HomeMy WebLinkAboutAffordable Housing Board - Minutes - 06/05/2008CITY OF FORT COLLINS
AFFORDABLE HOUSING BOARD
MEETING MINUTES
281 N. College Ave.
Fort Collins, Colorado
June 5, 2008
Denise Rogers Rogers, Chair
Ken Waido, Staff Liaison, 970-221-6753
City Council Liaison: Lisa Poppaw
Board Members Present: Ben Blonder, Robert Sullivan, Pete Tippett, and Ashley
Monahan.
Board Members Absent: Denise Rogers, Dan Byers, and Marie Edwards Edwards.
Advance Planning Department Staff Present: Ken Waido and Kara Smith.
Council Members Present: None.
Board Vice -Chair Ben Blonder called the meeting to order at 4:06 PM.
New Business
Exterior Property Maintenance Rental Housing and Building Conditions Codes
Beth Sowder and Mike Gebo give a presentation on exterior property maintenance,
building conditions, and rental housing codes.
Mr. Blonder expressed concerns about how to enforce the basement egress window rules.
He foresees some problems with people paying up to $4,000 to put a window in.
Ms. Woodman wondered about where people go when the City declares a property not fit
to be occupied and they have to leave. Mr. Gebo explained that the police and child
welfare get involved if needed.
Staff reminded the Board that in the past, the Board has supported the health and safety
components of these codes. What the Exterior Property Maintenance Code has boiled
down to now, are the dirt yards and the fences.
Mr. Gebo reminded the Board that there are actually three topics:
o 1) Dirt and Dead yards
o 2) Building Conditions
o 3) Rental Properties
Ms. Woodman asked what happen if an owner that is living in an unfit place and cannot
afford to make it livable again?
Mr. Gebo answered that he would try and help the person get the assistance they need. If
it gets to a certain point, the City can condemn the property. If it is owner occupied and
they are income qualified, they can get help from the Larimer Home Improvement
Program (LHIP) which has loans with between 0-5% interest, depending on income.
Mr. Gebo explained that it currently takes a City Council action to declare properties
dangerous. Building Services does and can declare a building dangerous without Council
action. In an emergency event such as the flood or a tornado, where the City needs to
"take control" over properties that have been damaged beyond repair, for removal and
disposal of large areas of debris, staff currently would need to seek Council approval. The
new proposal would allow Building Services to cause the dangerous conditions to be
removed without going to Council for approval to remove the condition.
Mr. Tippett indicated that he has a problem with the dirt yards part of the ordinance. Ms.
Monahan and Mr. Blonder agreed. Mr. Tippett stated that property owners are more
likely to be receptive to fixing yards, but that tenants aren't going to do anything about it.
As a consequence, if the landlord has to fix it then he will raise the rent. For the most
part, it is an aesthetic issue.
Mr. Gebo reminded the Board that this is not an all or nothing approval. The Board can
pick and choose which parts of the codes they can support.
Mr. Sullivan thinks the main issue with the dirt yards is that it is an ongoing issue. With
a window, you replace it and it is over. Unless you have tenants who are maintaining the
gravel and pulling the weeds — you will still have a problem. Mr. Blonder reiterated that
in his opinion it is an aesthetic issue. Mr. Sullivan believes that forcing people to
maintain yards will negatively affect affordable housing. Mr. Blonder pointed out that
there aren't that many yards in Fort Collins that are dirt/dead and doesn't believe that it is
going to get any worse if the City doesn't pass the yard part of the ordinance.
Mr. Blonder agrees with the fence component of the code. Ms. Monahan stated
agreement with "no" on the yards and "yes" on fences.
Mr. Tippett made a motion that the Board supports all of the health and safety
components of the building conditions, rental housing standards, and fencing from
the property maintenance code. The Board does not support the dirt/dead grass
portion of the code.
Mr. Sullivan seconded the motion.
Vote was 4-0 in favor of the motion.
Open Public Discussion
Ms. Heller mentioned that she heard good reports about the City's affordable housing
tour. Ms. Jacobs stated that the tour was very informative. Mr. Waido mentioned that
staff would be more than happy to do a special tour for the Board of they are interested.
New Business
Minutes - April 3 2008 Meeting
Mr. Blonder moved approval of the minutes of the April 3`d meeting. Ms. Monahan
seconded the motion. Vote 4-0 in favor, motion carried
Competitive Process
Mr. Waido reported that last Tuesday the City Council approved the funding
recommendations from the CDBG commission. All of the affordable housing projects,
except for the Land Bank proposal, were fully funded. The City has about $33,660 left in
the City's Affordable Housing Fund which will carry over to the next funding cycle in
the fall.
Mr. Tippett asked if anyone has ever thought of alternative ways of funding the Land
Bank Program? Mr. Waido says that the use of the City's Federal program grants to
acquire land for the Land Bank is not allowed. Mr. Tippett suggested bonds. Mr. Waido
indicated that the City has to be very careful with the program because it is illegal for the
City to engage in land speculation. Agencies like CARE Housing, etc., will submit
proposals to build affordable units which will depend on what the highest needs are at
that time of sale. City Council will make the final decision.
Future Meetings
The normal schedule for the July meeting would be Thursday 3`d of July, the day before
the July 4`h Holiday. The Board agreed the meeting will be cancelled or rescheduled to
July 10"h if needed. The August meeting will probably be cancelled totally.
Meeting adjourned at 5:32 PM
Respectfully submitted by
Kara Smith, Secretary