12/21/1998 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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• Livable Communities December 16, 1998 page 5 LIVABLE COMMUNITIES ACT SUMMARY The Livable Communities Act (LCA) was passed by the Minnesota Legislature in 1995. The law created three funding accounts which provide loans and grants to promote the purposes of the act. The three accounts are: Tax Base Revitalization Account: to clean up polluted land for new business development to provide new jobs. Livable Communities Demonstration Account: Lino Lakes received funding from this account for The Village in the Town Center. This account is for local models of compact, creative and efficient development and redevelopment. That is, projects that promote orderly development, limit sprawl, create life -cycle housing choices, preserve the environment, are pedestrian- friendly and transit- friendly, and strengthen a sense of community. • Local Housing Incentives Account: for affordable and life -cycle housing initiatives to meet the housing needs of people of various stages of life and various incomes. The Act describes how these accounts are to be managed by the Metropolitan Council. Numerous communities in the Metro Area submit applications. The funds are awarded on a competitive basis. In order to be eligible for consideration, a city must participate in the Livable Communities Program. LCA Goals: How They Are Determined and What They Mean First, the existing percentages and densities were assembled. These are based on actual data on the City from the census, ongoing building permit activity, and other sources. These are called the City Index. The City Index gives a starting point. Second, the analysis looked at other communities in the same sector of the Metro Area and determined a rough average. This is called the Benchmark. Then, the City and the Metropolitan Council negotiate the target goals. These goals are based primarily on the benchmark for the sector.