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2018 Eugene- Springfield Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report 5 <br /> <br /> <br />Provide Down Payment Assistance for Homeownership <br />Both Springfield and Eugene transitioned funding for their respective homebuyer assistance programs to <br />CDBG from HOME as part of the 2015 Consolidated Plan. <br /> <br />Eugene Homebuyer Assistance Program – This program was launched as a pilot in October 2015 using CDBG <br />funds. Due to local market conditions, the program was suspended mid‐way through FY 2017. Low‐income <br />households seeking to purchase had tremendous difficulty finding units that were both affordable and met <br />CDBG quality requirements making this program ineffective. <br /> <br />Springfield Home Ownership Program – Down‐payment assistance was provided to eight low‐income <br />homeowners, through 0% interest deferred loans up to $7,000. With a delayed start to the program in 2015, <br />Springfield still has funds available for the program from FY 2017 and FY 2018 allocations. <br /> <br />Remove Barriers to Affordable and Supportive Housing <br />Both Eugene and Springfield seek opportunities to affirmatively further fair housing and raise awareness of the <br />housing needs of low‐ and moderate‐income people. <br /> <br />Intergovernmental Housing Policy Board <br />The Intergovernmental Housing Policy Board (HPB) completed strategic work planning. Two Task Teams were <br />formed to: 1) Research a dedicated local source of funding for affordable housing and 2) Identify alternative <br />housing types and barriers for low‐ and very low‐income families. The HPB made recommendations to City <br />Council on both topics and additional, city‐wide work is underway. The HPB continued to advocate for state <br />and local policy changes to remove barriers to affordable housing and housing choice. Eugene staff <br />collaborated with community advocacy groups on fair housing strategies, trainings, and outreach. <br /> <br />Fair Housing <br />Eugene engaged in fair housing work in collaboration with the Fair <br />Housing Council of Oregon. The hotline for fair housing questions <br />and complaints served as a useful resource for community <br />members. Fair housing advocacy was provided and investigations <br />were conducted. <br /> <br />Six fair housing trainings were held for staff, social service <br />agencies, housing providers, and community members. One <br />training was created for Spanish‐speaking community members. <br />A Spanish interpreter and equipment were available for language <br />translation during the training. <br /> <br />To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Fair Housing Act, Mayor <br />Vinis proclaimed April as Fair Housing Month in Eugene. Also, an <br />outreach event aimed at families with children was held in <br />collaboration with the Eugene Public Library. This special event <br />included fair housing themed books read by Mayor Vinis, crafts, and <br />the distribution of fair housing materials in English and Spanish. Staff also exhibited at the University of <br />Oregon’s Off‐Campus Housing Fair and provided fair housing education and bilingual resources. <br /> <br />Springfield dedicated time and efficiently used university student interns to help address this strategy. Fair <br />housing documents were created for dissemination to local residents and landlords, and are available on the <br />City’s website. Also, an outreach strategy was developed to further educate residents and landlords about <br />fair housing, beginning in FY 2019. <br />Mayor Vinis at Fair Housing Story Time <br />October 10, 2018, Joint City-County Work Session – Item 1