The funds available from Sewall to advance healthy and affordable housing in 2023 is $220,000. Through group dicussions over the past 6 months, the following have been identified as the preferred focus for fund allocation over the coming year:
Convenor
The group affirmed the necessity of a dedicated convener to increase communication, build relationships across projects, help us stay on track, coordinate meetings, and be the driving force to maintain and increase momentum. The convener should have housing-specific experience, must conduct outreach and engagement to get full community input, and be focused on equity. The specifics of the role description and structure need to be discussed further. This would be a minimum two year position.
Funding considerations: Estimated hourly wage for a convenor is $25-35 per hour. This translates into an annual salary of approximately $50,000-70,000 for one full time convenor. Two part-time positions could also be considered.
Collaborative Project
The group affirmed starting with a 'quick win', high impact collaborative project and a Housing Resource Hub was identified as a preferred project. The Housing Resource Hub would include a continuum of housing options, centralize resources, and identify the supports and funding sources available at each step along the housing continuum.
Funding considerations: Costs may include technology, contractors, and staff time. Allocating a dollar amount to this project might feel like a guess given that the project specifics have not yet been defined. Consider allocating the required funds to the convenor and steering group stipends first and seeing what is remaining for this project.
Steering Committee Stipends
A steering committee could be formed to define the convenor role, hire the convenor, set goals, and define the specifics of the collaborative project. The steering team must be diverse and representative of all stakeholders. Having a steering committee in place can also increase the ability to attract and disperse additional funding for collective goals. Stipends would compensate committee members for their time.
Funding considerations: Estimated commitment is 30 hours x $30 per hour = $900 per person. With approximately 10 members a recommended budget is $10,000.
Base Operating Support
Optionally, base operating support could be allocated to smaller organizations to help them fully participate in this process. Base operating support is unrestricted funding and is most beneficial for organizations with annual operating budgets of less than $1 million.
Funding considerations: Base operating support tends to be up to $10,000 per organization. Offering base operating support needs to be balanced with the direction from the group that a convenor and collaborative project are needed.
How would you like to see $220,000 from Sewall allocated to advance healthy and affordable housing in L-A?