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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHousing & Redevelopment Authority Minutes 02-11-2021APPROVED MINUTES PLYMOUTH HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY February 11, 2021 MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Michelle Soderberg, Commissioners Robert Huddleston, Aqueelah Whitfield, Lucas Larson and Jeff Kulaszewicz ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: HRA Manager Jim Barnes, Community Development Coordinator Matt Lupini OTHERS PRESENT: Council Member Jim Davis, Cathy Capone Bennett of Bennett Community Consulting 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Soderberg called the Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. 2. PUBLIC FORUM Chair Soderberg opened and closed the Public Forum as there was no one present to speak. 3. APPROVE AGENDA MOTION by Commissioner Kulaszewicz, seconded by Commissioner Whitfield, to approve the Agenda. Roll Call Vote. 5 Ayes. (Chair Soderberg, Commissioners, Huddleston, Whitfield, Larson and Kulaszewicz). MOTION passed unanimously. 4. NEW BUSINESS 4A. HRA Strategic Plan – Review changes Chair Soderberg proposed a change to the shareholder comments section of the strategic plan to more specifically address public input from the Flash Vote survey. Commissioners Larson and Kulaszewicz stated their support for the change. Commissioner Larson recommended using the federal definition of “Fair Housing” as part of the HRA’s mission and values statement. Commissioner Huddleston commented that “equality” should be used in place of “equity” in the same values statement. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority February 11, 2021 Page 2 Chair Soderberg suggested changing the sentence in question to read “Where the HRA is committed to promoting Fair Housing and housing equality.” Commissioners Huddleston, Larson and Kulaszewicz concurred with the change. Commissioner Larson questioned whether capitalizing “Fair Housing” subsequently includes housing equality. Ms. Capone Bennett asked whether the general public would know that Fair Housing includes housing equality, or whether it was worth going into greater detail for the purposes of this plan. Chair Soderberg and Commissioner Whitfield stated their support to provide more detail. Commissioner Larson asked whether equality is the correct word for the intent of the sentence, or if “equal opportunity” better encapsulates the value statement. Ms. Capone Bennett suggested changing the sentence to “Where the HRA is committed to promoting Fair Housing and equal access and opportunity.” Commissioners Larson, Huddleston and Kulaszewicz supported the proposed change. Chair Soderberg stated her belief that the phrase “in housing” should be added to the end of the sentence. Commissioners Larson, Huddleston, Whitfield and Kulaszewicz concurred. Commissioner Huddleston inquired about adding a phrase to the value statement on page 2 to read “…local employment needs, family stability, educational success of children, and senior citizens.” Ms. Capone Bennett suggested an alternative change as “…local employment needs, household stability, and educational success of children.” Commissioners Huddleston, Larson and Kulaszewicz agreed with the change. Commissioner Huddleston asked about broadening the value statement addressing redevelopment on page 2 of the document to include both land and underutilized facilities. HRA Manager Barnes stated that the city has an economic development division that also deals with many redevelopment efforts, and that the HRA has a specific role within the redevelopment process. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority February 11, 2021 Page 3 Ms. Capone Bennett suggested modifying the statement to end with “…redevelopment needs.” Commissioner Huddleston asked whether the word “city should be added before “departments” in the value statement on page 2 reading “Where the HRA works in partnership with citizens business, the City Council and other departments…” HRA Manager Barnes stated that was the intent of the original statement. Chair Soderberg noted a grammatical change on page 3. Councilmember Davis suggested a modified sentence on page 3 to read “HRA members who participated in the development of the HRA Strategic Plan…” Chair Soderberg concurred with the change. Commissioner Huddleston requested clarification on the goal statement listed at the top of page 10, with his understanding being that the intent was to increase the number of units for first time homebuyers. HRA Manager Barnes suggest changing the statement to read “…increase the opportunities for first time buyers…” Commissioners Huddleston, Whitfield, Larson and Kulaszewicz concurred with the change. Commissioner Huddleston noted a number of places throughout the document where “City” or “City Council” is capitalized and should not be. Ms. Capone Bennett noted she would make all edits prior to the document being finalized. Commissioner Huddleston asked whether the goal statement on page 12 should read “…facilitate and promote private investment and increase availability and quantity of affordable housing.” Commissioner Kulaszewicz said the statement as written necessarily assumes availability and quantity of affordable housing. Commissioner Larson proposed the sentence read “…increase the availability of affordable housing.” Chair Soderberg and Commissioners Huddleston, Kulaszewicz and Whitfield noted their support for the change. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority February 11, 2021 Page 4 Commissioner Huddleston recommended changing the second goal statement on page 10 to read “Facilitate support and agreement on redevelopment priorities…” Commissioners Kulaszewicz, Whitfield and Larson stated their support for that change. HRA Manager Barnes stated with the changes as proposed by the HRA, Ms. Capone Bennett would edit the document prior to bringing it before the city council for their feedback. 5. UPDATES  Cranberry Ridge  Element  Vicksburg Crossing window project 6. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Chair Soderberg, with no objection, to adjourn the meeting at 6:30 p.m.