HomeMy WebLinkAboutHousing & Redevelopment Authority Minutes 09-28-2023APPROVED MINUTES
PLYMOUTH HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY
September 28, 2023
MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Michelle Soderberg, Commissioners Wayne Peterson, James
Williams, Joel Spoonheim and Kim Vohs (arrived at approximately 7:10 PM).
ABSENT: Commissioner Ronald Kelner
STAFF PRESENT: HRA Executive Director Grant Fernelius, Housing Manager Steven Schmidt, and
Permit Technician Michelle Bast
OTHERS PRESENT: Mayor Jeffry Wosje, Jody Boedigheimer of Grace Management
1. CALL TO ORDER
Chair Soderberg called the Plymouth Housing and Redevelopment Authority meeting to order at
7:00 p.m.
2. PUBLIC FORUM
Chair Soderberg opened and closed the Public Forum as there was no one present to speak.
3. APPROVE AGENDA
Chair Soderberg requested to add an item 6.1, Elect Secretary.
MOTION by Chair Soderberg, seconded by Commissioner Williams, to add item 6.1, Elect
Secretary, to the agenda. Vote. 4 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
MOTION by Commissioner Williams, seconded by Commissioner Peterson, to approve the
agenda as amended. Vote. 4 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
4. CONSENT AGENDA
4.1. Approve HRA Meeting Minutes for August 24, 2023.
4.2. Plymouth Towne Square. Accept Monthly Housing Reports.
4.3. Vicksburg Crossing. Accept Monthly Housing/Marketing Reports.
MOTION by Commissioner Williams, seconded by Commissioner Peterson, to approve the
consent agenda. Vote. 4 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
5. PUBLIC HEARINGS
5.1. Public Hearing Regarding Inclusionary Housing Policy
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HRA Executive Director Fernelius presented an overview of the staff report.
Commissioner Peterson asked and received confirmation from staff that while some items are not
proposed to be added into the policy, they could still be addressed in a case by case basis when
they work through the details of a project. He agreed with that process.
Commissioner Spoonheim commented that it appears that most cities are using discretionary
zoning as a trigger and asked for clarification on whether staff supports that as a tool.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius replied that he is not advocating one way or the other for that
provision. He commented that if there were a 100 percent market rate project that were coming
forward which required a PUD, rezoning, or reguiding, but does not require any financial
assistance, that would trigger the policy if discretionary zoning were used as a trigger, and then
would also trigger a need for financial assistance. He stated that if they are going to require
affordable units because of discretionary zoning, they would also need to understand that will
trigger a need for financial assistance.
Commissioner Spoonheim commented that he would have a different interpretation and believed
that a waiver or exemption could be requested that would resolve that issue. He noted that it
would create an opportunity for that conversation to ensure the needs of the community are
being reviewed. He noted that there are also external resources through the state and other
funding opportunities that would not require the city to always provide the financial assistance.
Commissioner Vohs commented that he shares the opinion of Commissioner Spoonheim related
to zoning. He commented that if the requirement is made up front requiring the affordable units
to remain for a period of time, developers would know that. He commented that often those
types of development projects are refinanced around 15 years.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius clarified that the 25 years referenced in the policy would mean
that if a developer is subject to this policy, they would enter into the agreement to provide a
percentage of affordable units for 25 years. He noted that the 25-year period aligns with other
assistance that can be provided for these types of projects. He commented that there could then
be additional discussions with each developer after that time to determine if that project would
remain affordable after that time.
Commissioner Williams asked what most cities are doing for their time period and the rationale
behind those decisions.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius replied that a 25-year period is consistent among cities.
Chair Soderberg commented that she reviewed regulations of other cities and agreed that 25
years was a common length of time.
Commissioner Williams referenced language related to the tenant’s change of income and asked
what would occur if there are no market rate apartments available in the complex.
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HRA Executive Director Fernelius replied that the goal of the provision would be to allow that
tenant to move to a market rate unit within the development if their income exceeded the
maximum level.
Chair Soderberg replied that the language does state that the tenant would be moved to the first
available market rate unit, therefore they would not be displaced if a unit were not yet available.
Commissioner Vohs commented that developers creating affordable housing have most likely
made a commitment to have a certain number of affordable units in return for funding they
receive and therefore are familiar with the process of moving tenants if their income exceeds the
standards. He commented that if there is not a market rate apartment is not available, the
developer will often let the tenant remain. He did not believe that language needed to be
included in the policy as other regulations would guide that process for the developer.
