Logo courtesy of the City of Elk Grove

ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - The City Council has unanimously approved a program that will provide help for people here seeking affordable rental housing — including those living in the city’s homeless shelter.

Passed by resolution at the council’s Oct. 14 meeting, the Local Preference Program is designed to assist people living and/or working in Elk Grove obtain preferential access to city-supported affordable rental and owner-occupied housing. City-supported projects are those receiving special considerations such as gap funding.

By instituting local preference the city hopes to strengthen community stability by helping low-income residents maintain their community networks through schools and other social avenues that might be compromised by not living in the city. The program could also help stabilize the workforce environment through commute time reduction as more people who work in Elk Grove but can’t afford to live in the city receive access to affordable housing closer to work.

The Local Preference Program supplements the city’s current affordable housing lottery selection process by establishing two tiers for selection: the top tier being local preference followed by offering any remaining units to households without such preference.

“They can still apply and they would be considered … after local preference has been exhausted,” Elk Grove management analyst Joshua Tovar told the council.

To qualify for local preference the applicant must have at least one household member as a principal resident within Elk Grove or at least one household member who works or is offered work at an Elk Grove business and averages 20 or more hours a week. Applicants need to provide documentation such as a utility bill if they are a resident and a pay stub if they are a worker.

Fair housing regulations would be part of the equation as well as giving equal weight to either a resident or worker in Elk Grove with no duration-based requirements. Additionally the preference program would not override any income, tenant or project funding requirements.

The preference program applies to “new deed-restricted rental and ownership units supported by the city” along with existing units through a “case-by-case basis.” It also applies to the initial lease on the unit and would carry over even if the unit is sold or re-rented.

“That just ensures that future residents and workers continue to benefit from the city’s investments,” Tovar said.

Under the program the city is responsible for implementation guidance as well as compliance monitoring, evaluating program effectiveness, providing information about the program as required by state law and administering the local preference home buyer/ownership programs. The project owner or manager is responsible for administering tenant selection and leasing and incorporating “preference into tenant selection plan.”

The need for affordable housing has become more evident in Elk Grove and other communities as rising housing costs put more of a financial burden on low-income residents. Many low-income households are “cost burdened” when it comes to housing, meaning they are spending 30% or more of their income on housing and have less to spend on other items such as transportation, food and healthcare.

According to the city’s staff report which referenced recent U.S. Census data, annual household income for people renting in Elk Grove averages $78,700 compared to $141,500 for owner-occupied households. Dedicating 30% of that income to housing means renters are spending $23,610 annually.

“Low‑income owners are also impacted by affordability pressures,” staff note in the report. “Over half of owner-occupied households earning less than $75,000 per year are cost burdened.”

Councilman Kevin Spease asked if the definition of resident included someone living in a shelter. Housing and Public Services Manager Sarah Bontrager said a shelter is not a residence but provided a caveat.

“However for the Elk Grove shelter we are very specific about doing the vetting to make sure people at the shelter have the connections to Elk Grove,” she said. “Right now, all (living at the shelter) would qualify (for Local Preference), and I anticipate that to continue to be the case.”

“Good, that’s a good thing,” Spease said, adding part of the shelter’s focus is providing residents opportunities to eventually transition into more permanent housing, including rentals.

“That is kind of the goal of all this, right?” Spease asked.

Bontrager said that was correct. Shelter residents are given preference “above and beyond” what’s listed as they are typically at the top of housing wait lists.

“If you are a person experiencing homelessness in Elk Grove we can give you a sort of direct referral when units become vacant in these projects,” she added.