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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHousing & Redevelopment Authority Minutes 05-17-2022APPROVED MINUTES PLYMOUTH HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY May 17, 2022 MEMBERS PRESENT: Chair Michelle Soderberg, Commissioners Lucas Larson, Aqueelah Whitfield, James Williams, Ronald Kelner, and Joel Spoonheim ABSENT: Commissioner Wayne Peterson STAFF PRESENT: HRA Executive Director Danette Parr, Housing & Economic Development Manager Devon Pohlman, and Permit Technician Michelle Bast 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Soderberg called the Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority meeting to order at 5:02 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 Williams, seconded by Commissioner Whitfield to approve the Agenda. Vote. 6 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously. 4. CONSENT AGENDA 4.1. Approve proposed minutes from February 24, 2022. MOTION by Commissioner Williams, seconded by Commissioner Larson, to approve the Consent Agenda. Vote. 6 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously. 5. PUBLIC HEARINGS 6. NEW BUSINESS 6.1. Discuss May 24, 2022 Joint HRA/City Council Meeting Agenda Special Meeting Agenda – draft HRA Executive Director Parr gave an overview of the Special Meeting Agenda for the joint HRA/City Council Meeting Agenda. She informed the board that Stacie Kvilvang from Ehlers will be attending the meeting. Ms. Kvilvang will present information regarding Tax Increment Financing (TIF), the City of Plymouth’s current TIF districts and how we have historically used TIF for redevelopment and affordable housing, how TIF can be pooled, and how the City of Plymouth has typically used excess increments. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 2 Chair Soderberg provided an overview of the Strategic Plan that was approved in March 2021. Commissioner Spoonheim asked if the Strategic Plan was adopted and approved. HRA Executive Director Parr stated the Strategic Plan was accepted. These are the items to bring to the City Council. Chair Soderberg said the purpose is to introduce the ideas again to the City Council. HRA Executive Director Parr affirmed the purpose is to ensure the HRA and the City Council are on the same page. Commissioner Williams asked if there is a legal process. HRA Executive Director Parr stated the meeting next week is an annual meeting to talk to the City Council about the ideas the HRA Board has and what the HRA wants to move forward on. Chair Soderberg said this is done as a courtesy to the City Council because the Strategic Plan is the HRA’s plan. Additionally, there are parts of the Strategic Plan that the City Council will be needed to enact. HRA Executive Director Parr said there are some proposed initiatives that, if advanced, will require a Public Hearing. Commissioner Williams inquired about what effects the potential differences in the environment and economic pictures now versus when the Strategic Plan was accepted. He stated inflation is up, interest rates have increased, and housing supply is down. Chair Soderberg said the Strategic Plan is intended to provide a framework for HRA housing initiatives over a three-to-five-year period, and the Plan should embody some flexibility with the recognition that modifications will be necessary. Commissioner Williams asked how to implement the Strategic Plan. Chair Soderberg replied that the Strategic Plan will be implemented in pieces. She said there are two priority pieces staff proposed to advance now for further discussion and then staff will move to the next items. HRA Executive Director Parr agreed that today’s environment needs to be considered when deciding which items to move to an action plan immediately. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 3 Chair Soderberg stated prior to the Strategic Plan there was no framework for the HRA to work with. Commissioner Larson said there are now procedures. Chair Soderberg reminded the Board that the Strategic Plan is a living document. 6.2 HRA Strategic Plan Priorities HRA Strategic Plan DRAFT Moderate-Income Housing Policy – redline DRAFT Renter Protection Ordinance Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman provided an overview of the items being proposed, the Moderate-Income Housing Policy and the Renter Protection Ordinance. Commissioner Larson stated the timing of these two items is different than what is laid out in the Strategic Plan for priority Action Steps. He said we voted on an order of what was most impactful. He said these two items were not determined to be the most impactful. Commissioner Larson said the order should be item 1b (Local 4d Affordable Housing Incentive) then 2a (Mixed Income Housing Policy) or 3c (Educate the Community and Policy Leaders on the Benefits of Investing in Redevelopment). The order was made for such items that were higher impact and lower cost for the HRA. