Housing Department

CITY HALL ? Residents might deal with fewer bureaucratic headaches in coming months under a reorganization of four of the city?s key departments that received City Council approval Tuesday. The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the proposed reorganization, which would disband the Community Development and Housing Department and assign its functions and staff to three modified departments ? Planning; Development Services; and Parks, Recreation and Community Services.

CITY HALL — Residents could deal with fewer bureaucratic headaches in coming months under a reorganization of four of the city’s key departments that received City Council approval Tuesday. The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the proposed reorganization, which would disband the Community Development and Housing Department and assign its functions and staff to three modified existing departments — Planning, Development Services, and Parks, Recreation and Community Services.

CITY HALL ? The City Council tonight will consider major organizational changes to four of the city?s key departments in a move city officials said would streamline and consolidate city services. After the recent retirement of Madalyn Blake, the former director of the Community Development and Housing Department, city officials decided to reevaluate City Hall?s structure, said City Manager Jim Starbird. While the plan ? which represents one of the biggest City Hall shifts in years ?

CITY HALL — City officials called for additional federal funds Tuesday to subsidize federal funding reductions that will force the city to freeze 25 of its Section 8 low-income housing vouchers. The Housing Authority on Tuesday voted to formally oppose reductions that will cause officials to forgo a small portion of its low-income housing vouchers at a time when more than 7,000 applicants remain on the waiting list. The Department of Urban and Housing Development has cut funding for Section 8 vouchers for cities nationwide, even as more households have become crippled by the ongoing recession.

Air advisories remain in place Los Angeles County health officials have maintained the air-quality warning for parts of the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys, but it is business as usual for local athletic teams. Jonathan Fielding, director of the county Department of Public Health and county health officer, advised that Little League practices be canceled and hikes or picnics postponed in areas where smoke from the still-burning Station fire is visible or the odor is present.

CITY HALL — Faced with limited resources, the city’s Youth and Family Services program served fewer at-risk youth and their parents last year compared with previous years, but boasted a higher success rate, records show. The program, which matches at-risk youth and their families with local social service agencies, was proposed to serve 300 residents, but last year it served just 141 youth and their parents, according to year-end figures in reports to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

CITY HALL — Local social service nonprofits faced even greater demand this past year in light of the struggling economy, according to year-end reports from the city’s Community Development and Housing Department. All of the city’s Community Development Block Grant-funded social service programs came close to or exceeded their service goals, with several local nonprofits serving more clients that they had anticipated, according to the reports. With a tight city budget and massive statewide cuts, federal Community Development Block Grant funding is more important than ever, officials said.

CENTRAL GLENDALE — A Superior Court judge Friday ordered a 47-year-old Glendale man to stay at least 100 yards away from two city Community Development and Housing Department employees after he made racial remarks to one and threatened another. Jorge Murillo, a Section 8 housing recipient, wept aloud Friday in court when he explained to Judge Laura Matz that he suffered from anxiety and panic attacks, which he said could have led to his erratic and threatening behavior. “I have bigger fish to fry than to be a threat to these individuals,” he said.

CITY HALL — After having taken over operations on an interim basis in November at a 16-unit transitional housing program for battered women, city officials say they have found a replacement. The Housing Authority on Tuesday is expected to approve a contract with the Pasadena-based nonprofit Door of Hope to operate the Hamilton Court Family Transitional Housing Program, which is designed for single mothers and their children, with priority given to victims of domestic violence.

CITY HALL — The city’s ability to pursue affordable housing projects should not be affected by a projected $9.7-million budget deficit, city officials said Tuesday. Community Development and Housing Director Madalyn Blake, who is retiring at the end of this month, presented the department’s proposed $39.2-million budget to the City Council during an afternoon budget session. Nearly all of it — $35 million — comprises federal and state grants and other earmarked funds.