STRATEGIC EXECUTION PLAN FOR RELOCATION. Prepared by the LAUSD Office of Housing & Relocation October 10, 2001

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1 STRATEGIC EXECUTION PLAN FOR RELOCATION Prepared by the LAUSD Office of Housing & Relocation October 10, 2001 I. INTRODUCTION California s Relocation Law 11 requires the District to provide relocation assistance to all qualifying displacees when it acquires land for school projects. This Strategic Execution Plan highlights the key guiding principles, objectives and structures that will be implemented to provide the District with minimal exposure to budget and schedule risks while empowering displacees to take as effective a role as possible in their own relocation. 12 The Plan is also intended to provide tools for integrating relocation into the District s overall real estate acquisitions program. The Plan was created taking into account the findings and recommendations of public/private working groups assembled to provide advice to the District on relocation and housing policy 13. As part of its current program to relieve overcrowding by acquiring property and building 85 new schools, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) anticipates displacing approximately 215 single family homeowners, 1,000 tenant households and 250 non-residential (primarily business) occupants from proposed school sites. 14 Aside from preparation for the current program, no new District relocations have taken place for more than two years. We expect to initiate relocation efforts for the current program shortly after January 1, 2002, and they could continue for as long as 18 to 24 months thereafter. The load of open relocation cases may reach as high as 1,200-1,500 at our peak acquisition time in mid Title 25, Division 1, Chapter 6 of the California Code of Regulations 12 A more detailed view of the administrative process underlying relocation operations may be found in the Office of Housing & Relocation s Policies & Procedures document. 13 See the attached Schools-Housing Working Group Joint Findings and Recommendations for LAUSD Relocation Program, dated October 9, These totals will be refined as more detailed information about occupants is revealed during the relocation process.

2 II. GUIDING PRINCIPLES The following guiding principles underpin the Strategic Execution Plan for Relocation: A. The District recognizes and respects the disruption that our proposed projects will cause in displacees lives. B. The District shall make the relocation process as user-friendly and predictable as possible for displacees and for its own staff. C. The District shall inform and educate displacees as early as possible, in a way that is understandable and useful to them. D. The District shall empower displacees to be partners in their relocation. E. The District shall help residential tenant displaces define and pursue their short-term and long-term individual housing goals. F. The District shall engage in partnerships with housing agencies and others so as to offer displacees enhanced assistance and benefits beyond the minimum required by the law. G. The District shall work to provide resources to replace some of the lowincome rental housing that will be lost to school construction. H. Office of Housing & Relocation staff shall maintain a thorough and complete audit trail for all relocation-related claims and payments. III. IMPLEMENTATION ITEMS A. Relocation Staff The District s highest priorities with respect to relocation have been to assign appropriate staff to the new Office of Housing & Relocation a unit created to provide special attention to relocation issues from within the Real Estate Branch and to enter into Master Agreements with relocation consulting firms to provide the external staffing capacity to handle our peak case load, expected in mid Internal Organization Fully staffed, OHR consists of approximately 10 in-house staff members: a. A director to manage the team and implement a consistent overall strategy for relocation; b. An experienced senior deputy to provide policy-level input and oversight; c. A housing resources analyst; d. A business and land-use specialist; e. Three to four consulting relocation specialists who each: i. Serve as a single point of contact for relocation services for the real estate acquisition teams;