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman said the Mixed Income Housing Policy has been renamed Moderate Income Housing Policy to reflect the proposed policy requirements more accurately for affordable units. The policy would require multi-family developments that meet the policy requirements to provide at least 20% of units at affordable income levels to 60% of Area Median Income, or 10% of units to 50% of Area Median Income. The policy also sets forth affordability requirements for homeownership units. Commissioner Williams said the intention of the discussions was to produce that chart. Commissioner Spoonheim suggested the HRA Board support the TIF district discussion and move forward with items 1a (Tenant Protection Ordinance) and 2a (Moderate-Income Housing Policy). He said there are numerous examples from other cities who have enacted similar ordinance and policy that staff can create a draft from them. He said changes have been made since the pandemic. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman noted that item 1b (Local 4d Affordable Housing Incentive) is important strategic work, though it has proven difficult for other cities to obtain private landlord support. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 4 Commissioner Larson suggested that with the new information the priorities need to be reordered. He said he does not agree with picking and choosing items to work on because the Strategic Plan lists the HRA Board’s priorities. Chair Soderberg said moving priorities may be necessary. She said we need to agree on what to present to the City Council. We can vote on reordering the priorities at a future meeting. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman said the HRA staff can further outline Strategic Plan Action Steps as part of an overall work plan. Chair Soderberg recommended continuing with the Moderate-Income Housing Policy and Renter Protection Ordinance now and to relook at next steps for the Strategic Plan. Commissioner Larson suggested voting on these two items now. Commissioner Kelner said it makes sense to move forward with what is ready to move forward on. Commissioner Williams stated we ought to present what we have to the City Council provided the City Council knows changes may be made in the future. Chair Soderberg said there is new staff in place which brings different ideas. HRA Executive Director Parr offered to revisit and review the Strategic Plan and then vote on priorities. She said there may be more to add from new commissioners. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman provided more information related to the Moderate-Income Housing Policy and the Renter Protection Ordinance. HRA Executive Director Parr said that additional due diligence with the City attorney will be undertaken to determine whether the proposed Moderate-Income Housing Policy should remain as a policy, be considered as an ordinance, or include components of both. She said there are considerations for when we create an ordinance or a policy, with policies providing some additional flexibility for future modifications. Commissioner Williams asked what Plymouth’s median income number is. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman said that number is for Hennepin County and is just over $118,000 now for a household of four, with households at 80% of Area Media Income making just over $89,000 (FY 2022 Department of Housing and Urban Development Income Limits). Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 5 Commissioner Larson requested clarification regarding the when the affordability thresholds apply to certain properties under the proposed Moderate-Income Housing Policy. He asked if this applies only to those properties with 10 or more units. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman confirmed it only applies to those multifamily properties with 10 or more units and those properties can choose either 60% and 20% or 50% and 10%. HRA Executive Director Parr stated it is important to discuss the proposed Moderate- Income Housing Policy with the City Council at this time because of significant market- rate residential redevelopment demand now. She said having a policy will be important, with TIF as an important incentive for developers. Commissioner Spoonheim suggested including in the policy other forms of incentives, not solely financial contributions. He suggested the policy be expanded to include other mechanisms the City has purview to authorize such as rezoning, or Planned Unit Development designation.. Commissioner Larson reminded the HRA Board about unintended consequences when policies affect the supply/demand of housing. He said if the policies become burdensome developers won’t develop in Plymouth. He said in the long term the housing supply will be constrained and affordability will be a bigger challenge. He recommended finding the middle ground for both short term and long term. Commissioner Williams advised to get many tools in the toolbox to find out what is appropriate. He said having flexibility and options is valuable. Commissioner Kelner added the city could change