WestMetro HOME Consortium

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WestMetro HOME Consortium

Next Consortium Meeting: November 7, 2024 at 9:00 am

Agenda and materials will be posted one week before the meeting

Click here to view the November 7th agenda

City of Newton, Representative Member

The HOME Investment Partnerships Program is the largest Federal block grant to State and local governments designed exclusively to create affordable housing for low-income households.

Since 1992, the City of Newton has received over $35 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's HOME Program through the WestMetro HOME Consortium for the development of affordable housing in Newton. Because Newton is not individually eligible to participate in the HOME Program, in 1991, the City spearheaded an effort to form a consortium under the newly enacted Program. Brookline, Waltham and Watertown joined Newton in this effort. Since that time, the Consortium, through Newton as the lead member, has received and distributed over $35 million in HOME funds to its members.

The Consortium has provided grants and loans of HOME funds to for-and non-profit developers and directly to low-income households to create over 550 units of affordable housing. The developers have used these HOME funds to leverage over $12.5 million in other funds to produce this housing.

WestMetro HOME Consortium Funding RFPs

The Consortium does not have any current funding RFPs at this time.

HOME-ARP Program

Through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded $5,406,962 to the WestMetro HOME Consortium for housing, services, and shelter to individuals experiencing homelessness or housing instability.

HUD requires all recipients of HOME-ARP funding to develop a HOME-ARP Allocation Plan. The Allocation Plan requires approval by HUD before the Consortium can receive and begin to commit the HOME-ARP funds. To ensure that resources from this one-time funding address the most pressing homelessness and housing instability needs, the Consortium conducted broad community outreach to engage stakeholders, advocates, and housing and homelessness service organizations working in our communities.

For this effort, the Barrett Planning Group developed a community engagement plan on behalf of the WestMetro HOME Consortium. Feedback and data collected through these engagement events informed the plan's needs assessment and gap analysis, which guided how the award dollars are allocated. The full engagement plan can be found here.

HOME-ARP Request for Proposals

On November 9, 2023, The WestMetro HOME Consortium released a Request for Proposals (RFP), making $4,595,918 available for the following eligible activities:

$2,545,918 made available for the Acquisition and Development or Rehabilitation of Affordable Rental Housing
$1,000,000 made available for the Acquisition and Development or Rehabilitation of Non-Congregate Shelter
$750,000 made available for Supportive Services
$300,000 made available for Tenant-Based Rental Assistance

Proposals were due February 9, 2024. Project Review Committees convened to discuss all proposals in late February and early March. Funding awards can be accessed here.

HOME-ARP Allocation Plan

The Barrett Planning Group, on behalf of the WestMetro HOME Consortium, has prepared the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan, which outlines the strategy and planned expenditures of federal HOME-ARP funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Allocation Plan outlines the activities and goals planned to address the needs of qualifying populations within the Consortium communities. Allocated funds must be spent by September 30, 2030. The final version of the HOME-ARP Allocation Plan can be found here.

About the HOME-ARP Program

As part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the federal government appropriated $5 billion in one-time funds for the HOME-ARP Program, which is designed to assist individuals and households who are experiencing homelessness, at risk of homelessness, or other vulnerable populations through housing, rental assistance, supportive services, and non-congregate shelters. HUD's HOME Investments Partnerships Program (HOME) will administer these funds, and Participating Jurisdictions (PJs) that qualified for an annual HOME Program allocation for FFY2021 are eligible to receive HOME-ARP grants.

The HOME-ARP Program is a stand-aloe program distinct from the traditional HOME program and funds are reserved for specific eligible activities benefiting qualifying populations known to experience much higher risks of homelessness and housing instability. The eligible HOME-ARP activities include:

Preservation and Production of Affordable Rental Housing
Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA)
Housing-Related Supportive Services
Acquisition and Development of Non-Congregate Shelters (NCS)
Non-Profit Operating Assistance or Capacity Building
Administration and Planning

The activities must benefit the following Qualifying Populations:

Experiencing homelessness, (as defined in 24 CFR 91.5 "Homeless" (1), (2), or (3))
At-risk of homelessness, (as defined in 24 CFR 91.5 "At risk of homelessness)
Fleeing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking, (as defined in 24 CFR 5.2003)
Other populations with a high risk of housing instability (including highly cost-burdened, low-income households, households who have moved two or more times in the last 60 days, and households living in a hotel/motel).

For more information about this program, visit: https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/home-arp/overview/

WestMetro HOME Consortium Reports

As recipients of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME
Investment Partnerships Program (HOME), and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) funds from
the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the City of Newton and the Consortium are required to engage in a five-year comprehensive strategy, known as the Consolidated Plan.

The FY21-25 Consolidated Plan identifies the most pressing needs in the community as they relate to low- to moderate income individuals and families, analyzes market conditions that contribute to those needs, and outlines a strategic plan with actionable steps, goals, and priorities to support Newton’s and the Consortium’s most vulnerable populations.

The thirteen cities and towns that belong to the Consortium commit to taking meaningful and measurable actions to break down barriers to fair housing choice and affirmatively further fair housing for all protected classes. The Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice document describes the specific actions the Consortium should take to do so. This document was prepared in April 2021 by Barrett Planning Group with assistance from JM Goldson for the Consortium.

Consortium Communities' Homebuyer, Housing Rehab Programs and Rental Assistance (TBRA) programs

HOME Assisted Development Project

Project	# of HOME-funded Units	Type of Units	AMI%
Brookline - 108 Centre St.	54	Senior & disabled	18 units at 30% and 36 units at 50%
Framingham - Carlson Crossing (East & West)	5	Any	<50%
Needham -Linden and Chambers St.	126	Senior & disabled
Newton - West Newton Armory	43	Multifamily	15 units at 30%, 28 units at 60% AMI
Waltham - Beaverbrook Apartments	60	Senior & disabled
Wayland - St. Ann's Village