HomeMy WebLinkAboutAffordable Housing Board - Minutes - 04/05/2012CITY OF FORT COLLINS
AFFORDABLE HOUSING BOARD
MEETING MINUTES
281 N. College Ave.
Fort Collins, Colorado
April 5, 2012
4 to 6 p.m.
Chair: Dan Byers
Staff Liaison: Ken Waido 970-221-6753
City Council Liaison: Lisa Poppaw
Board Members present: Ben Blonder, Dan Byers, Jeff Johnson, Troy Jones, Karen
Miller, Mike Sollenberger, Wayne Thompson
Advance Planning Department Staff present: Joe Frank, Director
Council Members present: None
Other Staff present: Kate Jeracki, Note Taker
Guests: Jen Garner, BBC Research and Consulting; Marilyn Heller, League of Women
Voters; Ana Arias, Fort Collins Office of Sustainability
Meeting called to order with a quorum present at 4:01 p.m.
by Chair Dan Byers
Joe Frank announced that Ken Waido is expected to return to work on Monday.
There were no changes to the agenda as presented.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Marilyn Heller handed out a flyer for the League of Women Voters’ public forum on
housing for veterans on April 23 at 7 p.m. in the Harmony Library. It will also be
broadcast on Channel 14.
NEW BUSINESS
APPROVAL OF MINUTES — The minutes from the March 1, 2012 meeting were
unanimously approved as presented on a motion from Ben Blonder seconded by Troy
Jones.
ORGANIZATION RESTRUCTURING UPDATE — Joe Frank reported that the
process of reorganizing City departments around accountability and sustainability is not
yet final, but getting close. When it is finalized, Frank will step down as head of the
Advance Planning Department to become the head of a new department dedicated to
social sustainability. It will be composed of staff currently responsible for housing and
human services, with support from the Office of Environmental Services; no new
resources will be added. Plans are in the works to recombine Advance Planning and
Current Planning into one department. The Affordable Housing Board will be part of the
new department, and Board members should see little change in operations, Frank said.
BUDGETING FOR OUTCOMES PROCESS — Joe Frank said that he will share the
department’s budget offers with the Board once they have gone to City Council in May.
Staff is working on the offers now. He said the Board can email him any ideas and
suggestions it would like staff and Council to consider in developing the 2013-14 budget.
He added at least one representative from the Board should attend the public BFO forums
to be held in June and July.
OLD BUSINESS
ANALYSIS OF IMPEDIMENTS TO FAIR HOUSING CHOICE (AI) – Jen Garner
of BBC Consulting recapped some of the preliminary results from stakeholder meetings
and resident questionnaires. The results will be made public at the Fair Housing Forum
on April 16; a draft is due to City Council for approval on May 15 and must be forwarded
to HUD in July. Garner said that so far no real problems have been identified; Fort
Collins is a fairly progressive city and walks the talk on fair housing. Disability issues
have been the biggest so far, and low-income housing seems to be clustered on the north
side of town, but any barriers to housing seem to be marketplace issues and affect all
classes of the population equally. Dan Byers pointed out the lack of housing for really
low-income individuals, making 30 percent to 50 percent AMI. Mike Sollenberger said
that developers find it impossible to build projects for the 30 percent AMI market without
Section 8 assistance. Sollenberger also raised the issue that CARE doesn’t rent to
seniors, only families with children. Dan Byers said he would attend the public forum.
Garner added that BBC will be sharing final results with all stakeholders when they are
available.
OTHER BUSINESS
OPEN BOARD DISCUSSION – Mike Sollenberger said current plans have 9,000 new
students enrolling in Colorado State University over the next five years. This wave will
have a major impact on the availability of lower priced housing, and he would like to see
an impact analysis on affordable housing of increased enrollment. Joe Frank said he
could invite a CSU representative to make a presentation on the student housing plan at
the next Board meeting. He also pointed out that a couple of thousand beds for students
are already in the development pipeline. Ben Blonder said CSU understands the impact
increased enrollment will have on vacancy rates.
