The City of Billings maintains a 1998 Trekker Cargo Trailer (8’ x 6’) and painting equipment, purchased in the year 2000, utilizing Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding, for community graffiti removal programs managed by the City Police Department. The equipment has not been utilized for its purpose in several years and liability concerns prevent the City from loaning the equipment to community organizations for graffiti removal in the future.

City staff believes the design of graffiti removal programs, being intermittent by nature, in addition to limited City staff to manage the program, will not support the continued use of the trailer and equipment for graffiti removal. Therefore, a recommendation has been made by Community Development staff, supported by the Community Development Board, to donate the trailer and remaining equipment to Rebuilding Together Yellowstone County for use in their year-long, volunteer home repair program.

The Council may:

• Maintain the trailer at the Billings Operations Center - Motor Pool. The cost to maintain the trailer is approximately $100.00 per year and is being paid through the Code Enforcement Division / Department.
• Auction the trailer at the annual City Auction, proceeds must be returned to the Community Development Division to meet property disposition regulations. The expected benefits from sale of the trailer and equipment at city auction are considered less desirable by the Community Development Board than furthering the overall goals of the City’s Consolidated Plan for CDBG and HOME funding activities.
• Donate the trailer to an organization that will utilize the equipment to benefit low- to moderate-income households. Rebuilding Together of Yellowstone County is the only Subrecipient carrying out home repair activities with CDBG funding outside of the City’s Housing Rehabilitation and Minor Home Repair programs.
   

The trailer was purchased for $1,000 and is expected to remain the same if kept in good condition. Current fair market value for the trailer is estimated at $1,000. Equipment purchases would have fully depreciated over a five-year period.

Introduction

The City of Billings owns and maintains a trailer (Unit # 1950, 1998 Trekker, VIN # 1WF200C16W4060122, Plate # 3-1695) and equipment purchased with CDBG funding in the year 2000. The trailer and equipment have not been utilized for intended purposes for several years. Graffiti removal programs are not currently performed on a year-round basis and several organizations have attempted to maintain programs since the acquisition of the trailer and equipment. City staffing in the Police Department, Code Enforcement and Community Development Divisions are currently insufficient to carry out graffiti removal programs.

For the most recent reporting year, Rebuilding Together Yellowstone County organized home repairs to twenty homes and leveraged over $66,000 in additional funding and resources to support home repairs. This all-volunteer organization does not utilize funding for paid staff positions and has offered home repair services for the past six years. As a current CDBG Subrecipient, staff can continue monitoring the disposition of the trailer and equipment to ensure compliance with CDBG regulations. 

History

The City of Billings Police Department applied for and received CDBG Public Services funding to support a Graffiti Removal program in the early 1990s to facilitate the removal of graffiti city-wide. The program supported approximately eight to ten properties per year. The project was expanded in the mid-1990s to include special activities related to the community policing efforts in low-income neighborhoods.
 
In FY 2000-2001, the application for CDBG funding indicated the purchase of the utility trailer and supplies. The application also indicated the Police Department was seeking additional funding to maintain the equipment, hire a contractor to perform graffiti removal activities and purchase additional supplies. The application stated the Graffiti Removal program assisted over 200 individuals / households per year. On February 2, 2000, Officer Mark Keyes requested the Community Development Division authorize the purchase of graffiti removal trailer from Ron Pierce for $1,000 for the purposes of removing graffiti from low income neighborhoods. Equipment was also purchased for a total of $2,027.38 including an air compressor for $717.30, a generator for $674.10 and a paint sprayer for $448.20.

After managing the program for several years, the Police Department was unable to continue the program and offered program management to a local non-profit organization, Child and Family Intervention Center (CFIC). After a period of time, CFIC discontinued operations and remaining CDBG funding was reprogrammed for other eligible CDBG activities.

The trailer and equipment were inventoried by the Code Enforcement Division. The Division took interest in the trailer and equipment, hoping a volunteer organization would be able to utilize the equipment to assist them in their efforts as they enforced the Graffiti Ordinance. After researching liability through the Legal Department the Division has determined the trailer and equipment should not be loaned to community organizations.


