Intergovernmental Coordination
Interagency Council
The Compact convenes the Interagency Council, a venue for public agencies, along with tenant advocates, to come together to develop creative strategies to preserve at-risk government assisted rental housing.
The Interagency Council includes leaders from HUD, IHDA, Cook County, the City of Chicago, and the Chicago Housing Authority. Over the years, a level of trust about properties and policies has created a safe space for staff to have candid discussions that affect more than one level of government. In addition to using data to identify at-risk properties, the Interagency Council receives real time information from tenant and community groups.
Government agencies brainstorm strategies and track progress, and the Compact reaches out to owners about available resources and options to preserve properties – including selling to preservation buyers.
To assist the Interagency Council’s efforts, the Compact created an interactive Interagency Reference Map that shows the location and subsidy information associated with nearly every assisted property across Illinois. This map is an invaluable tool for targeted interventions, and for Compact partners. The Compact also created a consolidated timeline and summary of Illinois and Chicago preservation laws to help government agencies, preservation buyers and advocates discourage opt-outs of government contracts.
Preserving Assisted Properties
The Preservation Compact trailblazed public agency coordination to preserve government subsidized properties for over ten years. The Compact convenes leaders at local, state, and federal housing agencies to coordinate:
- Preserving at-risk properties,
- Public agency compliance activities, and
- Cross-cutting preservation policy.
The Preservation Compact’s intergovernmental coordination work has three branches:
Interagency Council
- Identifies at-risk government assisted properties and implements preservation strategies
Joint Compliance
- Streamlines monitoring and compliance for properties receiving funds from multiples government agencies
Emerging Issues
- Focuses on overarching strategy and specific topics to be addressed
Joint Compliance
This initiative streamlines monitoring and compliance for both government and building owners receiving funds from multiple government agencies. The Compact led the effort for the City of Chicago, Cook County, and IHDA to develop shared compliance forms and processes for owners of government assisted housing.
Emerging Issues
The Compact convenes ad hoc working groups on special topics, such as low-income housing tax credit properties in years 15-30. The focus of these groups is to identify overarching, proactive strategies and recommendations to preserve properties that may be at risk.