CUYAHOGA COUNTY

DEPT. OF DEVELOPMENT

Michelle Brzoska

Public Policy Fellow

Summer 2014

FAIR HOUSING BEST PRACTICES

Projects

• Fair Housing Best Practices

• Demolition Fund Application

• Casino Revenue Spending Research

• Urban County Cooperation Agreement Amendments

Presentation Overview

• Fair Housing Laws

• CDBG funding and Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing

• Fair Housing in Cuyahoga County

• Research Goals and Methodology

• Findings

• Recommendations and Next Steps

• Consider the Person – Housing Choice Voucher

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLD-QVT5vqo

Fair Housing Laws

• Federal

• Fair Housing Act (1968)

• State

• Ohio Fair Housing Law (1965)

• Local

• City, Township, and County Ordinances

Fair Housing Laws

• In Ohio, all properties are covered

• Federal Protected Classes

• Race/color

• National origin

• Sex

• Religion

• Familial status

• Disability

• Ohio Protected Classes

• Military status

• Ancestry

Fair Housing Laws

• Local Protected Classes

• Source of income

• Gender identity

• Sexual orientation

• Marital Status

• Age

• Fair Housing Boards

Fair Housing Laws

• Protect against:

• Denying a dwelling

• Refusing to rent or sell a dwelling

• Making housing unavailable

• Refusing to make a mortgage loan

• Setting different terms or conditions in housing

• Discriminatory advertising

• Coercing, interfering, or threatening someone who is exercising

their fair housing rights

Fair Housing Laws

• Reasonable Accommodations

• Changes in property rules, policies, or practices

• Examples: Allowing a service animal, reserving a parking space,

changing the rent due date, allowing a live-in aide

• Reasonable Modifications

• Physical changes to a property (interior of unit and common areas)

• At tenant’s expense

• Examples: Installing a ramp, widening doorways, installing grab

bars, lowering outlets and switches, installing lever door handles

CDBG Funding and Affirmatively

Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH)

• CDBG = Community Development Block Grant

• Entitlement Funding

• Cuyahoga County Dept. of Development receives CDBG funding

(Urban County)

• Fair Housing Agencies, Housing Rehabilitation Loan Program,

Municipal Grant Program

• Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing

• Taking proactive steps to address segregation, discrimination, or

other barriers to housing

• Analysis of Impediments (AI) to Fair Housing Choice

CDBG Funding and Affirmatively

Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH)

• 40% of CDBG distributed through Municipal Grant

Program

• Urban County Consortium members eligible

• Urban County contract and AFFH

Fair Housing in Cuyahoga County

• Contracts with nonprofit agencies

• Discrimination complaints, landlord/tenant counseling, monitoring

lending and local real estate practices, predatory lending

prevention, etc.

• Individualized assistance

• The Fair Housing Center

• Cleveland Tenants Organization

• Heights Community Congress

• Fair Housing training requirement for municipalities

• Department programs

• Participate in efforts concerning vacant properties,

foreclosure prevention, etc.

Research Methodology

• Goals• Fair housing best practices

• Evaluate our level of fair housing programming relative to others

• How to better work with municipalities in the Urban County

• Methodology• Local fair housing meetings and interviews

• Phone Interviews with counties around the country

• National Association for County Community and Economic Development (NACCED)

• Interview Questions

• Reflect impediments identified in county’s latest AI and research goals

FindingsRequirements for Urban County Municipalities

• Cuyahoga County

• Municipalities sign Urban County Cooperation Agreement (HUD

requirement)

• Fair Housing educational session

• Most counties have no requirements

• Withholding funds if city is found in violation

• Fair Housing educational sessions

• Fair Housing ordinances

• Submit zoning ordinances for review (Chester, PA)

• Contribute portion of funding to pay for Fair Housing Coordinator

(Kern, CA)

FindingsContracting with Outside Agencies

• Cuyahoga County

• Contracts with The Housing Center, Cleveland Tenants

Organization, Heights Community Congress

• Most counties contract with at least one outside agency

• Education, outreach, testing, AI

• Few counties had a dedicated fair housing employee

• Contracts for accessibility, homelessness prevention, rent

assistance, and affirmative marketing

FindingsMunicipal or County Zoning and Occupancy Codes

• Most interviewees have little authority over zoning and

occupancy codes

• Work with municipalities on ordinances

• Group home/student housing (Montgomery, PA)

• Submitting zoning codes for review (Chester, PA)

• Reviewing and technical assistance/recommendations

• Model ordinances

• Universal design

• Inclusionary housing/zoning

• Reasonable accommodations

• Residential density

• Visitability

FindingsCollaboration with local Housing Authority

• Cuyahoga County has worked with housing authority in

past

• Many counties do not work closely with housing authority

• Fair housing training for staff, property managers, residents

• Job training program

• County or fair housing representative attendance at resident board

meetings

• Providing assistance to elderly in locating accessible public

housing

FindingsVouchers and Rental Housing Assistance

• Most counties do not offer rent assistance aside from

HCV

• Eviction prevention, emergency rent/utility assistance, first month’s

rent, security deposit assistance

• Rental assistance for families edging out of welfare (Westchester,

NY)

• Work with voucher recipients and landlords:

• Fair housing training sessions, landlord association meetings promoting

voucher program, mobility counseling

• Consider the Person Campaign (Anne Arundel, MD)

FindingsAccessibility

• Most modifications only for homeowners

• Wheelchair accessibility modifications (ramps, grab bars,

reinforced walls, widening doorways, etc.)

• Only four counties offer modifications for renters

• Hamilton, OH; Montgomery, PA; Contra Costa, CA; Montgomery,

PA

• Westchester County, NY

• Dedicated accessibility rehab program

• Universal Design ordinance

• Database of accessible rental units

• Montgomery County, MD

• Design for Life program

FindingsMiscellaneous Programs and Findings

• Bus tours of affordable housing units

• Open houses at federally funded properties

• Research on low/moderate income housing

• Housing trust funds

• Radio, TV, and Newspaper Ads

• Public Service Announcements

• Opportunity Mapping

• Packet of information about fair housing distributed

• Landlord conferences or forums, renter preparation

programs

Next StepsFair Housing Education and Outreach

• Work with elected officials on fair/affordable housing

education

• Incorporate fair housing into all Department of

Development programs

• Increase amount of fair housing information on website

• Work with Consumer Affairs to post fair housing resources

Next StepsLandlords and Housing Authority

• Work with county landlord registration program

• Outreach and education on the voucher program and

low/moderate income housing (Consider the Person)

• Open houses at federally funded housing developments

• Housing Authority/voucher sessions and information on

fair housing rights

• Job training program with Housing Authority

Next StepsWork with Municipalities

• Draft model ordinances with Planning Commission

• Market 211 and fair housing on municipality websites

• Encourage municipalities to add protected classes or

stronger enforcement language in ordinances

• Offer different training session options

Next StepsAccessibility

• Research other county accessibility modification

programs (specifically for renters)

• Visitability policy or certification program

Next StepsStakeholder Meetings

• Presented research

• Discussed current/future efforts

• Brainstorming

• Accessibility

• Educational requirements for municipalities

• More training options

• Working with volunteer/elected boards

• Promoting the voucher program

• Consider the Person

• Research