1.31.17 Meeting NotesCity of Wilmington /New Hanover County
Workforce /Affordable Housing Ad hoc Committee
January 31, 2017
Meeting Notes
Present: Robert Rosenberg, Steve Spain, Dave Spetrino, Jody Wainio, Will Bland, Katrina Redmon,
Katrina Knight, Gloria Green, : Elizabeth Dodson, Linda Smith, Paul D'Angleo, Phil Humphrey
Staff — Suzanne Rogers, City of Wilmington; Jennifer Rigby, New Hanover County (NHC)
Julia Moeller, NCH; Rebekah Roth, NHC
Absent: Tilghman Herring
Resigned: David Barnes, Carlos Braxton
Jody Waino, Chair, called the meeting to order and welcomed all.
Jody referred the group to the meeting notes distributed from the 12/13/16 meeting. She initiated
discussion on two items from the past meeting 1) Public Awareness, and 2) Financial Literacy &
Homebuyer Education.
Discussion Topic: Is a public awareness campaign for affordable /workforce housing needed? If so, what
should the campaign address? Who will be responsible for this campaign?
The Committee recommends a public awareness, aka marketing, campaign to educate the general public
on why housing that is affordable is important to the community.
The following points should be addressed in the marketing campaign:
• Change attitudes towards affordable housing;
• Change the language used to discuss the topic, instead of "affordable" or "workforce " housing,
use "housing that is affordable" to better communicate the point that it's about affordability
relative to income;
• Put a face on housing affordability; convey messages using stories about real people, reflect the
community's diversity;
• Messages should resonate with people from all walks of life, i.e. small business owner, corporate,
government /public service, seniors, millennials, and others;
• Campaign needs to be real and inclusive;
• Demonstrate how housing that is affordable intersects with economic development, business
recruitment, worker performance and stability, business growth, traffic congestion, health cost,
academic achievement; it's a quality of life matter for everyone;
• Educate the public on the importance of rental housing that is affordable to reducing ongoing
dependence on subsidized housing and build self- sufficiency;
• Illuminate factors not always considered when thinking about housing location, such as the
increased transportation cost, traffic congestion and time away from family;
• The campaign should use a variety of platforms to get the messages out including, but not limited
to, billboards, print media, brochures, broadcast media, social media, and UNCW short film
program
• Make the public aware of basic financial literacy facts, such as the importance of good credit, the
negative financial impact of minimum payments and late payments; and how to access credit
counseling and financial literacy resources from reputable providers in the community.
The marketing campaign should recruit the services of a public relations /marketing consultant. In
addition, the permanent Housing Advisory Committee should enlist advocates to help get the message
out and work with partners to provide financial support for the campaign. Below is a list of ideas for
partners and advocates, this is not an exhaustive list.
Partners (Funding & Expertise):
➢
City of Wilmington
➢
New Hanover County
➢
CF REALTORS Association
➢
Community Foundation
➢
NHRMC
➢
UNCW
➢
Banks
Advocates (Hero Points):
➢
Police /Sheriff
➢
Ben David
➢
Chamber of Commerce
➢
CF REALTORS
➢
CF Housing Coalition
In addition to the aforementioned recommendations, the Ad hoc committee also recommends a
statistically valid survey be conducted on housing affordability. This survey should build upon a previous
survey commissioned by the Cape Fear Housing Coalition (CFHC) and conducted by UNCW Sociology
Department Professors and Students. The City of Wilmington and New Hanover County should also
include questions about housing affordability /availability in the biennial citizen surveys conducted by both
organizations.
Discussion Topic: Is Financial Literacy and Homebuyer Education needed? If so, why? Who is currently
do this? What needs to change or improve?
There are existing programs offered by non - profits (AMEZ, CF Habitat, and CFRCDC), banks and the City's
HOP program. These programs are not widely utilized because many people don't know about them, or
perhaps don't think they will benefit. Also, a shortage of staff resources limit the number of people being
served.
Don't reinvent programs; help enhance and better coordinate existing programs to reach more people.
Homebuyer education attracts households with an interest in homeownership; however, financial literacy
isn't necessarily tied to homeownership. Financial literacy will benefit many people - renters and youth
in particular. Further, it should be recognized that better access to financial literacy is important in
preventing deferred maintenance which results in blighted /deteriorated owner - occupied homes.
The Ad hoc committee recommends the Permanent Advisory Committee:
➢ Explore the interest among landlords to refer residents to an existing financial literacy program,
in lieu of the late fee when the resident is late paying rent. In addition, approach CFPUA with this
program idea. This program incentivizes households with late payments to seek assistance to
better manage the household budget.
➢ Create and distribute, via print and webpage, a FAQ on financial literacy, to emphasize saving,
budgeting and planning. This material should include links to local programs and other reputable
resources, like the National Foundation for Credit Counseling and NeighborWorks.
➢ Approach employers, NHC Social Services, NHCS middle & high schools, CFCC and UNCW about
offering financial literacy workshops.
➢ Include Financial Literacy as a component of the Marketing Campaign.
Homework:
In preparation for the marking campaign the Ad hoc committee members will create talking points, known
as "Hero Points ", to concisely communicate the importance of housing that is affordable. Committee
members will provide up to three "Hero Points" answering the question - Why is housing that is affordable
important to our community?
Prepared by SE Rogers
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