Procedural History

• January 2009 - The Boys and Girls Club contacted the Community Development and Code Enforcement Divisions regarding the use of the Graffiti Trailer and equipment for a prospective CDBG-funded pilot project to remove graffiti from lower income neighborhoods for FY2009-2010.

• February 2009 - Legal Department reviewed the liabilities of loaning City-owned equipment with the Code Enforcement Division and recommended the City not loan equipment for use by other organizations.

• March 2009 - Community Development staff include recommendations for budget sessions to donate the Graffiti Trailer and equipment to Rebuilding Together, provided they support the Boys & Girls Club’s use of the trailer for their pilot program. Both organizations supported the proposition.

• April 2009 - Community Development Board did not recommend funding the Boys & Girls Club Graffiti Pilot Program as per City Council’s recommendations to fund fewer Public Service Activities.

• May 2009 - City Council approves the CDBG budget and Community Development Board recommendations to not fund the Boys & Girls Club Graffiti Pilot Program.

• September 1, 2009 - Community Development Board recommends the City Council donate the trailer to a non-profit organization that operates year-round to maintain the trailer to assist low-income and elderly households with home repairs.


Regulatory Compliance

The equipment is considered “non-expendable personal property” by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), as the property is not land or structures and is tangible personal property considered to have a useful life of more than one year and acquisition costs exceeding $300. Regulations state the City must maintain the use of the property for the “approved purpose”.

Public Service Activities must benefit low- to moderate-income clients and must be reported in the number of people assisted or low-income area assisted by census tract. The equipment must be available for use on other projects or programs currently supported by HUD, provided such use will not interfere with the work for which the equipment was originally acquired.

Equipment with a current fair market value of less than $5,000 may be retained, sold or otherwise disposed of by the City. The City has the right to transfer title of the equipment to a third party. If the equipment is sold, the City must consider the proceeds “CDBG program income” and it must be re-programmed for CDBG eligible uses.

The trailer has not been utilized for several years and remains in storage at the Billings Operations Center Motor Pool.

• City of Billings Police Department - original title-holder and Subrecipient of CDBG funding to purchase the equipment.

• Community Development Division - responsible for auditing property management and disposition for equipment purchased using CDBG funding.

• Code Enforcement Division - granted “ownership” of the Graffiti Trailer and equipment following CFIC’s discontinued program.

• The Community Development Board - as an advisory body to the City Council, provides detailed oversight to both the CDBG and HOME programs throughout the year and facilitates an extensive process to prepare recommendations for the City Council consideration.

• Rebuilding Together Yellowstone County - potential recipient and responsible party for liability and ownership of the Graffiti Trailer and equipment.

The proposed donation of for the Graffiti Trailer and equipment to Rebuilding Together Yellowstone County is consistent with the goals and objectives of the adopted FY 2005-2009 Consolidated Plan for the use of CDBG & HOME resources in Billings.

Five primary strategies are proposed in the FY 2005-FY2009 Consolidated Plan to meet the diverse needs of Billings’ lower-income households. These needs have been primarily identified through the 2005 Billings Housing Needs Assessment,completed for the City of Billings by Montana State University-Billings Center for Applied Economic Research. This needs assessment was undertaken utilizing focus groups, individual interviews, a community survey, and an examination of census and housing market data.

This work and input from neighborhood groups and community partners resulted in the identification of the following four characteristics of the community that the City of Billings will attempt to address with housing and community development activities: (1) increasing housing cost compared to income and its effect on low income renters and homeowners in achieving safe, decent & affordable housing; (2) an aging population and the associated increase in the percentage of the population with disabilities; (3) a slight decrease in the price of rental housing and short term concern over the number of multi-family units; and (4) the age and condition of the community's affordable housing stock, particularly in the older neighborhoods surrounding the City's Central Business District.

Donating the 1998 Trekker Cargo Trailer and remaining equipment to Rebuilding Together of Yellowstone County will assist the City in meeting CDBG regulatory compliance and will make use of a trailer that is not currently being utilized.