Mayor eyes $30M from federal aid for housing initiatives
Barrett: Issue is one of ‘most pressing’ for city
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett on Sunday announced a plan to direct about $30 million of American Rescue Plan Act funds to housing initiatives.
The proposal will require Common Council approval and is expected to be taken up before the August recess. Barrett said he expects to present the plan to the council this week.
The money is part of the $394.2 million in federal funds allocated to the city from the American Rescue Plan Act.
Barrett said he wanted to prioritize investments in housing in his first plan for the funds.
“I view housing as one of the most pressing issues that the city of Milwaukee faces right now,” he said at a news conference.
Barrett has also included early education, lead abatement, internet access and more among his priorities for the American Rescue Plan funds. Proposals to spend the rest of the money will be introduced soon, he said.
“This is the first installment of what I plan to have as a multi-year approach, and clearly there are other needs that we have,” Barrett said. “And so part of it is balance.”
Investing in housing is crucial because foreclosures cause a “quadruple hit” to Milwaukee, he said.
Along with families losing a place to live, vacant houses have a domino effect on surrounding community: The city isn’t collecting property taxes on the houses, property values go down nearby, and more city resources need to be devoted to monitoring the houses.
Among several measures, the proposal calls for $3 million to be directed to the city’s compliance loan program, which allows qualified homeowners to get no-interest, deferred-payment loans for repairs needed to fix code violations.
Westley Jackson Jr., who has owned a home in Milwaukee’s Uptown neighborhood since 1994, received a loan from the program last year to fix his leaking roof. Barrett held the news conference Sunday outside Jackson’s home.
Jackson, who is retired and receives Social Security checks, could not afford to fix the roof on his own. He was grateful for the program, which allows homeowners to pay back their loans when selling or transferring the property.
“It’s been a blessing to me,” Jackson said.
The largest portion of the $30 million would go to the Westlawn Choice Neighborhood Initiative, a federally funded project from 2015 that needs extra funding to be completed.
Barrett proposes devoting $15 million to the project, most of which will
go toward gap financing for 326 mixedincome affordable housing units.
The Westlawn project aims to replace a “distressed” public housing development along Silver Spring Drive and to build additional market-rate rentals and houses.
About $2 million of the proposal would go to covering remaining infrastructure costs for the Westlawn project such as new paved roads, alleys and water and sewer systems. Infrastructure work there is about 80% complete, according to data provided by Barrett’s office.
Barrett’s proposal also includes:
• $5 million to help low-income residents fund energy-efficient retro fits to their homes such as improving insulation and HVAC systems, which in turn will reduce their energy bills.
• $2 million for three low-income housing projects currently being developed to help them overcome pandemic-related economic challenges such as shipping delays, supply shortages and rising material costs.
• $1.8 million to support a right-to-counsel program that provides a free attorney to eligible Milwaukee County residents facing eviction. It also would aim to reduce “unscrupulous landlord practices” and unnecessary evictions. The city would partner with the Legal Aid Society, among other institutions.
• $1.2 million to expand homebuyer and foreclosure counseling programs, funding six new positions for three years. The counselors provide support before and after purchasing a home as well as help with mortgages and foreclosures.
• $1.2 million to fund two-person teams who will clean, repair and turn over the backlog of vacant Milwaukee Housing Authority units – opening more housing for people waiting for services. About 92% of units are occupied, and city officials estimate the additional staff would boost occupancy to 98% or more.
• $1.2 million toward the Rental Housing Resource Center, an organization that provides advice and support to both landlords and tenants.
The city has received half of the $394 million and will receive the second half in 10 months, Barrett said. The money must be spent in about four years. “This gives us a window of opportunity to address the very serious issues that we have here in the city of Milwaukee,” he said.