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EDC Minutes March 16, 2018 Page 2 of 5 trends. The EDC reviewed the chart of properties and violations and common trends for all of the properties and determined that Multi-Family properties had wall coverings, paint, parking lots, carpet, appliances, and plumbing as common violations while the single-family homes had windows, aesthetics, and landscaping, as the commons themes for violations. Officer Martin informed the Commission that his focus is safety and code violations. Commissioner Dennis Farmer mentioned that the City should perhaps look into helping single-family home owners who have naturally occurring affordable housing with assistance programs to help them upgrade their buildings and property. Officer Martin said the older properties may simply need a face-lift. Commissioner Ken Breske had met with his tax advisor and provided the EDC with an update on the new tax laws as it relates to landlords and property owners. Breske suggested that Officer Martin could inform landlords of the new tax laws in an attempt to motivate them to make improvements. Commissioner Gary Stevenson suggested that the City change its focus or include a new component to the Code Enforcement’s role to address the outside aesthetic issues in addition to the current safety and code enforcement role. Stevenson brought attention to the age of the current apartment and housing stock. Some apartment buildings may have looked great 30 years ago, but they are in dire need of upgrades and outside appearances. The look of these buidings contributes to the tired and run down look of the hosing stock in the city. Officer Martin informed the Commission that if land lords improve their properties then likely the County Assessors will increase the taxable value of those structures and therefore force the landlords to increase rents to cover the additional property tax. Commissioner Jason Helgemoe stated that with the new apartment buildings being built this could potentially cause existing tenants to leave the old apartment buildings and occupy the new apartment buildings. This may motivate the landlords who own older building to want to improve their building in order to keep their tenants. Officer Martin informed the EDC that the current apartments are 90-95% filled. Commissioner Jim Freichels suggested that Coordinator Beeman send the EDC the spreadsheet listing the current violations and between now and the next EDC meeting, Commissioners can note their observations of apartment buildings and the housing stock on the spreadsheet while they drive around the city and identify problem areas. Beeman informed the Commission that when Commissioners bring back their comments he will compile the comments into one master list and try to identify trends. Beeman informed the Commission that he is trying to coordinate schedules to get a representative from the Ramsey County Economic Development Department to attend then April ECD meeting to inform the Commission of any existing financial programs that might be able to address some of the identified issues. Chair Freichels thanked Code Enforcement Officer Jacob Martin for this comments and observations and moved to the next agenda item. Update from Comprehensive Task Force Members Commissioner Dennis Farmer provided the EDC with an update on the most recent Comprehensive Task Force meeting. The main takeaways from the last meeting is that the City needs to simplify its land use codes, the Task Force also talked about the differences in neighborhood versus regional commercial area. Regional Commercial are