A communication transmitted from Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager, relative to Awaiting Report Item Number 18-28, regarding Housing Choice Designation

C I T Y O F C A M B R I D G E Community Development Department IRAM FAROOQ Assistant City Manager for Community Development SANDRA CLARKE Deputy Director Chief of Administration 344 Broadway Cambridge, MA 02139 Voice: [phone removed] Fax: [phone removed] TTY: [phone removed] www.cambridgema.gov MEMORANDUM To: Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager From: Iram Farooq, Assistant City Manager for Community Development Date: March 13, 2018 Re: Policy Order O-2 dated March 5, 2018 regarding applying for the Housing Choice Designation Community Development Department staff have been tracking the rollout of the Commonwealth’s new Housing Choice Initiative. Through the Housing Choice Initiative, communities that have met certain housing production benchmarks can be designated as Housing Choice Communities. Designated communities will have access to grant funds for infrastructure improvements through the Housing Choice Grant Program, and will also receive bonus points or other preferred consideration for certain other state grant programs. The application for Housing Choice designation is now available. To receive the Housing Choice designation as a High Production community requires demonstrating an increase in year-round housing units of 5% or 500 units over the last 5 years. Cambridge meets this housing production threshold, and we will provide information to demonstrate that. CDD staff are now completing the application for Housing Choice Community designation, and will submit it to the Commonwealth ahead of the April 30, 2018 application deadline so that the City can be designated as a Housing Choice Community. The application for the Housing Choice Grant Program is not yet available. Staff have contacted the State to request additional information about the Program, and will continue to monitor funding opportunities that become available through this program.