Dan Byers suggested the Board send a memo to City Council to applaud them for
proclaiming April Fair Housing Month, to keep the issue in front of them. Ben Blonder
said that he has had good response to emails he has sent to the Mayor and
Councilmembers.
Dan Byers asked about the annual review questionnaire Joe Frank sent in the Board’s
meeting packet. Frank explained that there needs to be just one response from the Board
to be forwarded to City Council for its July 24 work session, so it should be discussed at
the May meeting. Mike Sollenberger asked if the Board could receive the questionnaire
in a fillable pdf format to do their homework before the next meeting. Frank will send it.
Ben Blonder said he will compile all the responses into one after the discussion in May.
PROVINCETOWNE SUBCOMMITTEE REPORT – Troy Jones said the
subcommittee had come up with three options for the City to address the current situation
with deed restrictions in the Provincetown subdivision, and they would like to take the
temperature of the Board on each:
a. Keep the provisions as is and enforce the covenants that require only
owner occupants. The staff time and effort involved is why it hasn’t been
enforced to date. It’s supposed to be self-regulating, but the City can’t afford
to be in the business of tracking sales and subleases.
b. Lift the covenants and walk away. Joe Frank said this would require action
by City Council, but board members disagreed on whether market forces
would keep the homes affordable for the target market.
c. City retains right of first refusal on any sales. It could buy the home and
flip it to CARE Housing or another organization or individual that can afford
to hold it until a buyer eligible under the covenants emerges. This would put
the City in the position of being a temporary landlord. Joe Frank said he
would follow up with the City Attorney to explore the implications. Jeff
Johnson said the CARE Board is already interested in reaching out to the
Housing Authority to discuss the idea. Troy Jones said the advantage of this
option is that the City can make sure the home stays owner occupied.
Karen Miller pointed out that the subdivision is now less than 50 percent owner occupied
and properties have become unwarrantable for both FHA and conventional loans, making
it harder to qualify as well as pushing up interest rates. Ben Blonder said the immediate
priority should be to get the subdivision warrantable again. This will require more
cooperation from the Provincetown HOA to determine exactly how many homes are
currently owner occupied. While the City has worked with the homeowner whose
difficulties selling her house brought the issue to light, Blonder added that he will do
further research on the exact status of that property.
Mike Sollenberger said he is very against allowing an investor to put it on the rental
market because it will deplete the affordable housing stock. Jeff Johnson pointed out that
capping the price that the homeowner can sell the home for keeps the homeowner from
receiving the wealth-building benefits of homeownership. Sollenberger said that
affordability should trump capital appreciation, otherwise Fort Collins will become like
Boulder, with no affordable housing within the City limits. He said as long as buyers are
getting help from the City, they should follow the City’s rules. Johnson said the current
rules create an exit strategy problem, and the City can’t control the market and whether
people prefer to rent or own.
Jeff Johnson said the subcommittee would like to set up a meeting with the Colorado
Housing Finance Assistance Authority and the state Division of Housing in Denver to
learn how other communities have dealt with similar issues. They would report back to
the full Board at the next meeting. Joe Frank said City Council is also looking forward to
input from the Board on this issue. Dan Byers also asked for a clarification of HUD rules
on income restrictions on home sales, a requirement lifted by Fort Collins in 2008 but
Wayne Thompson reports are still in place in Loveland.
FUTURE MEETING AGENDAS
At the May 3 meeting, the board will discuss:
CSU Student Housing Plan.
Annual Review questionnaire.
Revisions to Board bylaws.
FCHA fee waiver.
Report on Denver meeting.
Clarification on HUD rules on income restrictions on homeownership.
At some future meeting, the board would like to:
Hear a report on the Land Bank program.
Review the effects of the City’s Green Building Code on housing affordability.
Discuss outreach to Fort Collins Housing Authority on alternative models of
ownership for mobile home parks and residents.
-- Meeting adjourned at 5:35 p.m. by Chair Dan Byers. --