Here’s what you need to know:
- The commissioners approved an updated salary schedule for the real estate development department that will cost $144,600 for this fiscal year. The agency is working with a third party consultant to complete a classification and compensation study on the rest of the agency and plan to present those increases in the fall.
- Fresno Housing CEO Tyrone Williams said that they will be making an announcement about HUD voucher increases. He said they will be “enabling families to decrease their rental burden through increased rental subsidies for 3,700 families.”
The meeting (in full)
The Scene
The Fresno Housing Authority joint meeting of the boards of commissioners took place on Tuesday, April 25, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. The joint board meeting packet states that due to the board’s adoption of AB 361, the meeting will be held via Zoom and audio conferencing for commissioners and accessible via teleconference and Zoom for all members of the public. Meeting recordings are not available online.
The Fresno Housing Authority is governed by 14 commissioners, seven of whom are appointed as city commissioners and seven as county commissioners. Five of the city commissioners are appointed by the Mayor of the City of Fresno to serve four-year, staggered terms. Two are appointed to two-year terms from among residents receiving housing assistance from Fresno Housing. Similarly, five of the county commissioners are appointed by the Board of Supervisors, and two are residents receiving assistance from Fresno Housing.
City Commissioners:
Adrian Jones, Chairperson (also Marriage and Family Therapist at North Star Wellness Group)
Stacy Vaillancourt, Vice Chair (also Chief Administrative Officer for Saint Agnes Medical Center)
Caine Christensen, Commissioner (also Director of Student Support Services for Fresno Unified)
Sabrina Kelley, Commissioner (Vice President of External Relations for Community Vision)
Sharon Williams, Commissioner (also retired Fresno Juvenile Hall counselor)
Ruby Yanez, Commissioner
Vacant, Commissioner
County Commissioners:
Cary Catalano, Chairperson (also owner of Catalano Fenske & Associates running for Fresno City Council District 1)
Nikki Henry, Vice Chair (also CIO for Fresno Unified School District)
Joey Fuentes, Commissioner (also trainer and mentor at Fresno’s Main Event boxing)
Valori Gallaher, Commissioner (also Caruthers School Boardmember)
Sophia Ramos, Commissioner (also registered nurse)
Stacy Sablan, Commissioner (also owner of Sablan Legal Services)
Vacant, Commissioner
Commissioner Catalano led the meeting.
Commissioners Jones, Kelley, Williams, Catalano, Henry, Gallaher, Ramos, Yanez were present during roll call. Commissioner Vaillancourt joined a few minutes later. Commissioners Christensen, Fuentes and Sablan appeared to be absent.
Additionally, the following staff members were present: Mangum, CEO Tyrone Williams, Chief Real Estate Officer Michael Duarte, Chief Diversity Officer Marc’ Bady, Attorney Kenneth Price and Chief Business Officer Emily De La Guerra.
The commissioners opened the meeting by approving the agenda.
The meeting was then open for public comments:
- Eric Payne was in council chambers to comment on the salary schedule. He asked that they make the salaries competitive with other agencies, including the Santa Clara Housing Authority.
- Catalano said it was an agenda item, but allowed him to make his comments because he said he needed to get to another city meeting on the housing element.
Williams then provided a CEO report for the commissioners:
- Williams said it’s their first meeting after the board retreat.
- He said they discussed moving their executive committee meetings to Tuesday evenings. They will provide an updated calendar in May.
- He said that he has been involved with Mayor Dyer and the City Council in updating the city’s One Fresno Housing Plan. He said there will be a meeting tomorrow at 1 p.m. to discuss.
- “It really looks at what we’ll be doing in the next three years,” he said.
- He said they are close to opening their new “digs” on Fulton.
- He said their 2022 Education Advancement scholarships will go online April 28.
- They are looking to continue and expand scholarships with support from Fresno State.
- They are looking at the HUD vouchers and enabling families to decrease their rental burden through increased rental subsidies for 3,700 families.
- They are working on an event to announce the increases.
- Tomorrow they will be participating in Denim Day.
- They have a partnership with the Zoo and will be signing an MOU to bring residents to the Zoo and the Zoo to the residents. He said it will be used as a place of learning and employment for residents.
Catalano opened the meeting for reports from the commissioners and no comments were made.
Consent items:
- Approved minutes of the March 10, 22 and 25, 2022 meetings.
- Approved amending the No Place Like Home resolution for The Arthur at Blackstone.
- An agreement required by HCD to accept NPLH funding.
- Prior to approving the consent agenda, Melissa, a Fresno State student, commented via Zoom. She said that she was at a nail salon over the weekend with her parents who were immigrants. She said that she was concerned that there was a Fresno Housing employee, Kelly Cooley, was in the salon saying that low income residents are just using the system.
