07-12-2018 Planning Commission Packet

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46 In addition to this, affordable housing has a number of economic benefits for the city. In Little Canada, the annual average wage is slightly lower than in both Ramsey County and the Twin Cities Region. For people who work in Little Canada, their lower wages may not be enough to afford to live in the City, or to avoid being cost-burdened. For the business sector to grow and expand, a reliable labor force is needed to fuel it. Available affordable housing helps to attract a talented workforce to fill these job opportunities, so they can live near their place of work. Workers often look for jobs that are located near attractive housing options. This also helps to retain current workers who wish to be at a company for the long term thereby avoiding unnecessary and costly employee turn-overs. Besides the many benefits that make affordable housing appealing for Little Canada, the City also has to meet its regional allocation from the Metropolitan Council. Table 15: Affordable Housing Allocation for Little Canada Affordable Units to household income at or below 30% AMI Affordable Units to household income at 31-50% AMI Affordable Units to household income at 51-80% AMI Total Affordable Units Allocation 26 28 25 79 Source: Metropolitan Council, NAC The Metropolitan Council allocates affordable housing to communities throughout the Metropolitan region in order to diversify where affordable housing is located. This is done in order to avoid creating areas of concentrated poverty, and to allow lower income households to live closer to suburban employment centers. Little Canada has an allocation of 79 new affordable units which must be created between 2012 and 2030. This will be met through the development of a new downtown mixed-use district. The district will be approximately 40 acres of residential and commercial uses. 3.5 acres will be explicitly set aside in this district for affordable multifamily housing projects and will be developed at a density of 25 units per acre, more than meeting the allocation of the Metropolitan Council for affordable housing by 2040. Locating this housing right near the city’s downtown will have the added benefits of being nearby both commercial and employment hubs, as well as both local and express transit routes which would allow households without a vehicle to travel easily outside of and through the city. Maintaining Housing While not as pronounced as in some other Metro Communities, Little Canada does have a significant portion of Houses built prior to the early 1960s, and even more built before 1980. By 2040 these buildings will be at or above 60-years-old, and with this increased age will come increased maintenance demands. In order to maintain safe, quality housing stock, and thereby protect the City’s property tax base, the City should be examining how they preserve exiting housing.