3 ii. Oversee and manage the outside consulting relocation agents, who serve as the primary contacts for displacees; and iii. Audit claims and verify payment; f. Administrative support staff. OHR works extremely closely with the Real Estate acquisition teams and with the Community Outreach Branch. B. Consulting Relocation Agents Relocation field work that is, the direct interaction with displacees will be performed primarily by relocation agents employed by the firms that responded successfully to the July 2001 LAUSD Relocation Services RFP. These firms provide a total of approximately 50 consulting relocation agents available at any time for District work. Together, they have the capacity to handle between 1,000 and 1,500 open cases 15 at any one time. We anticipate using a significant portion of these consulting resources during our project peak time for relocation work in mid-2002, when more than 1,200 cases may be open at the same time. Relocation agents will be assigned to cases and will report directly to the District s in-house relocation specialists. The relocation specialists will coordinate their services with the Real Estate acquisition teams. We have standardized the consultant pay rates and scopes of services and have implemented a system that streamlines the issuing of task orders to qualified consultants. The procurement system has been designed to allow us the flexibility to assign and reassign relocation agents based on their performance. C. Information Program An effective information program is a primary key to the success of the program. Consistent with the Guiding Principles, the District will inform displacees as early and as thoroughly as possible about the relocation process and the help they can expect from the District. Further, the District shall inform them about special resources to which they will have access through the relocation program and help them define and pursue individual goals through the relocation program. 1. Support for Non-English Speakers OHR provides non-english language services namely in-person translation and translated materials to any displacee who needs them. All information materials produced by OHR are translated into a variety of languages. 2. Outreach 15 A case refers to one household, business or other occupant that is eligible for relocation assistance. An open case refers to a displacee who has begun the relocation process but who has not received his or her final payment from the District. Generally speaking, residential cases may be open from 30 to as long as 180 days. Nonresidential cases may be op en for as long 12 to 18 months, sometimes longer.

4 The Community Outreach specialist assigned to the new school site is the prime point of contact with the District for all displacees before they are contacted by a relocation agent and/or acquisition agent. The Community Outreach specialist remains a presence throughout the relocation process, serving as an ombudsman and advocate for impacted individuals even after more individualized work has begun with a relocation agent. The Community Outreach specialist helps displacees address their concerns and aggressively pursue answers to questions at the time they arise in the process. Further, the Community Outreach Branch, in cooperation with OHR, has been holding, and will continue to hold, public meetings for every school project involving potentially involving significant displacement to introduce the basics of the relocation process Literature Literature that clearly explains relocation and the options available to potential displacees is a critical element of our relocation strategy. OHR is updating the District s relocation literature to improve its clarity, completeness, and to reflect improvements in the options the District plans to offer displacees. This revised literature will then be translated into a variety of languages. 4. Enhanced Program (for Residential Tenants) For the first time, LAUSD will provide residential tenant displacees with special access to additional housing and educational resources as part of the Enhanced Relocation Program, covered in greater detail below. In addition to additional housing resources, the Enhanced Program will provide training, free of charge, to any displacee interested in financial literacy, homeownership and/or long-term rental opportunities. This training will be provided through partnerships including community-based organizations and others that specialize in this sort of work. 16 When the small number of potential displacees at a project makes a group meeting infeasible, Outreach has been setting up individual sessions for potentially impacted individuals.

5 5. Training the trainers Because of the size, scope and importance of the relocation program, LAUSD and its partners are planning group training sessions on the Enhanced Relocation Program for relocation agents, Real Estate staff, and community-based organizations. The purpose is to standardize the information and services displacees receive from us and our representatives and to provide a forum to explore best practices and to improve upon our program. D. Payment Systems A reliable, responsive system for delivering relocation payments in a timely manner to displacees is another critical element of a successful program. In general, claims for payment to displacees will be prepared by the relocation agent in the field, audited by the supervising in-house relocation specialist and approved for payment by the Director of Real Estate. We are also implementing a twotrack system to allow for certain approved payments to be issued on an expedited basis when quick turn-around is critical to displacees ability to secure new housing. 1. Standard Most relocation claims, such as those for business moving expenses or for the bulk of a residential tenant s rental assistance payment can be processed and paid through the standard District accounts payable system. 2. Super-Imprest Fund Some claims, however, may be urgent. In particular, because a desirable apartment may only be available for a matter of days before it is rented, a displacee who does not have funds immediately available to make deposits and/or pay first- and last-month s rent could lose out to others. To provide a solution for such displacees, a Super-Imprest Fund has been established to provide 24 to 48 hour turnaround time when such payment is critical to a displacee s ability to secure housing. Claims made under the Super- Imprest Fund will receive exactly the same review as those for standard payments. The payments themselves, however, will be expedited. E. Partnerships One of the key innovations of the District s new relocation strategy has been to pursue partnerships with other agencies and organizations that can help enhance the relocation process for displacees and help the District achieve goals such as supporting the creation of new affordable housing. Our proposed partnerships will allow us to offer displacees additional subsidies and resources as well as enhanced training and education. With the help of our housing partners, for instance, we will offer residential tenant displacees a menu of options beyond what is typically available in public relocation programs, as well as the training and counseling to use them strategically to meet individual housing goals.

