Item HA 03 - Public Hearing - Approve Housing Authority Fiscal Years 2025-2030 5 Year Plan and Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Annual Plan

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Housing Authority 5-Year Plan and Annual Plan March 18, 2025 Page 2 Year Plan (Fiscal Years 2020-2025); (3) a statement on the criteria used for determining the threshold for a significant amendment or modification to the 5-Year Plan; and (4) Resident Advisory Board comments. The Annual Plan (Exhibit 2) is the first year of the 5-Year Plan and provides specific information on the following topics: (1) new activities to be undertaken by the Housing Authority in the next year (Fiscal Year 2025-2026); (2) findings from the most recent Fiscal Year audit; and (3) annual progress the Housing Authority has made in meeting the goals and objectives described in the 5-Year Plan. As required by HUD, three ad hoc Resident Advisory Board meetings were held on February 5, 2025 with HCV participants who receive housing assistance from the Housing Authority. The three meetings were conducted in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese. A total of 3,126 active participants in the HCV Program were mailed a survey and an invitation to participate on the ad hoc Resident Advisory Board. Additionally, the survey and invitation were emailed to 964 active HCV participants who provided their email address to the Housing Authority. There were 39 participants who participated and formed the ad hoc Resident Advisory Board, including seven (7) Spanish-speaking, 14 Vietnamese-speaking, and 18 English- speaking participants. There were also 16 survey responses. This was the highest participation rate that the Housing Authority has had in years. However, the continued lower participation of only 39 HCV participants on the Resident Advisory Board and 16 survey responses may be attributed to factors such as lack of interest, scheduling conflicts, a decline in social capital, and a general low turnout for public meetings (e.g. commission meetings, public hearings, etc.). Many residents may not fully understand the impact of the 5-Year Plan and Resident Advisory Board, or they may not feel that their input will lead to significant changes. Additionally, language barriers, transportation issues, or a lack of awareness about the meetings despite our extensive outreach efforts to mail and e-mail every active participant in the program could have contributed to the limited engagement. Lastly, the ad hoc Resident Advisory Board is only made up of HCV participants so other stakeholders and community members are not invited to participate. The comments from the Resident Advisory Board and survey are attached to the 5-Year Plan and Annual Plan. Staff analyzed all of the recommendations from the Resident Advisory Board and survey responses by: (1) considering the feasibility of each recommendation; (2) discussing as a team how the Santa Ana Housing Authority could implement each recommendation; and (3) making a determination on which recommendation(s) could be implemented or considered for future implementation. All of the recommendations were taken into consideration by staff and incorporated into the 5-Year Plan and Annual Plan. For the next five years, SAHA has created the following goals to continue serving the community while striving for continuous improvement and excellence: • Goal # 1: Fully utilize all funding provided by HUD and apply for additional funding to serve the most vulnerable members of our community.