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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 10/17/2000 - SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 137, 2000, REPEALI AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY ITEM NUMBER: 13 DATE: October 17, 2000 FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL STAFF: Timothy Wilder SUBJECT: Second Reading of Ordinance No. 137, 2000, Repealing Ordinance No. 24, 1996, and Amending Chapter 14 of the City Code to Establish the Landmark Rehabilitation Loan Program. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on Second Reading. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Ordinance No. 137, 2000, was unanimously adopted on First Reading on October 3, 2000, and replaces the Landmark Rehabilitation Grant Program with a new Landmark Rehabilitation Loan Program. Zero-interest loan amounts would be provided of up to $5,000 per property. Loan repayments collected at the sale of a property would revolve back into the Program, providing lipadditional rehabilitation funds over time. AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY ITEM NUMBER: 19 FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL DATE: October 3, 2000 STAFF: Timothy Wilder SUBJECT: First Reading of Ordinance No. 137, 2000, Repealing Ordinance No. 24, 1996, and Amending Chapter 14 of the City Code to Establish the Landmark Rehabilitation Loan Program. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends adoption the O nance n t Yeag.oThe Landmark Preservation Commission recommended ad f n at an August 23, 2000. FINANCIAL IMPACT: Since 1995, the City of Fort Collins has allocated $20,000 for a grant program to fund the exterior rehabilitation of local historic landmarked properties. This program has funded dozens of residential and non-reside 'e m $ was granted to residential projects and a maximum of 000 gran -re tial projects. Applicants were required to match grant awaz with an ual ter amou of their own funds. Applications were reviewed through a co ive, e- y pro involving City staff and the Landmark Preservation Commission (LPC). i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: This Ordinance involves replacing the Landmark Rehabilitation Grant Program with a new Landmark Rehabilitation Loan P o-interest loan amounts would be provided of up to $5,000 per property. Loan r yme t olle d t s o property would revolve back into the Program, providing a itional abilit i S ov ime. BACKGROUND: The 1999-2002 Major Projects Work Program included an investigation into converting the Landmark Rehabilitation Grant Program to a low- or no-interest loan program. This effort has closely involved the Landmark Preservation Commission (LPC). The Landmark Rehabilitation Grant Program was formed in 1994 as a result of an action item in the Historic Resources Preservation Program Plan. The Program was intended to provide an incentive for preservation and rehabilitation of historic resources. In 1994, and again in 1995, $20,000 was allocated to the program by City Council. However, in 1996, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 24, 1996 establishing the Program as an ongoing project of the City and dedicating $20,000 annually to it. I DATE: October 3, 2000 2 ITEM NUMBER: 19 Only locally landmarked properties or contributing structures in historic districts are eligible for grants. The grant can be applied only to exterior rehabilitation work, e.g., siding repair, porch restoration, roof work with approved material, original decorative elements, etc. Grants of up to $2,500 for residential and $5,000 for non-residential are awarded through a competitive selection process held once a year. Successful applicants must match the amount of grant money received with an equal or greater amount of money. The grant program has been successful at attracting the designation of properties. Owners of 47 separate properties designated between 1994 and 2000 applied for a local landmark grant. Since 1995, the first year that applications were accepted, 102 applications had been received, 62 projects had been funded, 38 ha"co ted t till in progress), and 11 were rescinded. The completion ra was a 80 or 1 e The primary issue facing futu r a is . the risin ost of rehabilitation. While the maximum grant amounts for projects have not changed, each year the grants provide a smaller share of a project's total cost. In addition, as more properties are designated as local landmarks, there will be increasing competition for the same amount of money. For these reasons grant funding will become less important as an incentive for encouraging landmark designations. While the grant program does not have the capability of recapturing the City's investment over the long-term, a loan program can provide a long-term source of funding for rehabilitation. Some of the benefits of a loan program include: 1. A revolving pr m h yaong-term providing more money for rehabilitation rk. R olvi 1 s ar investment in historic rehabilitation, ra an i cen 2. A historic revolving loan program is consistent with City policy. The Historic Resources Preservation Program Plan recommends a revolving loan fund as an incentive for historic resource protection and rehabilitation. 3. A historic loan program can be nearly as easy to administer as the grant program. There is precedent for City-administered loan programs including the Home Program and the Zilch program. As part of the analysis, staff collected information on successful and unsuccessful historic rehabilitation loan programs othe c mu ' iYon o e ommunities examined by staff which provide loan program sed to teres he ess of these programs depended on the interest rates in the 1 ing et. of G ley provides a low-interest loan program for historic properties it has a acte a few andmark designations. However, many of the staff in other communities felt that no-interest loans could provide an excellent incentive for historic rehabilitation. The City of Fort Collins provides two other zero-interest loan programs: the Homebuyers Assistance Program and ZILCH loans. The Homebuyers Assistance Program lends up to $5,000 for purchase of a home to qualified buyers with repayment upon sale of the home. The ZILCH program provides up to $2,000 for energy improvements with repayment terms of between 24 and 60 months. DATE: October 3, 2000 3 ITEM NUMBER: 19 The components of the proposed Landmark Rehabilitation Loan Program include: 10 1. Only exterior rehabilitation of designated landmarks, including residential and non- residential properties, would be eligible for loans. 2. The same project elements as are funded under the grant program would be eligible (i.e., porches, roofs, siding, trim, etc.). 3. Loans of up to $5,000 would be available for residential and non-residential properties. 4. Rehabilitation work w r - ed pl within one year, with the possibility of a one-ye exten i 5. No interest would be c e n 1 6. Acceptance of rehabilitation funding would require a Promissory Note and a second Deed of Trust on the property to secure the funds. This means that the City would hold a lien on the property until the debt is paid. 7. The loan would have to be repaid at the time the property is sold or transferred. 8. Loan amounts repaid to the City would recycle back into the Loan Program. 9. Properties could hold e th 10. The same yearly, com ®rerol?in op the Landmark Rehabilitation Grant Program would be used for the Loan Program. The LPC reviewed the Landmark Rehabilitation Loan Program on July 26, 2000 and held a public hearing on the issue on August 23, 2000. Several public comments were received before and during the hearing. The participants stated that they liked the existing grant program. However, if a loan program was adopted, they preferred that the maximum amount for residential projects ($2,500) be raised.