6 To date, OHR has focused on housing partnerships as part of the new Enhanced Relocation Program for residential tenants. It is now beginning to explore analogous relationships to provide an enhanced program for businesses. Among the partners we are most actively engaging are: 1. The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) A proposed memorandum of understanding between HACLA and the District is being designed to provide any qualified displacee with access to Section 8 vouchers 17 in exchange for District funds to support replacement affordable housing. The arrangement would be fiscally neutral for the District (the Section 8 vouchers replace a portion of the cash benefits otherwise available to those displacees who have chosen to participate in the Section 8 program) and would advance the goal of creating more affordable housing in a region known for its undersupply of housing resources for low-income families. 2. County of Los Angeles Community Development Commission The District is working with the County s Housing Authority along with other housing agencies in LAUSD cities outside of the City of Los Angeles to extend partnership benefits to displacees outside of the City of Los Angeles. The LACDC has been a key partner in catalyzing the schools-housing discussion. 3. Fannie Mae Los Angeles Partnership Office Fannie Mae has agreed to assist in District efforts to provide opportunities for residential tenant displacees interested in homeownership. The District continues to work very closely with Fannie Mae as the partnership evolves. 4. Los Angeles Housing Department The Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) continues to provide advice to the District with regard to best practices and has offered to coordinate the provision of specialized resources, such as its down payment assistance program for low-income households, to displacees. 5. The Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing The Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing (SCANPH) has also helped convene the region s housing community to provide advice to the District on best practices. Many of the partnerships mentioned above have resulted in significant part from the SCANPH s efforts. 6. L.A. s Business Team, Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation The District has begun exploring opportunities to enhance the benefits offered to commercial displacees through partnerships with economic development arms of local government, such as L.A. s Business Team. OHR is working closely with representatives of Mayor James Hahn s office on this issue. 17 Federally-funded Section 8 vouchers, administered by local housing authorities, subsidize rental payments for lower-income families. Under a new program, the vouchers can also be applied towards mortgage payments.

7 F. Accountability OHR is organized on a strict-accountability model. The director is accountable for all work product of the office, both to the District and to outside stakeholders, such as displacees, communities and other government agencies. Each in-house relocation specialist is fully accountable to the Director for ensuring high quality performance from the relocation agents as well as for managing the schedules and budgets for their projects. IV. PROVIDING RELOCATION ASSISTANCE TO DISPLACEES Relocation assistance is highly individualized for each displacee. But in general, relocation services are structured with respect to the particular needs of each main category of displacees homeowner-occupants, residential tenants and nonresidential (generally business) occupants. The relocation process is divided into two phases: the preparatory stage, during which time information is gathered and eligibility for benefits is determined; and implementation, during which time displacees actually receive direct assistance in securing and occupying a replacement site. Following the requirements of the State Relocation Law, the District will provide every displacee, through OHR consultants, with advisory services and, if qualified, relocation benefits. When residential occupants (owners or tenants) are involved, the District is forbidden by law from proceeding with actual displacement until suitable replacement housing is available. When nonresidential occupants are involved, the District must provide relocation assistance and offer benefits, but there is no requirement that relocation be feasible before we can proceed with displacement. One feature common to all classes of relocation is that the displacee is always a critical partner in the process. Although the District will provide a displacee with whatever level of assistance is needed to identify a new location including offering particular locations, or comparables to residential displacees the decision about where to move is always completely at the displacee s discretion. As long as a replacement residence is available, the District may issue displacees with orders to vacate when sites are needed for construction. However, the District will never force a displacee to move to a particular location against his or her will. A. Residential Owner-occupants 1. Principal Objective In general, when the District acquires a home from an owner-occupant, it is obligated to provide enough payment for the homeowner to purchase

