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Committee backs extending fund commitments and writing support letters for pipeline projects after public appeals
Summary
After multiple public commenters urged support for projects removed from the Affordable Housing Manage Pipeline, committee members voted to move forward with financial commitments and send letters of support for projects seeking state tax credits; the committee also requested LAHD explain selection criteria and communication to applicants.
The committee voted to advance financial commitments for projects in the Affordable Housing Manage Pipeline (AHMP) and to send letters of support to the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee for projects applying in 2025 after multiple public speakers urged the committee to restore or extend funding for specific developments.
Several members of the public and nonprofit housing providers urged the committee to extend committed funds to projects that were removed from the pipeline, citing the city’s housing emergency and the competitive state funding process. Speakers included Sonia Barduburo (identified as working with Brown Filmalley and representing clients in Council District 11), Tom Yell (District 14), Sara Legs (identified as executive director, Hollywood Community Housing), Megan Joey (executive director, West Side Renewal), Erika Lee (identified as executive director, Venice Community Housing) and others. Their remarks noted that two projects previously on the AHMP list were removed and asked why the projects—several speakers named Venice Community Housing and Hollywood Community Housing projects—were not included for continued funding commitments. Erika Lee said, “I’m here to ask why were these projects removed when seven people on the street die every day,” and urged the committee to extend funding to keep these projects competitive for state awards.
A presenter from the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) described that staff planned to move forward with commitments for projects currently approved for the AHMP and to send letters to the state tax-credit committee. The committee also asked LAHD to return with information on selection criteria for initial commitments, exceptions used for AHMP, and how the department communicated decisions to prospective applicants.
The committee approved the recommendation to move forward with financial commitments and to issue support letters. The motion included direction that LAHD report back with the requested selection-criteria information. The transcript records the item as approved; a named mover or full roll-call tally was not recorded in the transcript excerpt available.
The vote occurred after a lengthy public comment period during which multiple speakers raised concerns about transparency, project removal from the pipeline and the impact on eligible low-income housing developments. Committee members emphasized the need to restore community trust by improving transparency about why some projects advance while others do not.
Staff and speakers stressed that federal, state and local funding rules and project-specific cost drivers affect per-unit costs and the ability to secure tax credits, and that the city will coordinate to present a clearer financial plan and selection rationale to the committee in a future report.
