Public Affairs

Bill Block is the HUD Regional Administrator for Region X, serving Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Bill began his career in Seattle as a lawyer focusing on complex real estate transactions on behalf of both private and public entities. In 2005 he left the law to become Director of the Committee to End Homelessness, where he was responsible for working with 70 local government, non-profit and for-profit entities, faith-based communities, philanthropies and formerly homeless people in implementing the 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness in Seattle/King County.  Among other civic involvements, he has served Chair of the Seattle Housing Authority Board of Commissioners when it planned and constructed HOPE VI projects, President of AIDS Housing of Washington (now Building Changes), Chair of the Seattle Center Advisory Commission, Chair of the Seattle Low Income Housing Levy Oversight Committee and board member of the Workforce Development Council of Seattle/King County.

This session will cover the basics of the Fair Housing Act with an emphasis on disability and reasonable accommodations, as well as some recent developments in fair housing law. The training also includes ample time for Q&A to address your specific questions.

The state of Utah’s 2015 point-in-time homeless count reflected a 91% reduction in their chronic homeless count since 2005. In addition, they reduced their chronic homeless veterans to a function zero at the end of 2013 and are close to a functional zero on all homeless veterans. This session will review how Utah organized to accomplish these reductions, the champions that were part of the process, and the collaboration that occurred the homeless service providers.

Please join the Alaska Coalition on Housing and Homelessness in welcoming Mayor Ethan Berkowitz and Lloyd Pendleton, Key Note speaker for the annual conference on housing and homelessness to discuss community planning, strategies to address homelessness and for a conversation on the Mayor’s developing plans to end homelessness in our community.

This session will provide an opportunity for Mayor Berkowitz and our Anchorage Community Council partners to have a conversation with a national expert and a leader in community change on successful strategies to end homelessness. Please join us for this important conversation to help us implement strategies for a safer, stronger, and secure Anchorage.

This will be an interactive Q&A session, led by the attendees. Attendees will be able to ask questions of ICA staff, who will be available “live and in person” to answer.

Alaska’s fourteen Regional Housing Authorities (RHAs) play a critical role in the delivery of housing and housing-related services throughout every region of the state.  Through a brief presentation, a panel discussion, and a question and answer session, attendees will learn about the role of Alaska’s RHAs, the products and services they provide, barriers to the delivery of housing in diverse Alaskan communities, and innovative practices employed by RHAs to address the housing needs of lower-income Alaskans.