8 and move into a comparable 18 home in a similar neighborhood, roughly maintaining his or her mortgage position Advisory Services Relocation agents will provide advisory services to displaced homeowner-occupants. Advisory services will include whatever level of help the displacee wants or needs to identify, secure and move into new housing. 20 Services could include everything from referring the displacee to real estate and financial resources to actually driving them to realtor appointments to view possible replacement homes. 3. Relocation Benefits Relocation Benefits to homeowner-occupants come in the form of cash payments. Again, these benefits are generally sufficient to allow a displacee to acquire and move into a replacement home 21 while maintaining his or her financial position. If a displacee spends less for a replacement home than was anticipated at the time the estimated benefits were calculated, the actual benefits payment from the District will be reduced accordingly Displacee s Use of Benefits The relocation benefits, as described above, represent the maximum the District can provide to help a displaced homeowner secure and move into new housing. A displacee may apply the benefits, however, to whatever type of new housing he or she wishes in whatever location he or she wishes no matter what comparables were used to establish his or her maximum benefits. The caveats are that the displacee must pay any incremental moving costs beyond 50 miles from his or her current residence, and that if the actual replacement housing costs are less than was anticipated, the benefits payment may be reduced accordingly. B. Residential Tenants 1. Context The District s anticipated residential tenant displacement represents several challenges. First of all, Los Angeles supply of affordable hosing is many thousands of units short. 23 Secondly, consistent with the 18 Comparable homes are of similar square size, similar age and similar quality on similarly-sized properties. Special features of a home may be considered for comparability when appropriate. 19 If a displacee has a certain amount of debt on their current home and makes mortgage payments of a certain amount each month, the overall payment he or she receives from the district should be sufficient to purchase a comparable home with a similar amount of outstanding debt and a similar monthly payment. 20 Advisory services do not, however, include legal advice. 21 Benefits typically include moving expenses (which may at the displacees discretion be based either on professional bids or a State-provided fixed-rate schedule) along with other monies. 22 The amount the District must pay to purchase a home, an amount known as just compensation, is not subject to reduction based on the cost of replacement housing. 23 See In Short Supply, the March, 2000 report of the Los Angeles Housing Crisis Task Force

9 demographics where we are building schools to relieve overcrowding, most of our residential tenant displacees are classifiable as lower income and below. 24 That means that while sufficient numbers of units are available to house our displacees 25, few displacees would be able to afford market-rate units in the area without significant levels of assistance from the District and its partners. 2. Principle Objective In general, the District must provide benefits to displaced residential tenants sufficient for them move into and remain in comparable rental housing, at or below their baseline rent, 26 for at least 42 months. 27 Consistent with Guiding Principals D and E, displaced tenants will be encouraged to define their own housing goals for instance, homeownership and/or long term affordable rental housing and will be given tools to use the assistance and benefits made available to them through the relocation program. 3. Advisory Services Relocation agents will provide advisory services to all displaced residential tenants. Basic advisory services will include whatever level of help the displacee wants or needs to identify, secure and move into new housing. Services could include everything from referring the displacee to real estate and financial resources to actually driving them to appointments to view possible replacement apartments. Through its housing partnerships, the District will now begin offering displacees the opportunity to participate in an Enhanced Advisory Program, which will help empower displacees to define their individual 24 Lower-income refers to households that make less than 80 percent of the area median income. In Los Angeles County, families of four who make less than $43,600 per year are considered low-income. This classification is based on federal Department of Housing & Urban Development Standards specific to Los Angeles County. The detailed estimated income profile of displacees is as follows: 70 percent are very low income and below (meaning they make less than 50 percent of the area median income, or $27,250 annually for a family of four), 20 percent are lower income, 5 percent make the median income ($58,850 annually for a family of four), and 5 percent make above median. 25 A July, 2000 market analysis for the District by Paul Silvern of Hamilton, Rabinovitz & Alschuller estimates that approximately 120,000 units are vacant and available on any given day in Los Angeles County. Just under 60,000 are available any day in the City. 26 Baseline rent refers to the lesser of a 30 percent of a displacee s gross income or the actual rent he or she is currently paying, provided he or she is paying a fair rent. 27 Under the law, when a cash payment of $5,250 is not sufficient to cover the difference of rents that are affordable to tenants and rents available in the marketplace, an agency must take steps to provide for Housing of Last Resort. Housing of Last resort benefits may include cash payments, housing vouchers, new development and/or other resources that can help displacees secure housing within their means for at least 42 months.

