MUNICIPALITY OF CHATHAM-KENT HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES SOCIAL HOUSING. Results of Operational Review of the Chatham-Kent Public Housing Portfolio

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1 MUNICIPALITY OF CHATHAM-KENT HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES SOCIAL HOUSING TO: FROM: Mayor and Members of Council Shelley Wilkins, Director, Social Housing DATE: August 2, 2011 SUBJECT: Results of Operational Review of the Chatham-Kent Public Housing Portfolio RECOMMENDATIONS It is recommended that: 1. The Operational Review of the Municipal Public Housing Portfolio for the Municipality of Chatham-Kent (August 2010), prepared by Toni Farley & Associates, be received for information. 2. The Director of Social Housing be charged with the task of ensuring the Directions and Recommendations of the Operational Review be addressed and to report back to Council on what actions have been taken on the remaining outstanding items within the next 4 months. BACKGROUND Pursuant to the Social Housing Reform Act (SHRA, 2000), the Service Manager is responsible for ensuring that each housing provider within its jurisdiction under the SHRA is meeting all of its legal obligations and is operating optimally, in accordance with established (social/housing) industry best practices. Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing s (MMAH s) established practice was to complete Operational Reviews every 3 years. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation s (CMHC s) established practice was to complete Operational Reviews every 5 years. Hence, the standard Service Manager goal is to complete Operational Reviews every 3 to 5 years for each housing provider. The Chatham-Kent public housing portfolio was completely devolved to the Municipality effective January 1, At that time, the former Kent-Chatham Housing Authority had been incorporated as the Chatham-Kent Local Housing Corporation (LHC). In May 2002, the Municipality completed the necessary legal processes to dissolve its LHC.

2 Operational Review Results for Public Housing Portfolio 2 The former LHC was brought in-house effective January 1, 2001 and all former staff moved into the Chatham-Kent Centre for Community Services building on March 1, The current Director of Social Housing was hired in September 2001 as Program Supervisor for private non-profit social housing program administration responsibilities. In April 2003, the Municipality went through organizational restructuring and two Program Supervisor positions were eliminated and the Director position was created. Since 2003, Administration has completed a large number of Operational Reviews with all efforts focused on the private non-profits within the Municipality s jurisdiction. Operational Reviews are normally completed by our municipal staff. To avoid a conflict of interest (with municipal staff auditing their own work/processes), the Municipality hired Toni Farley & Associates to complete an Operational Review on our own public housing portfolio. Toni Farley has years of experience with performing Operational Reviews and was the Director of the Housing Branch for MMAH at the time of devolution. The Director advised the consultant to be thorough and to issue all directions and recommendations deemed necessary according to provincial government standards and industry best practices. COMMENTS Toni Farley & Associates completed their on-site visit in the summer of The August 2010 Report i was filed with the Director in September While overall the Operational Review Report results reflect that our public housing is well managed and staff is knowledgeable and well suited to fulfill their responsibilities, there were a number of Directions and Recommendations (See Appendix 1) to act on in order to improve our operations. Directions are normally issued when there is an underlying legislated requirement for a housing provider to comply. Recommendations are normally issued on the basis of industry best practices. Given that this is the first Operational Review of our public housing portfolio since 2001, it is not surprising to note there were a number of areas to improve. A majority of the Directions and Recommendations have been addressed, as indicated in the comments section of Appendix 1 to the satisfaction of the Director of Social Housing and the General Manager of Health and Family Services. The table below summarizes what Directions and Recommendations are not yet resolved. (These items are also bolded in the comment section of Appendix 1.) Sec. Sub Topic Register Restrictions on title of public housing stock per Section 50, SHRA Direction Recommend # D3 Comments July 8, 2011 request issued to Legal Services to complete registrations