the zoning to allow for greater density, which will be valuable to the developer to be able to afford 20% of units to be affordable. Commissioner Larson stated developers won’t develop if the number of units is not right. HRA Executive Director Parr asked HRA members if their preference was to hold, and have more discussion on these items, prior to advancing them for discussion with the City Council. Commissioner Whitfield said the HRA Board should move forward with these two items. She said there are a lot of people being pushed out of their homes from Minneapolis and St. Paul since the emergency measures enacted during the pandemic have been lifted. She said people are moving to the suburbs to try to find high quality affordable housing that meets the needs of families. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 6 Chair Soderberg stated the city always has the option to request affordability from developers. HRA Executive Director Parr affirmed. Chair Soderberg recommended the HRA Board present what is proposed with respect to the Moderate-Income Housing Policy and Renter Protection Ordinance to the City Council. Commission Larson asked what outcomes are expected from the City Council discussion. HRA Executive Director Parr said the City Council will not be voting on these items. The purpose is to promote discussion from the City Council to see what the HRA Board wants to do and to determine if there are any red flags from the City Council. Commissioner Larson proposed to make a motion to vote on presenting the Moderate- Income Housing Policy to the City Council. MOTION by Commissioner Williams, seconded by Commissioner Kelner, to present the Moderate-Income Housing Policy to the City Council. Vote. 6 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman provided and overview of the proposed Tenant Protection Ordinance. Commissioner Williams inquired when tenants receive three month’s rent. Chair Soderberg asked if the property owner pays the city and then the city pays the tenant. Commissioner Larson asked why three months. HRA Executive Director Parr stated three months is seen in other cities’ ordinances. It seems to be an industry standard and provides adequate time for a tenant to find alternative housing. Commissioner Spoonheim said if notice is given within 30 days as it is written that could be the date of sale which would then give the tenant less notice. Chair Soderberg said the calculation should trigger 90 days after notification. Commissioner Spoonheim said the business community needs three months to get the building ready. Commissioner Spoonheim noted that the timing for payment is outlined under 4XX.15 Relocation Assistance, Subd 2., When paid. Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 7 Commissioner Willems asked about administrative citation and civil penalties. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman said the city will review options to incorporate additional penalties, per City code and/or charter. Chair Soderberg proposed to make a motion to vote on presenting the Tenant Protection Ordinance to the City Council. MOTION by Commissioner Whitfield, seconded by Commissioner Williams, to present the Tenant Protection Ordinance to the City Council. Vote. 6 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously. 6.3 HRA Priority 2022 Action Items HRA Priority 2022 Action Items Memo HRA Executive Director Parr gave an overview of the Action Items. HRA Executive Director Parr discussed the need to evaluate HRA owned affordable housing, including scattered site rental units owned and operated by the HRA.d, This evaluation should include a review of the two senior-owned buildings in addition to four scattered site units owned and operated by the HRA. Chair Soderberg recommended that staff look at the Strategic Plan. Commissioner Larson suggested a re-vote with this new HRA Board. Chair Soderberg said she would like input from staff. Commissioner Larson said it is important to know what is meaningful to the HRA Board. Commissioner Spoonheim asked if item 1b (Local 4d Affordable Housing Incentive) will be added to this year. He stated there are templates of this policy available. Commissioner Larson said this is a good program to present to the City Council. HRA Executive Director Parr said it will be added to the work plan. Housing & Economic Development Manager Pohlman said to make a timeline and decide what are the next steps after presenting the Moderate-Income Housing Policy and Renter Protection Ordinance to the City Council. She added it is important to continue to be flexible and stay oriented and focused Approved Minutes Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority May 17, 2022 Page 8 Chair Soderberg asked the HRA Board if the detailed financial statements from the senior buildings can be changed to quarterly review from the monthly review, which HRA members affirmed. 7. UPDATES Valor Place 8. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Chair Soderberg, with no objection, to adjourn the meeting at 7:07 p.m.