10 housing goals and work with relocation benefits and other resources toward those goals. The Enhanced Advisory Program will consist of training sessions led by community-based specialists in financial literacy, credit counseling, homebuyer training and renter s training. 4. Relocation Benefits Whenever possible, displaced tenants will have a choice about the form in which they receive their relocation benefits. 28 Again, these benefits will generally be sufficient to allow the displacee to be re-housed at or below his or her baseline rent for at least 42 months. Displacees who choose to participate in the enhanced program will receive additional help understanding and combining subsidies and resources to enhance their ability to achieve individual housing goals. The same range of benefits will be available, however, to a displacee irrespective of his or her participation in the Enhanced Advisory Program. We will do our best to provide benefits in the manner which most effectively advances the displacee s individual goals Housing Partners OHR convened advisory groups of key members of L.A. s housing community to help create the proposed Enhanced Relocation Program. Certain group members have committed to working with us and our displacees to identify, consolidate and leverage housing resources to improve the relocation process for displacees and to help fulfill the Guiding Principles of this Strategic Plan. 30 Key partners include: a. Fannie Mae, Los Angeles Partnership Office b. Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles c. Los Angeles Housing Department d. County of Los Angeles, Economic Development Commission e. Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing 28 If the proposed MOU with HACLA is approved, for instance, we will be able to offer a choice of Section 8 vouchers or cash benefits to qualified displacees. 29 After a displacee completes the empowerment training, he or she will have assistance assembling the best mix of resources including homeownership products, long-term rental resources and relocation benefits to fulfill his or her objectives. 30 Most of our partners are available to provide assistance without executing a formal agreement with the District. The exception is the proposed partnership with the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles which involves a contractual relationship.

11 C. Nonresidential Occupants Nonresidential occupants 31 are generally the most independent of all displacees. Still, OHR is committed to providing as much assistance as each displacee wants or needs to make the best decision about his or her relocation. OHR is also pursuing partnerships with other agencies and business organization to provide enhancements to the relocation process similar to those offered to residential tenants. 1. Principle Objective Unlike the requirements with respect to residential displacees, the law does not require that nonresidential displacees be able to relocate before they are displaced. The law does require, however, that the District provide advisory services and relocation benefits to help the displacee reestablish with a minimum of delay and loss of earnings. 2. Advisory Services As with the residential displacees, relocation agents will work with nonresidential displaces to determine their relocation needs, including their requirements as to space, location, site configuration, and zoning considerations. If the displacee so desires, the relocation agent will facilitate a search for suitable sites. Through proposed partnerships, OHR will also work to make other resources available to the nonresidential displacees, such as: a. Case managers within local regulatory agencies to help manage the re-permitting process; b. Information regarding technical and business assistance programs for those businesses that have particular problems relocating or that wish to take advantage of the relocation to expand or adapt 3. Relocation Benefits Under the oversight of a District acquisition agent, nonresidential occupants will be appropriately compensated for all real estate and other property acquired from them by the District. Qualified nonresidential displacees will also be eligible for the following relocation benefits: a. Moving Expenses 32 and b. Reestablishment Expenses 33 ; or 31 Nonresidential occupants include businesses, nonprofits, churches and others. 32 Moving includes the act of physically moving a displacee s personal property to a new location, performing necessary adaptations to machinery, getting necessary licenses and permits, and connected utilities. Eligibility for actual reasonable moving expenses will be established based on the lower of at least two bids for all moving expenses to be performed by a professional service. There is no price cap limiting a displacee s potential eligibility for this category of reimbursement. 33 In general, reestablishment expenses include necessary upgrades to the replacement property, additional costs of occupancy and other items. A displacee can claim no more than $10,000 in reestablishment expenses.

12 c. Payment In-Lieu of Relocation Enhanced Program OHR has begun engaging potential partners including: a. L.A. s Business Team b. City of L.A., Dept. of Building & Safety c. City of L.A., Dept. of City Planning d. Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation e. Gateway Cities Partnership f. Valley Economic Development Corporation g. Los Angeles/Watts Small Business Development Center h. Central Los Angeles County Small Business Development Center i. University of Southern California j. Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) V. CONCLUSION The Strategic Execution Plan for relocation, as described above, will allow the District to comply with applicable laws and minimize budget and schedule exposure while providing displacees with the optimal support in becoming full partners in the relocation process. The Office of Housing & Relocation will evaluate the effectiveness of the Strategic Execution Plan as projects move forward and will work with staff, the Board and stakeholders to keep the relocation program evolving and improving. 34 If a displaced business cannot relocate, it may be eligible for a payment in lieu of relocation ranging from $1,000 to $20,000 depending on evidence of past income.