Chair Soderberg opened the public hearing.
Chair Soderberg introduced Igor Rudenko, 5372 Empire Lane North. He stated that he moved to
Plymouth because of the great quality of life and the great schools. He commented that he was
concerned when he became aware of this issue and therefore is present to speak on behalf of a
group of about 2,200 Eastern European residents and business owners. He expressed concern
with a potential increase in crime and the increased burden this would place on city services. He
expressed a concern with the safety of his family while at the park. He believed that once the
developer has built the project their responsibility would be done and the burden for
maintenance would be placed on the city. He commented that all the comparison cities selected
were within Hennepin County and believed that a broader search should be done. He also
believed that the city should wait to participate in this type of program. He suggested conducting
a referendum to determine if the residents would like affordable housing.
Chair Soderberg introduced Tony Kuechle 15985 55th Avenue N, who stated he is not speaking for
or against affordable housing tonight. He is a private developer of market rate units and wanted
to provide his insight. In his experience these types of policies can provide benefit to both parties,
but they need to be concise. He stated the cost of design for a market rate project is typically
$300,000 per unit and therefore would not want it to be discretionary that affordable units could
be required as that could be the factor that would make a project not feasible. He commented
on additional funding recently approved by the state that the city will have access to. He spoke
about conflicts between zoning and the Comprehensive Plan. He was concerned with some of
the triggers currently included such as outside funding, PUD or zoning changes, infrastructure
improvements, and park dedication. He said there are very limited funding sources. He provided
additional explanation on how the debt is matched to the income source for the project and
described a scenario that if fire causes reconstruction of a unit, or units, that could then seem to
trigger affordable housing and could put a developer into default on their loan. He referenced
the income targets and stated that as written, this would require financial assistance on any
project that includes affordable housing. He noted that would also become discretionary as he is
not sure of the financial packet until they are further into the development process. He agreed
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that 25 years is a standard term for affordable units. He referenced the language related to
interior/exterior appearance of the affordable units and commented that the language seems to
be in conflict between the two paragraphs. He believes the affordable units should be mixed
throughout the different bedroom options. He commented the city should create a clear and
enforceable standard. He stated the change in income is a standard clause and explained how
that process typically works. He did not believe a separate agreement would be required and that
these standards could be included in a development agreement or TIF agreement. He suggested
the annual audit be kept as simple as possible. He referenced the suggestion that an exemption
be used for a market rate project and noted that he would not want to spend the money
developing plans only to find out he would not receive an exemption.
Commissioner Vohs asked the name of the company the resident works for.
Mr. Kuechle replied that he is with Doran Companies. He commented that they are currently
working on a project in Plymouth that includes affordable units and received TIF funds.
Chair Soderberg introduced Linda Ferguson, 3803 Minnesota Lane North. She said she lives within
walking distance and has confidence in the city council. She stated she would like to share the
things they enjoy in Plymouth with others and does not equate being poor with criminal activity.
She recognized the concern relating to who owns or is responsible for a project after 25 years and
requested clarification. She asked how many buildings would be proposed and where those
projects would be located as she did not find that information to be clear.
Chair Soderberg replied this is a policy for future projects. She commented the city would not be
responsible after 25 years but there had been previous discussion about the city having the first
right of refusal, should a developer want to sell after 25 years. She noted that language was not
included in the draft policy.
Chair Soderberg introduced Mandy Rhead, 14915 32nd Avenue North, who stated that she lives in
walkable distance to the city center. She shared a concern with safety when the population
increases in the city center area. She inquired if there are plans to increase funding for the police
and fire departments if more residents are added to this area. She asked if the affordable units
would be offered only to citizens or whether the units would be offered to immigrants.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius commented that issue is not addressed in this type of policy and
is not something the city would weigh in on.
Chair Soderberg introduced Bob Swanson, 9915 25th Avenue North. He stated he has been a
resident for 30 years. He said he is in favor of affordable housing. He commented that his church
has been studying this issue for two years and it is clear there is a need for affordable housing in
Plymouth as residents making a decent wage cannot afford housing in this community. He
commented that four or five years ago the city supported Cranberry Ridge, which has been an
excellent addition to the community and has operated well. He asked others to limit their fear
and embrace affordable housing as it enriches the community.
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Chair Soderberg introduced Russ Simpson, 3665 Urbandale Lane North, who thanked the HRA for
considering this policy. He stated this is a vibrant community, but the housing is not extensive in
terms of options. He noted people want housing that is affordable for their children or in
retirement. He stated affordable housing also provides a place for people to live that work in the
community. He commented on the lack of zoning in New England where he is originally from that
leads to problems. He commented that the city does a remarkable job maintaining this
community.
