BACKGROUND

The Northwest Suburban Housing Collaborative (“Collaborative”) was formed in 2011. The communities of Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Mount Prospect, Palatine and Rolling Meadows entered into an Intergovernmental Agreement ("IA") to cooperatively address housing issues in the subregion. The current IA expires on August 31, 2015. A new IA, with an effective date of September 1, 2015 and lasting for a five year period, is provided for consideration. 

Over the past four years, the Collaborative raised over $170,000 from private and public sector funding, and secured the support of important regional organizations to move its housing agenda forward. As a result, the Collaborative has been able to carry out its agenda successfully without any financial contributions from participating communities. Communities’ largest contributions to the Collaborative come in the form of staff time. The steering committee is comprised of municipal staff that meet monthly to discuss progress on current initiatives and shape the future direction of the Collaborative. The structure of the Collaborative has encouraged innovative approaches to address common housing challenges, which have taken form through several Collaborative initiatives.

SUMMARY OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS

In January 2013, the five member municipalities of NWSHC, received a technical assistance grant from the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) to become a Homes for a Changing Region study area.  The accomplishments and activities of the NWSHC developed from this technical assistance grant as follows: 

• Homes for a Changing Region report was completed in January 2013. One specific recommendation from the Homes plan that has been pursued collaboratively is to preserve and increase in senior housing. The Collaborative decided to contract with a consultant to complete a more in-depth study of the opportunities available and actions that can be taken by the five communities to meet the future needs of a growing senior population.

• Senior Housing Needs Assessment was completed in November 2013. The Collaborative communities decided to focus collectively and creating a Senior Resource Guide and creating a Senior Handyman program. 

• Senior Handyman Program was initiated for the Collaborative area. The program has served 242 households since June 2014, or an average of 20 households every month. The Handyman Program is uniquely structured to be a partly self-sustaining program, with income generated from participating seniors being invested back into program operations.  The program was expanded to provide handyman services for persons with disabilities and more extensive home modifications to address barriers and hazards in home of seniors and persons with disabilities.

INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT

With the Intergovernmental Agreement expiring in August 2015, the Collaborative’s steering committee recently focused on the different elements necessary for a robust work plan to move the Collaborative forward. In June 2015, mayors and municipal staff from the five Collaborative communities met to discuss the renewal of the Intergovernmental Agreement, opportunities for new funding and partnerships and the framework of a new work plan that builds on the successes and strengths of the Collaborative. Feedback was positive, and there was broad support for extending the Intergovernmental Agreement for another 5 years. A survey was distributed to mayors and municipal staff to gauge their interest in a number of existing and potential initiatives that could be included in a future work plan.Survey results showed that there is a interest from the participating communities to:

• Continue operating the Senior Handyman and Home Modification Program
• Preserve and increase senior housing
• Promote energy efficient housing including retrofitting existing dwellings
• Address aging and/or deteriorating properties
• Provide further education for municipalities around housing issues

Provided that the Intergovernmental Agreement is approved and renewed by the five NWSHC communities, the Collaborative steering committee will turn their attention toward refining these broad concept areas into specific, actionable work plan items. The Collaborative will continue to receive support from the Chicago Community Trust, and currently has $34,000 available to continue operations. The five communities and its partners will continue to build partnerships and pursue other funding opportunities to position itself toward a sustainable path for the future.

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that the Village Board approve the Intergovernmental Agreement for the continued operation of the Northwest Suburban Housing Collaborative.