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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Affordable Housing Committee - 08/17/2022August 17, 2022, SoBu Affordable Housing Committee Minutes – DRAFT Page 1 Prepared on August 28, 2022 Next regular meeting: Wednesday, September 21, 6:00 p.m. City Hall or online AFFORDABLE HOUSING COMMITTEE August 17, 2022, 6:00 p.m., meeting held online and at City Hall Members attending: Janet Bellavance, Leslie Black-Plumeau, Vince Bolduc, Sandy Dooley, Tom Getz (departed during agenda item 3), Emily Holt-Gosselin, Ariel Jensen-Vargas, Darrilyn Peters, John Simson, and Chris Trombly; also present: Andrew Bolduc, Deputy City Manager; public: Larry Kupferman (chair of SoBu Housing Trust Fund committee) AGENDA 1. Call to order, agenda review and approval, approval of 7/20/22 AHC meeting minutes, announcements, public comment on items not on the agenda 2. City Manager update 3. Discussion and possible action regarding recommendation to Council re RFP for Leveraging ARPA funds to develop affordable housing 4. Discussion and possible action regarding a proposal that the City Council invest ARPA funds in a program that complements existing programs providing assistance/incentives for home- and rental-property-owners to weatherize their residential housing units 5. Discussion and possible action regarding resolution recommending completion of housing needs assessment 6. Discussion of recommendation to Council to complete equity audit in 2022 7. Adjourn 1. Call to order, agenda review and approval, approval of 7/20/22 AHC meeting minutes, announcements, public comment on items not on the agenda Call to order: Chris called the meeting to order at 6:05 p.m. Agenda review: Darrilyn moved and Vince seconded motion to approve agenda as proposed. Approved: 10-0-0 Approval of minutes: Janet moved and Vince seconded motion that the 7/20/22 meeting minutes be approved with the changes Darrilyn proposed noting that we are now using the term “work group” instead of “subcommittee.” Approved: 10-0-0 Announcements: Sandy indicated that she will not be present for the 9/21/22 committee meeting. Chris asked for input regarding how to integrate work of work groups into committee meetings. Following discussion, consensus was for work group chairs to submit brief written updates to committee members at least a week prior to the monthly committee meeting and, where applicable, to include request for work group time on the agenda of the upcoming committee meeting. Chris indicated he will need to leave the meeting no later than 7:15 and that John Simson will become acting chair at that point. Public Comments: Larry commended the collaborative work of the two committees in reviewing the proposals submitted in response to the ARPA RFP and suggested that we might want to collaborate on additional projects in the future. Chris thanked Larry for this input. 2. City Manager update: The elevator is currently broken; expect that it will be fixed by Monday. At 8/15/22 City Council (CC) meeting, the CC approved the FY23 Policy Priorities and Strategies Statement and the latest plan for the dog park in Wheeler Nature Park. They heard and took input on the Climate Change Plan Task Force’s proposal that the CC adopt an ordinance to require use of renewable energy in all buildings effective January 1, 2023, and voted to warn a public hearing on the proposed ordinance for 9/19/22. FY24 budget priorities will also be on the 9/19/22 CC meeting agenda. The CC also approved revisions to the Capital Improvement Plan so that it functions as a reserve fund. 3. Discussion and possible action regarding recommendation to Council re RFP for Leveraging ARPA funds to develop affordable housing: Tom Getz exited meeting at this point. Members (except Tom) had received the draft that Larry and Vince prepared based on the two committee’s executive session discussion at the special meeting held on 8/12/22. Chris outlined the process that brought the committee to this point. Members thanked Larry and Vince for preparing the draft and endorsed its overall content while, at the same time, some members proposed changes or additions, or suggested that a particular proposal be removed from the recommend-to-be-funded group and another proposal substituted for it. Members expressed gratification and enthusiasm for the August 17, 2022, SoBu Affordable Housing Committee Minutes – DRAFT Page 2 number of proposals received, their quality, and their diversity. Lots of discussion. The following modifications were put forth for adoption: a. On page 1, add the following sentence at the end of the paragraph beginning with “$500,000 to Champlain Housing Trust. . .”: In addition, we encourage the City Council to explore sound mitigation with the developer. b. On page 2, in the third paragraph (which relates to the Summit Properties proposal), in the first line, insert the word “unanimously” between “also” and “propose.” In the same sentence add after “$300,000”, “of the $500,000 requested to augment a potential award of $150,000 from the Housing Trust Fund, as well as South Burlington’s allocation of CDBG funds to help close the financing gap.” In the same paragraph, delete second sentence: “As with any large and complex funding stream for low-income housing development, Summit has attracted sizable support for this project and the remaining gap deserves local participation.” c. At Jessie Baker’s suggestion, add the following paragraph to follow the paragraph relating to the Summit proposal: “Given the timeline of review and the importance of moving recommendations forward to the Council, interviews with the developers were not conducted. The committees recommend the Council may want to hear from the developers during their review process.” d. To include reference to all proposals received, add the following paragraph: “Regarding the other two proposals submitted: the committees are not recommending funding of the Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity (GMH4H) land bank proposal due to the perceived high risk that GMH4H would not be able to make $500,000 of land purchases by December 31, 2026, a requirement of which GMH4H may not have been aware. The committees believe the land bank’s revolving loan fund function would make it a prudent investment and may promote it via a different funding source. While the committees are not recommending funding of the Eastern Real Estate (U-Mall) proposal, primarily due the early stage of the project’s development, members welcome Eastern’s clear commitment to including housing, including affordable housing, in the project, and will follow up with Eastern’s U-Mall representative.” Vince moved and Leslie seconded the motion to adopt the recommendation statement regarding the ARPA proposals for affordable housing as drafted by Larry and Vince and modified by the above changes and additions. Approved: 8-0-1. Larry will present the approved statement to the Housing Trust Fund committee for consideration at its upcoming meeting. He expressed support for the statement as approved. 4. Discussion and possible action regarding a proposal that the City Council invest ARPA funds in a program that complements existing programs providing assistance/incentives for home- and rental-property-owners to weatherize their residential housing units (7:11 p.m.): John Simson assumed chair as Chris needed to leave; this allowed Sandy to continue taking minutes. Tom Getz rejoined the meeting. Sandy and Darrilyn had been tasked with preparing a draft motion on this subject. Being mindful of Jessie’s input that the City did not have the staffing to put in place and operate a new program, they worked to identify a program with which South Burlington might provide an “add-on” targeted to income-eligible (the City would define income standard) South Burlington residents. In the time available they were unable to identify such program. There was some discussion of moving this request to the FY24 budget priorities discussion. Sensing that this initiative might fare better in receiving ARPA funding and it would be better to start this initiative sooner than FY24, the committee kept with plan to advocate for ARPA funding for weatherization. Consistent with this, Sandy moved and Leslie seconded the motion that the Affordable Housing Committee recommend that the City Council earmark some of the remaining ARPA funds for initiatives that would supplement existing programs whose purpose is to make homes owned or rented by low-income residents more energy efficient in climate-change-friendly ways and therefore less expensive to maintain. The Affordable Housing Committee would work with the Energy Committee to identify investments that would accomplish this objective. This investment would support the Climate Action Plan Task Force’s goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in a manner that advances equity in South Burlington. Approved: 8-0-1 (Chris no longer in attendance). 5. Discussion and possible action regarding resolution recommending completion of housing needs assessment: While one member proposed tabling this proposal, others shared views that having this assessment would be critical to having a strong section on Housing in the updated Comprehensive Plan and that, despite much regional data being available, it will be important to have up-to-date data that examines, documents, analyzes, and explains SoBu’s housing situation. Using the detailed 2020 Census data, when it becomes available, will be essential. Since consensus appeared to have been achieved, Sandy moved and Janet seconded the motion that the committee recommend that the South Burlington City Council budget $15,000 - $20,000 to pay an external consultant to conduct and prepare a report about the housing needs assessment. Approved: 9-0-0. August 17, 2022, SoBu Affordable Housing Committee Minutes – DRAFT Page 3 6. Discussion of recommendation to Council to complete equity audit in 2022: While this was a “Chris” agenda item, no one present was clear on what he wanted us to focus on in this discussion. There was general agreement that City, as a follow-up to its adoption of the declaration on inclusion, needs to define and take action on one or more projects that promote equity. This would not be a task for the AHC. Andrew mentioned that there will be an all-staff training on this subject, which may be extended to committee members. An equity committee was suggested. Members have in mind action that goes beyond City staff and volunteers. Leslie recommended Winooski’s equity audit as a possible model. Members agreed to read this audit. Leslie sent link for it to all members during the meeting. Sandy moved and John seconded motion to table this discussion to allow members to review the Winooski equity audit and Chris to decide when to place this subject on a future meeting agenda. Ad hoc discussion: Leslie shared that biennial Housing Conference will take place on 11/16/22 at the Hilton Hotel in Burlington and urged all members to attend. Theme is: What YOU can do to solve the housing crisis. Sandy added that, in the past, the City has paid the registration fee for members to attend. John brought up the proposed ordinance that would require use of renewable energy in new construction in City as of 2023 and indicated his concern regarding its impact on the cost and construction of affordable housing. Tom mentioned that it is important for CC to have good data on the costs before acting. John stated importance of affordable housing developers and AHC members attending the 9/19/22 CC public hearing on the proposed ordinance. Question raised about schedule for Climate Action Plan Task Force meetings. Darrilyn indicated she does not know the schedule but has been asking for it. She will share schedule when received. 