3 Operational Review Results for Public Housing Portfolio Portfolio properties be appraised for property insurance purposes Review vacancy issues in Wallaceburg projects Develop an Asbestos Abatement Plan for future reference Make public housing Asbestos Abatement Plan available to the private non- profit housing providers in CK (as a template document) Maintenance and Service Contract jobs be bundled and 3 or more quotations sought per bundle of work, and only one vendor be selected Develop and implement a formal Preventative Maintenance Program Preventative Maintenance examine practices in other service areas (e.g., Region of Halton, Social Housing Services Corporation, etc.) and adopt best practices D4 Inspections completed by Frank Cowan Insurance Company in May/June Awaiting updated information from Cowan D8 We have an oversupply of 3 and 4 bedroom RGI units in Wallaceburg. Will commence review in 2011 D11 Will investigate requirement for remediation/abatement plan for future renovations (determine if/when required) R8 Will review the need to create an Abatement Plan per response to Direction No. 11 above. D13 D14 R11 Multiple maintenance contractors are under contract to be available for emergency work or to work on vacant units requiring quick turnover to minimize vacancy loss and should be available to travel to any building within our portfolio. Janitorial, Landscape, Snow Clearing Maintenance contracts are currently bundled together where multiple Social Housing buildings are in one community. Preparation of a consolidated comprehensive Preventative Maintenance Manual will be considered as a future project The South-West Region Service Managers Group has started a local network for public housing management staff. Appropriate staff will attend/network. Will review best practices re preventative maintenance per reply to Direction No. 14 above.

4 Operational Review Results for Public Housing Portfolio 4 COMMUNITY STRATEGIC PLAN The recommendations in this report do not support, negatively or positively, a specific objective of the Community Strategic Plan. It is a neutral issue. CONSULTATION Toni Farley & Associates performed the Operational Review. Besides the Director of Social Housing, municipal staff designated as public housing staff were interviewed by the consultants and assisted with the provision of information. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS The 2010 cost for the consultant, Toni Farley & Associates was $5,000. This cost was covered by the social housing contingency base budget. Financial implications associated with implementation of the Directions and Recommendations contained in the Operational Review will be detailed in future reports to council and/or budget submission reports to council. Prepared by: Shelley Wilkins, BPA, CMM III Director, Social Housing Reviewed by: Lucy Brown, RN, BA Health and Family Services Attachment Appendix 1 Summary List of Directions & Recommendations from Operational Review of Municipal Public Housing Portfolio i For a complete copy of the Operational Review of the Municipal Public Housing Portfolio for the Municipality of Chatham-Kent, prepared by Toni Farley & Associates (August 2010), contact the Director of Social Housing at cksocialhousing@chatham-kent.ca (31 page document). G:\SH\Stage 2\RTC\CKSH staff\results of PH Operational Review August 2010.docx

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9 Page 1 of 9 Operational Review "" For Directions Chatham-Kent Public Housing Date of Review: June 22 and June 23, General Information 1.1 Project Description 2.0 Board Governance 2.1 Corporate Requirements THAT the Standing Items on the monthly agenda for staff meetings are to include reports on: number of vacant units by age, target plan, maintenance priorities/issues, resident relations, internal appeals and contract and tenders. The report on contracts and tenders is to be expanded to include for each contract awarded in that month, the name of all bidders and bid prices, award details, and nature of work to be performed. Direction D1 The Social Housing Maintenance Department complies with the Municipal purchasing policies and reports to the Director, General Manager, CAO or Council as required. Tenders & quotations are opened and awarded by the Municipal purchasing department. Maintenance provides a list monthly at the Social Housing staff meeting as part of the "staff reports" which details all of the capital & operational work projects, including pricing and contractor information. Basic contract specification information and the subsequent bid results for all Municipal tenders/quotations & RFP's are posted on the Municipal web site for access by anyone.

