The Summit County Council on Wednesday established a countywide housing authority after a year of talking about it. But there’s plenty left to talk about before the new body actually gets to work.
The housing authority would provide medium- to low-income residents with resources to find housing within their price range in addition to tracking housing trends throughout Summit County, according to Economic Development and Housing Director Jeff Jones.
In January, county councilors will start the interview process and appoint five to seven housing authority commissioners. More information, like how often the housing authority will meet, who qualifies to be a commissioner and whether there should be a set number of East Side representatives, will be decided at a later date.
The commissioners’ first steps will be to “prepare and publish a Summit County Housing Authority Strategic Plan and Policy Manual,” including financial incentive policies and regional coordination strategies that would primarily focus on the East Side.
A housing and economic data dashboard will be another priority for the newly established housing authority, Jones said. In a November meeting with the County Council, Jones described the dashboard as a central site for information about where affordable housing units are located, average prices and any other details that an interested renter or buyer would need to know.
The housing authority will also evaluate the feasibility and need for employer-assisted housing programs and implement a utility allowance assessment study, which will analyze the price of rent including utilities and provide funds for residents who are struggling to pay their utility bills.
“In the budget that we presented at the last meeting, we had asked for $81,500 of $250,000 that has been set aside and has been budgeted,” Jones said. “That means there’s an outstanding balance of roughly $168,500 that remains unallocated at this point. We figure that would be a good time for whoever those new commissioners are, and as they go through strategic planning, to reallocate those funds.”
County Councilor Roger Armstrong made a motion to approve the resolution with a stipulation that a governing ordinance with further details on the housing authority’s structure and operations be drafted and voted on by Jan. 31. The County Council unanimously approved the resolution with Armstrong’s additions.