Phase 3

This represents the third, and final, stage of the continuum.  Permanent housing units may be SRO’s, project-based, scattered site, market rate, and/or voucher-funded. Preference is given to projects that re-integrate homeless persons into the community and projects that provide long-term, follow-along services, such as relapse prevention, continuing education, and family support. The Plan further identified sources of funding for this expansion to include state and federal funding (tax credits; McKinney) or locally-controlled federal funds (CDBG/HOME).

While a goal was not initially established in the Plan for the number of units proposed to be expanded, a Blue Ribbon Panel created by the Trust set forth a plan for achieving a goal of 2,500 new advanced care units. This assumed the increased development of low income affordable housing in the community to provide accessible market rate housing. However, that has not occurred. Under the 30% affordability rule, a household in Miami-Dade County would require an income of $28,000 to obtain and maintain affordable housing; this is 71% of the median family income for the county. Additionally, almost 26% of the entire population is living in poverty; more than 45% of all renters are considered low income (earn less than 80% of median family income) and 30% of renters are considered very low income (earn below 50% of median family income).

The Homeless Trust Business Plan calls for the placement of 4,600 homeless men, women, and children into permanent housing each year. In 2005-06, over 4,900 homeless people were placed into permanent housing.

To compliment the development of permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals and families, the Trust works in partnership with OCED and MDHA to receive an annual provider set-aside of HOME and Surtax funds to provide capital. These funds are used to leverage state low income housing tax credits, SAIL funds and Super NOFA program funds.  The annual development of the Gaps and Needs Analysis provides an opportunity for review of the increased need and demand for permanent supportive housing. Additionally, the Trust’s Housing Development Committee meets monthly to examine barriers to homeless housing development and identify sources of funding for that purpose.

Efforts to increase access to non-traditional sources of funding continue to be identified and include proposing a set-aside of funds available from the CDBG/HOME allocations to the local entitlement jurisdictions, that will include an incentive pool for affordable housing developers, participating in the rulemaking process for the low income housing tax credit program to ensure prioritization for homeless projects, and identifying possible partnership with the local housing finance authority (ies). Local, state and federal legislation initiatives are being drafted by the Trust and will be introduced to establish prioritization for projects serving the homeless.