10 Page 2 of Policies & Procedures THAT, as a number of policies predate the RTA, policies such as Termination of Residency - Health Issues and Air Conditioner Charge - Extra Hydro Usage are to be reviewed to reference the applicable sections of the RTA and reaffirm compliance. Direction D2 The following policies have been amended & posted to the web: * Termination of Residency-Health Issues * Air Conditioner Charge-Extra Hydro Usage * Pet Policy * Rent Arrears Policy * Complaint Procedures THAT, for all properties, the Service Manager immediately proceed to register the restrictions as noted in Section 50 of SHRA on title. Direction D3 Request for Section 50, Restriction on Title registration was sent to Legal Services on July 8, Conflict of Interest Insurance THAT the properties in the portfolio be appraised for property insurance purposes. Direction D4 Inspections completed by Cowan Insurance in May/June Awaiting updated information from Cowan. FURTHER THAT the Service Manager and the Corporate Risk Manager meet to develop an approach and process to ensure that the valuation of all properties is current. Direction D5 Completed in April/May Organizational Structure

11 Page 3 of Unit Management 3.1 Target Plan Management THAT the target plan be reviewed at the monthly staff meeting and efforts be made to bring the number of RGI units in line with the approved target plan. Direction D6 * Assessment that CKSH is under target for RGI units is not a compliance issue. Portfolio is 100% RGI with exception of 15 market rent units between Southcourt/Westcourt s 100 units. RGI units are never offered to MR households unless there are no RGI applicants on the wait list. Offers for SC/WC units are processed according to target plan. (Exception: If under target for MR, unit is offered to RGI rather than leave vacant for extended period.) * 2011 change: Yardi report is printed & reviewed for SC/WC to assess current MR status prior to offering unit, as documentation that the target plan was reviewed. * Also, if an in-situ RGI household becomes a market household due to income change and/or determination of ceases to qualify (i.e., non-compliance), the tenancy continues at market rent as it's not a reason to terminate tenancy under the RTA.

12 Page 4 of Vacancy Management * Vacant units are offered on a weekly basis according to procedures established by selecting applicants active on coordinated access wait list / internal transfer wait list. THAT units sitting vacant for 3 or more months without an accepted offer to lease be monitored and reported on monthly. Direction D7 * If unit is ready for occupancy, but applicants are unable to move due to 60-day notice requirement with their existing landlord (i.e. can t afford to pay rent at both locations), CKSH will allow early occupancy and waive rent portion for overlapping period upon receipt of verification that rent was paid to landlord. * Unit turnover is otherwise managed by maintenance staff based on condition of unit upon move-out and available staff/contractor resources. * Special Needs vacant unit is filled by non-special Needs applicant if unit has sat vacant more than 3 months. THAT a review of problem projects such as the Wallaceburg project be undertaken to determine the cause for the high turnover and inability to re-tenant on a timely basis, and develop and implement strategies to address the problems. Direction D8 See Direction D7 notes. We have an oversupply of RGI housing 3 & 4 bedroom units. Will commence review in 2011.

13 Page 5 of Arrears THAT the Service Manager investigate the reason for the 100% increase in maintenance arrears, and develop and implement policies to mitigate the problem. Direction D9 * Increase in maintenance arrears is directly related to adding 100 family housing units to portfolio in (i.e. Southcourt/Westcourt.) Portfolio is predominantly occupied by client group that causes significant damages and other chargeback move-out costs. * Maintenance arrears are mostly related to former tenant accounts. Collection is difficult. (i.e., Social assistance income, inability to locate, etc.) Although accounts are filed with a collection agency upon termination, arrears are listed on Social Housing internal & provincial databases and reapplication for Social Housing requires arrears to be paid (eligibility criteria). Current tenants are required to negotiate a payment plan for arrears balances, otherwise continued eligibility for RGI assistance is in jeopardy. (Note: Unable to terminate under RTA for maintenance arrears, unless filing is based on determination that the household is no longer eligible to reside in Social Housing.)