Chair Soderberg introduced Marcos Ayala, 3890 Harbor Lane North. He stated they live a few
blocks away and wanted to provide their support for affordable housing. He said his family
previously lived in Willow Woods Estates and their children attended Wayzata Public Schools. He
commented that he and his wife now own a business and, while they did not always live in
affordable housing, it was a step in their journey that allowed them to be successful. He heard
the concerns related to crime and commented that they did not experience issues with crime. He
hopes the HRA will consider the affordable housing policy as it does help people.
Chair Soderberg closed the public hearing.
MOTION by Commissioner Peterson, seconded by Commissioner Spoonheim, to move to
committee of the whole for 15 minutes for the purpose of having a discussion on this topic. Vote.
5 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
Commissioner Peterson provided some grammatic suggestions that he felt would make the
language clearer.
Chair Soderberg commented that including affordable or inclusionary is helpful for developers
and is a common term used by the cities she reviewed.
Commissioner Williams asked if there is a definition of inclusionary.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius replied in the affordable housing industry, inclusionary is a
common term and describes the essence of what a city is attempting to do in providing more
housing options. He noted that word was also part of the previous policy and had been removed
for some reason; it was reinserted because it is in alignment with the goals of the policy and is
commonly used by municipalities.
Commissioner Peterson suggested deleting the first sentence and provided proposed changes to
the second paragraph to include units affordable to those below AMI.
Commissioner Vohs commented that he agrees with the changes but would keep inclusionary in
the policy title.
Chair Soderberg expressed concern with the other city assistance paragraph. She noted examples
were provided tonight from the developer that could trigger this policy. She said if someone was
asking for something big the policy would be triggered but struggled to reason the necessity of
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triggering the policy for smaller things that could come up such as eliminating three parking stalls
or constructing a required turn lane.
Commissioner Vohs commented the developer that spoke was talking about changes he was
paying for and believed those would not trigger the policy. He understood that the policy would
be triggered if assistance were requested for those items. He noted his experience in the area of
affordable housing and stated that there should be a line drawn so that every little thing does not
trigger the policy. He commented that under other city assistance there are items such as a
comprehensive plan amendment that would be a large change and should trigger the policy, while
smaller items or items that involve outside entities should not trigger the policy.
Chair Soderberg asked staff for clarification.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius commented that this language was provided by ODC and
discussed at the last meeting. He commented this essentially include most actions that involve
discretionary action by the city. He suggested the commission have a discussion on where it is
collectively on whether affordable housing should be required when a developer is not requesting
financial assistance. He stated that once that position is known, staff could finesse the language.
Commissioner Peterson asked Commissioner Spoonheim to recap his reason for including this list
in the motion at the last meeting.
Commissioner Spoonheim commented he has considered the feedback from the developer about
the need for conciseness. He noted that the absence of this policy is creating confusion for
developers and is also creating a barrier for developers to receive appropriate funding. He stated
the discretionary triggers for other cities are more condensed in terms of zoning changes rather
than all the items listed in the draft. He agreed that the smaller items should not be triggering
this policy. He believed there should be discretionary triggers but should be more focused,
narrowing down to the zoning related items.
MOTION by Commissioner Peterson, seconded by Commissioner Williams to extend committee
of the whole for an additional 15 minutes for the purpose of having a discussion on this topic.
Vote. 5 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
Commissioner Williams stated that when he reviewed this, he was concerned about waiving
exceptions to environmental considerations. He stated perhaps additional language could be
added that would provide environmental protections for a waiver.
Commissioner Vohs agreed there should be some restrictions but also supports the comments of
Commissioner Spoonheim to better focus the discretionary triggers.
Commissioner Spoonheim clarified that he would keep A, C and D for the discretionary triggers.
Commissioners Vohs and Peterson agreed.
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Chair Soderberg also agreed but would want to acknowledge this could potentially trigger a need
for city assistance.
Commissioner Spoonheim disagreed and stated that would not trigger affordable housing but a
conversation to determine whether it would be feasible to add affordable housing to a project.
He noted there could then be a discussion of the tools the city has in terms of funding for
affordable housing, if that were appropriate. He noted significant funding for affordable housing
would not be provided by the city but by the state.
Commissioner Williams also agreed with the suggestions to limit the discretionary triggers to A,
C, and D.
