Los Angeles housing officials recommend NOFA awards after broad public support; committee delays vote for more data

City housing officials recommended that the Los Angeles City committee approve the first round of awards under the city's Measure ULA Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), presenting a package that staff said would leverage hundreds of millions of dollars to create and preserve affordable housing — while community groups and developers urged the committee to protect the voter-approved fund and to make technical changes before the next round.

The recommendation, presented by Tina Johnson Hall and department staff, summarized Round One outcomes and proposed technical amendments to correct sponsor names and table entries. Department presenters said the NOFA process yielded recommendations totaling more than $300 million and would support more than 500 projects across the city, including preservation and new-construction efforts. Craig Arzeno, assistant general manager, said staff recommended awards to roughly 80 projects and highlighted the program's scale: "This NOFA is ... administering more than six times the funds we typically do," and staff estimated the round would support several hundred new and preserved units.

Why it matters: The NOFA implements voter-approved Measure ULA funding intended to expand affordable housing production and preservation. Community organizations, labor groups and local developers told the committee the city should avoid changes that would undermine the measure's intent, and several speakers urged converting loans to grants and allowing longer financing windows so complex projects can secure multiple funding sources.

What supporters told the committee

Heather McPherson, executive director of the Silver Lake Jewish Community Center, said her organization had partnered with a developer to donate property for affordable housing and that the NOFA process had treated their application unfairly: "Estoy sorprendida y desilusionada ... Ha habido falta de comunicación," she told the committee, asking members to reconsider her project's status. Dave Hoffman, also of the Silver Lake JCC, said his project is a 99-unit affordable development and that more than half of initial appeals filed by applicants were later approved, arguing the city should "deliver the promises that voters asked for."

Labor and coalition groups voiced strong support. Ariel Moore, policy director at the Los Angeles Federation of Labor, said the measure has generated funds for homelessness prevention and warned against proposed committee changes: "Por favor, rechacen cualquier modificación," she said, asking members to stand with working Angelenos. Multiple land trusts and housing coalitions emphasized that Measure ULA is one of the few tools available to create permanent social housing and long-term stability for low-income residents.

What staff reported

Housing department staff said Round One produced 174 applications and 82 appeals; the department recommended awards to roughly 80 projects, including preservation projects and new construction. Kelly Hardy described the NOFA's origin and the program guidelines adopted last year; staff reported that the NOFA round helped leverage about $55.6 million in financing that contributed to 795 supported units across several programs. The department proposed several changes to improve accessibility for future rounds, including transitioning some programs from loans to grants, removing a 60-year loan-term requirement, and increasing outreach and technical assistance for prospective applicants.

Financial context and data limits

Matt Crawford of the city's finance office warned that receipts from the ULA tax are volatile and often dominated by a few very large real-estate transactions: "We had two sales in December that were valued at $150 million each," he said, noting that such large transactions can skew monthly receipts and complicate revenue projections. Staff acknowledged limits in reconstructing pre-2023 market behavior and agreed to provide more granular data on transaction types and zoning to help with future modeling.

Council questions and next steps

Council members pressed staff on outreach to applicants that did not qualify for this round. Department officials said they would begin targeted outreach next week, offering office hours, surveys and technical assistance. Staff indicated some projects could receive funds as early as this fall, especially preservation projects that typically move faster than new-construction developments. The committee read technical amendments into the record to correct sponsor names and table entries; staff asked for a second to place the amendment on the record, but the chair and members indicated more data and public input were needed and confirmed no formal vote occurred at this meeting.

The committee requested additional analysis and asked staff to return with more detailed data, including transaction types and zoning information, and with a plan for community engagement and technical assistance ahead of Round Two. The hearing closed with the item continued for a future meeting.

Ending: The committee did not vote on the NOFA recommendations; staff will return with further analysis and community outreach plans before the item is rescheduled.