13 Schools-Housing Working Group Joint Findings and Recommendations for LAUSD Relocation Program Finance & Development Working Group Co-Chairs Tony Salazar, MacCormack Baron Salazar Lou Bernardy, Los Angeles Housing Partnership Opportunity Working Group Co-Chairs Barbara Zeidman, Fannie Mae Los Angeles Partnership Office Barbara Sandoval, Fannie Mae Los Angeles Partnership Office I. Introduction At the invitation of the LAUSD, the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) and the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing (SCANPH), housing experts, advocates and providers convened working groups, beginning in August 2001, to advise the LAUSD on strategies for pursuing its residential tenant relocation program so as to provide the highest level of service to displacees while advancing the region s affordable housing agenda to the greatest extent possible. This document, prepared by LAUSD staff in coordination with the working group members, summarizes the findings of those working groups. It is presented in the belief that continued close cooperation between the LAUSD and L.A. s housing community will help ensure the greatest benefit to the greater L.A. communities in need of new schools as well as more affordable housing. (Attached to this document are the names of those individuals and organizations that have served in the advisory working groups and helped shape these findings and recommendations.) II. Background A. As part of its program to build 85 new schools by , the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) anticipates displacing approximately 1,000 tenant families. An estimated 90 percent of these families have incomes that fall below 80 percent of the Los Angeles County area median income. (80 percent of L.A. County area median income for a family of four is $43,560 per year). B. State law requires the LAUSD to provide relocation assistance and benefits to any residents displaced by school projects. (Title 25, Division 1, Chapter 6) C. Displacees will find it difficult to secure affordable replacement housing due to the lack of sufficient affordable housing in the greater Los Angeles market. Thus, additional housing of last resort assistance, whether in the form of cash benefits or other housing subsidies, will be required to enable them to house themselves within their means. Although not specifically required to do so under California s relocation law, agencies such as the LAUSD typically offer housing of last resort benefits to displaced renters in the form of a lump-

14 sum super-payments, which provide enough money to pay the difference between affordable rents and market rents for a period of 42 months. (The relocation law encourages agencies to pursue a variety of strategies for providing housing of last resort benefits to displacees.) D. The greater Los Angeles area needs an estimated 28,400 new affordable housing units by 2005 to meet years of unmet demand, according to Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) figures cited in In Short Supply, the report of recommendations by the Los Angeles Housing Crisis Task Force. It is anticipated that the LAUSD s new schools program will result in the demolition of between 900 and 1,000 rental units during within the same time frame. III. Guiding Principals of Recommendations A. New school construction must be a priority for the region. Existing LAUSD schools are terribly overcrowded and far too many children are forced to attend school outside of their home neighborhoods. This has direct, adverse impacts on education priorities including making it difficult for parents to become fully engaged in their children s school lives. The 85 new schools in development will significantly help improve this situation even though they represent only the first third the region s need for new schools. B. Preserving and augmenting affordable housing stock must be a priority on equal footing with new schools. Los Angeles has one of the least affordable housing markets in the nation and has been unable to build new units fast enough to keep up with the growing need. As stated above, the Southern California Association of Governments has estimated that 8,000 new units per year will be needed through 2005 to make up the current shortfall. C. Creatively uniting schools and housing through partnerships and resource sharing is the best way to ensure overall advancement in greater L.A. s communities. By identifying and acting on synergies among schools and housing and by leveraging resources available for both we can achieve a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts for our communities. These partnerships are emblematic of the fact that schools like housing are simply one piece of a vital community fabric. The School District must be part of the broad discussion of community planning into the future, and all parties involved must accept responsibility for collaborating to achieve overall community health, above and beyond simply fulfilling single-purpose missions.