7. Adjourn: (8:00 p.m.) Janet moved and Vince seconded motion to adjourn meeting. Approved: 9-0-0. August 17, 2022, SoBu Affordable Housing Committee Minutes – DRAFT Page 4 Note: In spite of the watermark, the statement below is not a draft. To: South Burlington City Council From: Affordable Housing and Housing Trust Fund Committees Background: The South Burlington Affordable Housing Committee met on August 17, 2022, and approved a motion that the following statement be forwarded to the City Council relative to funding of proposals received in response to the City’s Request for Proposals on investing up to $1 million in ARPA funds toward the development or preservation of affordable housing in the City. The South Burlington Housing Trust Fund Committee met on August 23, 2022, and approved the same motion. Statement: At the Joint meeting of the Affordable Housing Committee and the Housing Trust Fund Committee on August 12, 2022, committee members discussed the six proposals received to “Leverage ARPA Funds to Develop Affordable Housing." In total, these six proposals represented $3.1 million in requests from proven developers to incentivize the creation of affordable housing in South Burlington. The Committees were surprised and excited by the number and quality of responses. Therefore, we are respectfully requesting a larger investment of ARPA funds for these purposes. The Committees propose the following allocation: $300,000 to Cathedral Square to purchase and rehab the Gazebo Property at 1510 and 1530 Williston Road in order to “purchase the property to preserve and maintain operations of the existing long term care community (Gazebo North) and utilize the Gazebo South property to serve as residential rental housing for long term care staff who serve the care needs of older adults in the community.” $300,000 to Champlain Housing Trust to renovate and convert the Ho Hum Motel on Williston Road to 20 one- bedroom apartments to serve the homeless. Local permit approval is met and the conversion will upgrade building code conditions and energy upgrades, as well. $500,000 to Champlain Housing Trust and Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity to “develop eight duplex lots in the Dorset Commons neighborhood to provide 16 affordable shared equity homes” by developing existing developable land on adjacent city held property at 577 Dorset Street. The grant will cover costs for “engineering, extension of the existing road network and utilities … and comply with new State stormwater rules to upgrade the existing stormwater system for the whole neighborhood.” We recognize this proposal will require the City to complete a lot line adjustment with CHT to enable this development to take place. In addition, we encourage the City Council to explore sound mitigation with the developer. The three proposals meet all the criteria set out in the Request for Proposals and will result in a variety of housing options that fall within or below Area Median Income levels. As proposed, the three proposals will provide: 70 units of residential care and 28 market rate and eight inclusionary rental apartments at Gazebo North and South; 16 three-bedroom new built homeownership opportunities at Dorset Commons; 20 one-bedroom newly renovated apartments for formerly homeless persons at the Ho Hum Motel. August 17, 2022, SoBu Affordable Housing Committee Minutes – DRAFT Page 5 The Committees support these three proposals because they offer a range of housing opportunities for different types of affordable housing needs showing the progression for which individuals and families can move from homelessness to safe supported housing and possibly to homeownership, in addition to long term residential care. The Committees also unanimously propose that Council consider adding to the ARPA Affordable Housing commitment so that the proposal from Summit Properties to support the 71 affordable rental units proposed as part of “Summit at O’Brien Farm” can be supported with $300,000 of the $500,000 requested to augment a potential award of $150,000 from the Housing Trust Fund, as well as South Burlington’s allocation of CDBG funds, to help close the gap. The Committees are enthused about this worthy project but hesitant to overcommitting our allocation. Given the timeline of review and the importance of moving recommendations forward to the Council, interviews with the developers were not conducted. The Committees recommend the Council may want to hear from the developers during their review process. Regarding the other two proposals submitted: the committees are not recommending funding of the Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity (GMH4H) land bank proposal due to the perceived high risk that GMH4H would not be able to make $500,000 of land purchases by December 31, 2026, a requirement of which GMH4H may not have been aware. The committees believe the land bank’s revolving loan fund function would make it a prudent investment and may promote it via a different funding source. While the committees are not recommending funding of the Eastern Real Estate (U-Mall) proposal, primarily due the early stage of the project’s development, members welcome Eastern’s clear commitment to including housing, including affordable housing, in the project, and will follow up with Eastern’s U-Mall representative. Affordable Housing Committee action: The motion was made by Vince Bolduc and seconded by Leslie Black- Plumeau. It was approved by a vote of 8-0-1. The following members voted for approval: Janet Bellavance, Leslie Black-Plumeau, Vince Bolduc, Sandy Dooley, Emily Holt-Gosselin, Darrilyn Peters, John Simson, and Chris Trombly. Ariel Jensen-Vargas abstained from the vote. Tom Getz recused himself and was not present during this part of the meeting. The Housing Trust Fund Committee will meet in the near future and consider this statement for approval. Housing Trust Fund Committee action: At its meeting on August 23, 2022, the committee considered and unanimously approved the same motion. Present and voting were: Ariel Jensen-Vargas, Emilie Krasnow, and Larry Kupferman.