Chair Soderberg asked how language suggestions and typos could be addressed.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius commented that staff could clean up that language.
Commissioner Peterson provided additional grammatical suggestions.
Chair Soderberg also provided grammatical suggestions.
Commissioner Spoonheim provided some grammatical suggestions. He asked if redevelopment
would trigger the policy as that could remove older, more affordable housing units to make way
for newer, more expensive housing. He asked if an older building with affordable housing is torn
down would that trigger the policy.
Commission Peterson said if the project is market rate the policy would not be triggered.
Commissioner Vohs said policy is triggered if city assistance is sought.
Chair Soderberg mentioned NOAH (Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing) housing and said that
needs to be addressed.
MOTION by Commissioner Vohs, seconded by Commissioner Williams, to extend the committee
of the whole for an additional 10 minutes for the purpose of having a discussion on this topic.
Vote. 5 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
Commissioner Spoonheim used the example where older buildings are sold and torn down, which
displaces families. He noted those are examples of naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH)
that were redeveloped into market rate buildings and the families that are displaced have no
where to go. He commented that ten percent of seniors in this community live on under $15,000
per year. He commented that demolition of naturally occurring affordable housing without
replacement should be addressed.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius understood the point but believed that the group is wandering
into territory that would require legal guidance. He stated if that scenario described were to
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happen, there would most likely be a zoning or land use request that would trigger the policy but
there would then be a legal question related to legal use of the property. He stated that staff
could bring back legal input on that issue for the next meeting.
Commissioner Williams asked why the definition of units does not include triplexes or fourplexes.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius commented that clarifying language could be added.
Commissioner Vohs commented he also does not think this policy and the requirement for
affordable housing would cost the city money. He commented there is often thought to be a
correlation between affordable housing and crime. He stated that a number of studies have been
done to disprove that thought. He then provided some suggested language changes and provided
an example of where he believes the policy could be an overreach involving outside funding. He
also noted in the case that those outside funding sources are secured, that will require a local
funding contribution from the city, which would also trigger the policy and therefore the
statement is redundant.
Commissioner Spoonheim agreed with the suggestions of Commissioner Vohs to strike H and I
from financial assistance.
Chair Soderberg commented that staff will incorporate the changes and suggestions, and this will
be revisited at the next meeting.
Commissioner Spoonheim commented on the input received from a resident related to safety in
the neighborhood and wanted to address that comment. He acknowledged the comments
received about city center. He stated the density proposed in city center is not part of this
discussion and is not something the HRA can act on. He commented that Plymouth residents
want more restaurants and services and the reason those are not coming is because more
residents are needed to attract developers. He noted that density is not related to crime. He
thanked the residents for providing input tonight.
Commissioner Vohs commented that most cities have people leaving to work in other places,
whereas Plymouth has more people coming to work here but they cannot afford to live here.
Mayor Wosje said before COVID there were over 60,000 jobs in the city where people were
coming to work but now more people are working remotely, there are about 54,000 people
coming to work here. He stated there is a lot of manufacturing in Plymouth with people making
$30 to $35 per hour. He noted that people can purchase the same size home in a different
community for a lesser price than Plymouth and therefore choose to live somewhere else. Met
Council has conducted a study showing that the highway 55 corridor has the highest reverse
commute between Corcoran, Medina and Plymouth where people travel to jobs in Plymouth and
Golden Valley.
6. NEW BUSINESS
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6.1. Elect Secretary
Chair Soderberg asked if anyone was interested in the position.
Commissioner Vohs volunteered.
MOTION by Chair Soderberg, seconded by Commissioner Peterson, to elect Commissioner Vohs
as Secretary of the HRA. Vote. 5 Ayes. MOTION passed unanimously.
7. UPDATES
Commissioner Vohs commented that he would like the HRA to stay informed on housing related
development requests.
Chair Soderberg confirmed that is the intent of this agenda item.
Commissioner Vohs referenced the Sun Valley mobile home park, which is a form of affordable
housing, and provided input on some review he had done of that park. He stated that perhaps
there could be outreach to advise the residents about funds that could be available to rehabilitate
that housing stock.
Commissioner Williams stated that he would be interested in a list of projects that are occurring
or on the horizon so that they could stay informed.
HRA Executive Director Fernelius confirmed that he could put together that type of list to share
with the HRA. He then introduced the newest member of staff, Housing Manager Steven Schmidt.
He reviewed his verbal update to the group.
8. ADJOURNMENT
MOTION by Chair Soderberg, with no objection, to adjourn the meeting at 9:09 p.m.