The commissioners moved into closed session at 5:29 p.m. for a public employee performance evaluation of CEO Williams. They also conferenced with real property negotiators regarding 1749 L St. in Fresno. Catalano said they will reconvene in approximately 30 minutes.
They reconvened for open session at 6:17 p.m. with nothing to report. Henry recused herself on item b because she works for Fresno Unified, which is a tenant of the property.
Discussion items:
- Update on strategic initiatives and partnerships, including diversity, equity and inclusion from Chief Diversity Officer Marc’ Bady:
- He said they are celebrating Autism Acceptance Month.
- He said it is also National Volunteer and Fair Housing Month.
- They held an event at Parc Grove for residents with exhibitions celebrating cultural diversity.
- Participating in Denim Day to acknowledge victim awareness and affirming survivors.
- Looking at neurodiversity of those in the workplace. “What does it mean to make a career and make a living when the nervous system works quite differently?” he said. Virtual training coming up on neurodiversity.
- Several other months celebrating cultures and different people.
- Resident safety survey moving forward with Dr. Tania Pacheco. Sent out both paper and digital.
- Examining incentives in exchange for people’s time, including a digital gift card and focused on youth engagement.
- Kelley asked how the info will be disseminated with the community. She asked about a FAQ in simplified language.
- Catalano noted that Payne had rejoined the meeting and said that it will be important for them to work together to include the community.
- He said they have several intern positions being rolled out to residents.
- Youth DEI intern will be working with the county and another working with CAN work and at city sites.
- Acknowledged Julie Woodward for the Innovation Award. She will receive a plaque and a lunch with the CEO.
- Summer reading loss program with Fresno Freedom School and agriculture.
- Kelley asked if he had looked into the library’s Digibus in the summer and asked him to add it to his list.
- He said they do have several programs with the Fresno County library and will add that.
- Kelley asked if he had looked into the library’s Digibus in the summer and asked him to add it to his list.
- Chief Real Estate Officer Michael Duarte provided a real estate development update:
- He said Citrus Gardens and La Joya Commons applications are pending.
- Step Up on 99, La Joya Commons and Avalon Commons potential.
- State programs being aligned, “This is hopefully a new way to align programs and get programs moving faster,” he said.
- La Joya Commons and San Joaquin for the county possible.
- Bady provided a presentation on Fresno Housing staff demographics:
- He said it would be a surface level overview on the work around pay equity and compensation procedures.
- He said the current system doesn’t allow for nonbinary option, but he would like to see that added.
- Next steps will be to do a deep dive into salary and classifications.
- Kelley said there is quite a bit of variance in gender and ethnicity.
- She said there are so few Black employees, but their tenure is higher.
- Henry thanked Bady and De La Guerra for taking the time to compile the data.
Actions:
- Approved an updated 2022 salary schedule.
- Chief Business Officer Emily De La Guerra and Director of Human Resources Jeff Cardell presented the updated salary schedule.
- The increases will be approximately $144,600 in this fiscal year.
- Focusing on the real estate development department first and plans to balance the rest of the organization in the fall.
- She said it is an incredibly competitive market for people with real estate development expertise due to an increase in funding opportunities for affordable housing.
- Cardell said that implementing a class and comp study performed by a third party consultant will help them develop meaningful salary ranges.
- The consultant will rely heavily on multiple sources of comparable data.
- They also consider the city, county and other housing authorities.
- He said that when there is a short supply of qualified individuals, they want to make sure they are not at the “short end of the stick.”
- Cardell said the recommended actions will cost $144,600 and the balance of the agency will be brought forward in the fall.
- Kelley asked for the salary schedule and was referred to the agenda packet.
- Cardell said the highlighted jobs will be included in the real estate development department.
- De La Guerra said the rest of the positions will be increased, but they need to get the data to make sure they are being updated accurately.
- Henry asked when the last time they did a class & comp analysis. De La Guerra said it was in 2019.
- Catalano asked where they are finding the $144,600 difference. De La Guerra said that she joked with Mike that he is paying for it, but it is because they received a tax credit for Sun Lodge.
CEO Williams said that it may be the last meeting with the current board members. Commissioner Gallaher submitted her letter of resignation to the board, but she is willing to stay on for a short time until they find her replacement. Catalano said they hope they have it within 60 to 90 days. Gallaher said that she has learned a lot and it has been a treat to work with them.
The meeting adjourned at 7:08 p.m. The next regular meeting is scheduled for May 24.
If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at Documenters-admin@fresnoland.org with “Correction Request” in the subject line.