/SEPA Environmental Impact study. The study was completed in April 2011 and resulted in the City Council's adoption ofthe Sunset Area Community Planned Action in June 2011, to help facilitate and support private and public investment and redevelopment in the Sunset Area over the next 20 years; and WHEREAS, in 2012, 27% of the households in the Sunset Area lived in poverty; the median average household income was $39,318 [more than $16,000 less than the city as a 1 RESOLUTION NO. 4238 whole ($55,950) and more than $29,000 less than King County ($68,775)]; 75% of the students at the neighborhood elementary school qualified for free or reduced fee lunch; and 35% of students at the neighborhood elementary school had limited English proficiency; and WHEREAS, the Sunset Area is a high-priority investment area for the City and the Renton Housing Authority; and WHEREAS, the City, the Renton School District, and the Renton Housing Authority have invested or committed more than $66 million to date in public investments in the Sunset Area to support the Sunset Area Community Revitalization and/or the Sunset Terrace Redevelopment; and WHEREAS, the City is seeking to leverage public and private investment in the Sunset Area to help address the needs of Renton's Sunset Area residents; and WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has issued a Notice of Fund Availability for the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative (CNI) Implementation Grant Program and applications are due February 9, 2015; and WHEREAS, the purposes of the CNI funds are to: (1) replace distressed public housing and assisted housing with high quality mixed income housing, (2) improve educational outcomes and intergenerational mobility for youth and their families and (3) create the conditions necessary for public and private investment in distressed neighborhoods; and WHEREAS, the City and Renton Housing Authority have asked the King County Housing Authority (KCHA) to join them in a mutual effort to apply for the CNI grant and, if successful, for KCHA to administer the CNI grant and build mixed income housing primarily in the Sunset Area of Renton; and 2 RESOLUTION NO. 4238 WHEREAS, the City is working with the Renton Housing Authority, the King County Housing Authority, the Renton School District, Neighborhood House, and other public and private entities to create a HUD CNI implementation grant application for the Sunset Area Transformation Plan. The CNI grant would potentially provide up to $30 million to support the Sunset Area Community Revitalization efforts; WHEREAS, the City, the Renton Housing Authority, and the Renton School District have taken significant steps towards planning and implementing substantial housing and neighborhood improvements already in the Sunset Area, including: (i) construction completed for the Meadow Crest Early Learning Center, the Meadow Crest Playground, and 26 units of new affordable housing; (ii) construction under way for a new Renton Highlands Library, the Harrington Green Connection and water main improvements, and the Sunset Terrace Regional Stormwater Facility; and (iii) relocation of residents from the Sunset Terrace distressed public housing development; NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RENTON, WASHINGTON, DOES RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS: SECTION I. The above recitals are found to be true and correct in all respects. SECTION II. The Mayor is authorized to (i) apply for funds and prepare a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Choice Neighborhoods Initiative (CNI) grant application for up to $30 million for the Sunset Area Transformation Plan in cooperation with the King County Housing Authority and the Renton Housing Authority; and (ii) sign all certifications and provide all information required by HUD for the CNI application for the Sunset Area Transformation Plan. The Mayor is further authorized for the City to be a Co-Applicant 3 RESOLUTION NO. 4238 and the Neighborhood Lead for the CNI application with the Renton Housing Authority as a Co- Applicant and the King County Housing Authority as the Lead Applicant and the Housing Implementation Entity, a role to be fulfilled in conjunction with the Renton Housing Authority if the CNI funds are awarded. PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL this 12th day of __ J_a_n_u_a_r..:..y ___ , 2015. Denis Law, Mayor Approved as to form: r:' ........ w7fA?r·. -c;>(. A4 47 ~ ~ Lawrence J. Warren, City Attorney RES: 1656: 12/29/14:scr 4