PHILADELPHIA – Today, City Council voted to approve Bill No. 251065, introduced by Councilmember Jamie Gauthier on behalf of Council President Kenyatta Johnson, amending Bill No. 250568, which stipulates how bond funding for the City of Philadelphia’s Housing Opportunity Made Easy (H.O.M.E.) Initiative can be spent. Last month, City Council approved an amended Year 1 spending plan for the H.O.M.E. Initiative.
The following statement may be attributed to City Council Housing Leadership Jamie Gauthier and Rue Landau, Brewerytown Sharswood Neighborhood Coalition, Habitat for Humanity Philadelphia, HERE for Climate Justice Coalition, Hunting Park Community Revitalization Corporation, Make the Road PA, One Pennsylvania, Philadelphia Association of Community Development Corporations, Philadelphia Coalition for Affordable Communities, Physicians for Social Responsibility PA, Regional Housing Legal Services, Reclaim Philadelphia, and Make the Road PA.
“We thank City Council for taking the final step to move the Year 1 H.O.M.E. Budget forward. With this vote, we’re proud to tell every Philadelphian — especially the more than 200,000 families on the brink of losing their homes — that help is on the way!
“The City is committing more than $277 million in housing resources to reach every Philadelphian. And in recognition of how widespread housing instability has become, the plan doubles the number of households eligible for critical home repairs and accessibility upgrades.
“We’re especially grateful that City Council adopted almost all of this coalition’s amendments into the final plan: $46 million for affordable housing preservation, $40 million for Basic Systems Repair Program, $29.5 million for affordable housing production, $8.8 million for homelessness prevention, $4 million for FreshStartPHL and the Anti-Displacement Fund, and $3.5 million for the pre-existing Shallow Rent Program.
“Most importantly, lawmakers took an important step for equity by dedicating 90% of funding for the Basic Systems Repair and Adaptive Modification programs to households at current income eligibility levels. This protective measure ensures that these immensely popular but historically underfunded programs serve the low-income and working families who are the backbone of this great city: teachers, sanitation workers, seniors on fixed-income, folks with disabilities, and a majority of Philadelphians in 8 out of 10 Council Districts.
“The final H.O.M.E. Year 1 Budget represents what’s possible when lawmakers, housing experts, and community advocates come together with urgency and purpose. Under the leadership of Council President Kenyatta Johnson, City Council demonstrated through its actions — not just its words — that it’s serious about putting City Hall to work for communities that have too often been left behind.
“This coalition is eager to keep building on this progress with City Council and the Parker Administration as we move into the next phase of the H.O.M.E. Initiative.”
# # #
