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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-09-12 Community Affordable Housing Advisory Board Minutes City of Bozeman Community Affordable Housing Advisory Board (CAHAB) February 9, 2012 Madison Room, Bozeman City Hall Attending: Brian LaMeres (City of Bozeman Finance Department), Tim Dean (Community Representative),Jan Bergman (Community Representative), Melvin Howe (Community Representative), Kris Keller (Community Representative) via telephone Absent: Dave Magistrelli (Community Representative), Mary Martin (Community Representative) Staff: Tracy Menuez (HRDC) Public: None A. Call to Order—The meeting was called to order at 12:05 by Chair LaMeres. B. Changes to agenda—there were no changes to the agenda C. Public Comment—none D. Action Items 1. Approval of minutes from January 12, 2012 The minutes of the January 12, 2012 meeting were reviewed. Kris requested that the minutes be amended to reflect her time on the phone call.Jan motioned to approve the minutes as amended, with Tim providing the 2nd. Motion was approved. E. FYI/Discussion 1. Housing Needs assessment—Section 9 Kris Keller commented that she would have liked to see more detail with regard to rental demand, such as what is the demand for certain household sizes, and for what demographics does the supply fall short?She is particularly concerned with single-person households that may not have interest in roommates, but cannot afford Bozeman's market without one. She commented that the demographic information provided did not provide a substantial break down by household size. Jan asked where the demographic and household data came from. Tracy responded that it was primarily census data. Tim Dean commented that they study was incomplete in his opinion, in that it did not address the "why" we have an affordability problem in the city. The study did not compare development costs in the city with those in the county or other communities in the county or state, nor did it address the impact of regulation on affordability. He also did not find that the meeting comments regarding impact fees were valid, given the difficulty in comparing Bozeman to Maryland. It was discussed that impact fees were not directly addressed in the report, as the impact fee committee is currently in the process of updating the study. Tim commented that Bozeman has the nation's highest impact fees for cities that do not charge school impact fees. He also cited his experience from the development of Greekway Apartments, where the approximate $300,000 in cash-in-lieu for parkland had a direct impact on affordability. Brian asked if he was questioning why land was so expensive. Tim responded that he was speaking more to development costs, and would like a comparative analysis of those costs compared to other communities. Melvin Howe commented that he would like some specific direction from the consultants on the "how"to reduce development costs. Brian had questions regarding the 800+overbuilt figure in the draft. Tracy and Tim provided clarification that this was 800 overbuilt during the boom years;the community now has a 6.5 month supply of for- sale housing. Kris Keller commented that raising rents on homes to levels that essentially require multiple renters changes the character of the neighborhood. She commented that there is still a need for affordable rentals for singles to help alleviate that issue. Melvin Howe observed that this is particularly true in the areas near MSU. Kris requested information regarding rent control in cases of large rent increases. Jan Bergman commented that condominium financing continues to be a challenge, especially working with HOAs with delinquencies. Melvin asked how the HOA issues are resolved.Jan responded that they work with HOAs to meet the requirements of the secondary market, and are usually successful in those efforts. Tim Dean commented that he would like to weigh in more regarding RSLs and how to reconfigure subdivisions, and would like more information from the Planning Department on this topic. Tracy noted that she would send the CAHAB's comments to the housing consultants and updated the board on the estimated timeline with remaining deliverables from the consultants. F. Adjourn—The meeting was adjourned at 1:00.