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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 11-18-2009 AFFORDABLE HOUSING ADVISORY COMMITTEE November 18, 2009 Conference Room #3 Meeting convened at 3:36 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT: Al Rivett, St. Lucie INTACT Kenneth Fuchs, SDZ Construction Mike Smith, Riverside National Bank Stephanie Morgan, All About You Louise Hubbard, Treasure Coast Homeless Services Council Toby Philpart, Sunrise City CHDO MEMBERS ABSENT: David Povio, VAP Builders, Inc. Skeet Jernigan, Community & Economic Development Council of South FL Scott Wingfield, Realtors Association of St. Lucie Rhonda Blakely, Workforce Development Board OTHERS PRESENT: Jessica Parrish, St. Lucie County Community Services Dina Prestridge, St. Lucie County Community Services Heather Young, St. Lucie County Assistant County Attorney MINUTES Ms. Morgan called the meeting to order at 3:36 with introductions. Ms. Morgan made a motion to approve the minutes from the June and August meetings. Mr. Rivett seconded the motion. All were in favor. ~ Review of Impact Fees – Heather Young, Assistant County Attorney Ms. Young discussed impact fees. They cannot be waived; the impact of the development would be the same whether it was affordable or market value; interest from the impact fees could not be used as the interest is included in the impact fee budget; and administrative fees would not be available to be used. Ms. Young stated that there are alternative options such as grants and deferrals when it comes to affordable housing and impact fees. The Board of County Commissioners directed staff to incorporate a phase in schedule for the new impact fees. Fifty percent of the new schedule would go into effect on April 1, 2010 and the remainder of the fees would go into effect December 1, 2010. Mr. Rivett stated about 15% of the cost to build homes by Habitat do not relate directly to the construction of the house itself, but by fees such as impact fees and utility hook ups. Mr. Philpart asked whether a deferral program would relieve the contractor and the homeowner of paying impact fees. Ms. Morgan clarified that impact fees could not be waived, but could be deferred until the house was sold. AHAC Minutes November 18, 2009 Page 2 Mr. Rivett stated that a second or third mortgage could be placed on the property until it is sold. Mr. Smith suggested that a deferred payment mortgage with a graduated scale, depending on the homeowner’s income could be put into effect. The mortgage could be deferred five years from the purchase of the home and then be required to be paid back. Mr. Smith stated the mortgage should be deferred at least five years, so that when the underwriting for the mortgage is done, the impact fees would not be counted as current debt. Ms. Morgan and Mrs. Parrish raised the question of how impact fees would it be handled in the cases of condos/apartments and single family homes developments. Ms. Young stated that the developer could identify deed restricted units, as in the case of Cortez Townhomes. The homeowner would have to show income eligibility for the impact fee program. Ms. Hubbard stated that the issue is to encourage the creation of affordable housing units and with talk of developers and set asides it starts taking on the characteristics of inclusionary zoning. Mr. Rivett stated that he would like to see Martin County’s ordinance on deferred impact fees. He also stated that even though a developer is including the impact fees in his cost, it will still be passed down to the homebuyer and the unit will be less affordable. Mr. Fuchs stated there are so many houses on the market currently, and would be ridiculous to build a new house. Mrs. Parrish stated a lot of items that the AHAC Committee is being required to discuss won’t have any impact right now, but should be in place for the future. She also stated that even if a resolution or ordinance is passed to speed up the permitting within the County, it will not speed up the process at the Health Department or the Fire District. Mr. Smith stated that he hoped that the outside agencies would coordinate with each other to move an affordable housing project along. Mr. Fuchs stated that he thought it was illegal to give priority to one project over another. Ms. Parrish stated that the minutes from the last meeting indicate that Mr. Lestrange had recommended a resolution or ordinance brought before the Commission to expedite affordable housing with a stamp. Mr. Lestrange said that without a resolution or ordinance he could not expedite permits. Mr. Philpart stated that during the Pioneer Park project, outside agencies stepped up and worked together to make the permitting process move along more quickly and that it would be more realistic to have that happen if the ordinance or resolution passed specified “County Funded Projects” be expedited. Mr. Rivett suggested that the committee ask the Commissioners under what circumstances would they entertain flexibility in density changes, and if they do not want to consider any changes, the committee won’t spend the time discussing density. AHAC Minutes November 18, 2009 Page 3 Ms. Young passed out copies of the Martin County ordinance on deferred impact fees. Mr. Rivett asked whether there was a way to pre-qualify homeowners who would receive an impact fee deferral. Ms. Young stated that she thought that could be possible if the ordinance stated that the homeowners would have to fall under specific income guidelines. Mr. Rivett asked how it would be made sure that a developer honors the ordinance. Mrs. Parrish stated that the homeowner would have to come into the housing office to determine income eligibility under the grant guidelines. Ms. Hubbard stated that affordable housing developers are usually looking at tax credits or other funding sources that are monitored, and the goal is to defer the cost for the developer, so he does not pass the cost on to the homebuyer. Ms. Rivett made a motion to move forward with an ordinance that paralleled Martin County’s impact fee deferral ordinance. Ms. Hubbard seconded the motion. All were in favor. Ms. Morgan and Mrs. Parrish asked Ms. Young whether she thought that a broad resolution incorporating all the items or a separate one, specifically for permitting would be better. Ms. Young stated if a broad resolution was done, the committee would have to wait until all the items were reviewed. Mr. Rivett stated that if a resolution was done it might get lost over time and not be implemented, versus incorporating it into the Land Development Code. Mr. Rivett made a motion to direct Ms. Young to draft an ordinance to expedite permitting. Mr. Philpart seconded the motion. All were in favor. Mr. Rivett stated that a member of the committee should speak to the Commissioners individually and ask them whether the committee should pursue any issues regarding density. Ms. Morgan stated that the committee should pursue the density issue and then make a recommendation. Mrs. Parrish stated that Mr. Rivett’s suggestions should be accomplished between the current meeting and the next meeting so that the committee has the Commissioners input. Ms. Morgan stated that it was very important that a member of Growth Management be available to provide the Committee with documentation pertaining to density. th The Committee decided that the next meeting would be January 27, at 3:30pm in Conference Rm. 3, and future meetings would be the fourth Wednesday of every month at 3:30pm.