14 Page 6 of RGI Administration 4.1 Target Plan Management THAT the Service Manager issue the current lease form to be signed by tenants that contains the following: 1) All rules and regulations including the Guest Policy, 2) Acknowledgement of internal policies, e.g., the Absence Policy, contained in the Tenant Information Package, 3) Completed Clause 3 (i) - occupancy restriction to names on lease. Direction D10 #1 Revisions to the lease agreement have been updated on a go-forward basis for compliance with legislative changes to SHRA and/or RTA. (Current lease form was updated August 2007.) Suggest that due diligence has been met for in-situ tenants as they were all informed of changes via a series of newsletters, communiqués, bulletin board notices, etc. - If directed to provide pre-august 2007 tenants with the current lease document, suggest following same process as was done when lease was extensively revised in (i.e., At annual review provide household with new version of lease with explanation of changes and advising to include updated lease with their original lease document.) Signature is not required. (Note: Under RTA, tenants cannot be mandated to sign new lease agreements after initial lease is executed.) * #14: Absence Rule is included in current lease. (section 8, iii) 5.0 Project Management - Maintenance Fire Safety WHMIS

15 Page 7 of Compliance re Asbestos Containing Materials THAT an Asbestos Abatement Plan be developed for future reference. Direction D11 Any Asbestos Containing Building Materials identified in the building survey as requiring remediation/abatement have already been removed. Will investigate requirement for remediation/abatement plan for future renovations (determine if/when required) Maintenance Records Maintenance and Service Contracts THAT the tendering process for maintenance work valued at under $40,000 be revised to ensure number of vendors invited to bid reflect the volume of work. FURTHER THAT jobs be bundled and three or more quotations sought per bundle of work, and only one vendor be selected. Direction D12 Direction D13 The Municipal purchasing department maintains a "Tender/Project Notification Service" and interested contractors register with C-K Purchasing and are notified of upcoming projects. Contracts are also posted on the Municipal website and interested contractors can then request tender/quotation documents. No control is available on the number of contractors that actually bid. Multiple maintenance contractors are under contract to be available for emergency work or to work on vacant units requiring quick turnover to minimize vacancy loss and should be available to travel to any building within our portfolio. Janitorial, Landscape, Snow Clearing Maintenance contracts are currently bundled together where multiple Social Housing buildings in one Municipal location exist.

16 Page 8 of Preventative Maintenance THAT a Preventative Maintenance Program be developed and implemented. Preventative Maintenance activities to include: annual building and unit inspections, maintaining accurate logs of equipment, building components and system checks, partial or complete equipment overhauls at predetermined specific periods, oil changes, inventory of all equipment and assets. Implementation of the plan to include a semi-annual written report and discussion at the appropriate staff meetings. Direction D14 A preventative maintenance program is currently in place. A large portion of which has been streamlined by adding it into janitorial contracts. (i.e., Carpet cleaning, eaves trough cleaning etc. and into landscape contracts, such as catch basin cleaning, etc.) Annual or bi-annual heating system preventative maintenance is contracted. Fire extinguishers are bar coded and a CKLAG contract is in place for annual maintenance. The annual preventative maintenance for in-suite smoke alarms, sprinkler/fire hydrant, fire alarm systems are contracted every three years and reports are forwarded for all of these item types annually. Current unit move-out volumes are exceeding 25% annually which results in vacant housing units being inspected and repaired/renovated on average every 4 years. (Annual) unit inspections are being undertaken in A complete inventory system database of all Municipal owned assets is maintained and updated regularly. Building Maintenance staff are required to maintain any equipment under their control. Preparation of a consolidated comprehensive Preventative Maintenance Manual will be considered as a future project.

17 Page 9 of 9 THAT the Service Manager ensure qualified personnel is available to undertake the inspection of playground equipment on an annual basis. Direction D15 The amount of very basic playground equipment in our portfolio is small with the building maintenance staff checking it on a regular basis. However, outside playground equipment contractors can be hired to conduct an annual check if mandated. For follow-up: Liaison with Recreation Facilities and/or Programs re annual inspections. 5.7 Emergency Maintenance Plan THAT a separate record of emergency repairs or situations be maintained. Procedures followed to be assessed after each event to determine areas for improvement. Direction D16 The Municipality currently tracks emergency/insurance claim situations by using an "Incident Report" forwarded to the Risk Management department. Procedures are assessed after each incident with other Social Housing staff in an informal manner Designated Substance Management Violations/Orders 6.0 Technical Review Capital Plan Updates to Capital Plan Updates to Bldg Condition Assessment Energy & Quality Improvement Audit/s