15 D. Any resources made available to displacees through housing partnerships should expand upon, rather than limit, their options under standard public relocation programs. In forming housing partnerships, it is critical that the LAUSD expand upon the relocation options traditionally made available to its displacees (such as super-payments), not take options away. Successful partnerships will mean that displacees have more choices not fewer and are better educated about how best they may leverage them to help reach their personal housing goals. E. Because LAUSD displacees are making personal sacrifices for the overall benefit of our communities, they deserve priority access to affordable housing resources. This priority must be granted, however, on the condition that others in need of affordable housing will not find their options unfairly limited. Displacees from public projects are typically given priority access to affordable housing resources such as Section 8 vouchers. That priority should be extended to displacees from the LAUSD s new school projects. However, in so doing, steps should be taken to ensure that others who need affordable housing will be protected from harm, and if possible, will benefit from increased resources made available through schools-housing partnerships. IV. Recommended Actions A. Catalog resources that displacees interested in long-term rental (and/or eventual homeownership) could use to augment or improve upon standard relocation payments to help them meet their housing objectives. There are many resources available to low-income families who want to become homeowners. These include specialized loan products (such as those Fannie Mae s partner financial institutions offer), down payment assistance programs (such as those offered by the Los Angeles Housing Department) and other subsidy sources such as the new Section 8 Homeownership Program. Often these resources are more useful when combined with relocation benefits and/or each other. LAUSD should take steps to identify these resources, to assist displacees in gaining access to them on a priority basis, and to empower displacees to use them to reach their personal objectives Displacees should have the option of choosing the combination of subsidies that best suits their housing goals, with as much or as little counseling as they want or need from professional advisors. This counseling should be available until displacees reach their primary goal, whether it be long-term affordable housing or homeownership.

16 B. Catalog resources that displacees interested in long-term rental (and/or eventual homeownership) could use to augment or improve upon standard relocation payments to help them meet their housing objectives. Long-term affordable rental resources include the Section 8 program, the tax credit program and other forms of rental subsidies. These subsidies should be made available to LAUSD displacees on a priority basis provided that it can be done without undue harm to others who need affordable housing Displacees must be fully informed about the risks and benefits associated with each option available to them and must be able to choose for themselves the combination of subsidies that best suits their housing goals. C. Create partnerships to deliver housing resources to displacees on a priority basis, while taking steps to maintain or increase the availability of resources for others who need affordable housing. If public and private housing providers can partner with the LAUSD to provide Section 8 vouchers, tax credit rental units and/or homeownership assistance to displacees on a priority basis, displacees will be better able to use relocation as an opportunity to achieve their long-term goals. LAUSD s contributions to these partnerships must help augment the resources available to non-displacees in need of affordable housing. Examples of augmentation include increasing the number of landlords willing to accept Section 8 vouchers and increasing the number of dedicated affordable rental units available in the region. D. Inform and educate displacees as early as possible prior to displacement so they may best take advantage of the opportunities made available to them through relocation. Whether displacees wish to remain renters or become homeowners, the earlier in advance of displacement they can engage in financial literacy training, homeownership counseling, renters training, and education about the resource programs available to them, the better they will be able to use their relocation benefits to reach personal housing goals. LAUSD should work with community-based organizations (CBOs) that are experienced in financial literacy and housing training to provide this education to displacees. Displacees not proficient in English must be able to access foreign-language materials and staff who can provide counseling to them in their native language. E. Track the results of partnership efforts in helping displacees achieve long-term goals and in creating new affordable housing resources. The schools-housing partnership efforts must evolve and improve as new school site acquisition efforts proceed. Further, procedures must be implemented to enable planners of future projects involving displacement to document and model the successful aspects of the schools-housing partnerships and improve upon those that do not perform as well. A detailed

17 tracking mechanism and supporting database will ensure that this is a possibility. F. Start now to explore further opportunities collaboration among the partners to work on the next phase of school construction. V. Conclusion The schools-housing working group members urge the LAUSD to incorporate the above recommendations into its evolving relocation and housing program. It is the intention of all of us that the schools-housing partnerships improve the outcome of the relocation process for displacees and create new resources for affordable housing development. As importantly, we hope that we have laid a new foundation of cooperation among housing and schools advocates for future efforts in school construction and housing development to proceed collaboratively, with overall community health as the primary if not only measure of success.