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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC RES 96-044 RESOLUTION ASOPTING A FIVE YEAR HOUSING PLAN FOR THE CITY OF ST. ANTHONY Meeting Sheet IIIIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIIIIIIIII 103307 Box: 26 Folder: RES 1996 Document: CC RES 96-044 RESOLUTION ASOPTING A FIVE YEAR HOUSING PLAN FOR THE CIN OF 5T. ANTHONY • CITY OF ST. ANTHONY RESOLUTION 96-044 A RESOLUTION ADOPTING A FIVE YEAR HOUSING PLAN FOR THE CITY OF ST. ANTHONY WHEREAS, the City of St. Anthony has agreed to participate with the Metropolitan Council in the Livable Communities Act and has established housing goals; and WHEREAS, the City of St. Anthony has developed a Five Year Livable Communities Act Housing Action Plan to implement said goals. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of St. • Anthony hereby adopts the City of St. Anthony Five Year Housing Action Plan for the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act. Adopted this Z day of , 1996. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk Reviewed for administration: City kanager • • CITY OF ST. ANTHONY FIVE YEAR HOUSING ACTION PLAN FOR THE METROPOLITAN LIVABLE COMMUNITIES ACT Dated: June, 1996 • • INTRODUCTION Page 2 The purpose of this plan is to discuss strategies and programs which support the City's LAC housing activity goals to keep housing affordable, attainable and available for anyone living or wanting to live in our community. At the same time that the City is committed to adhering to housing activity goals, it must also be committed to strengthening neighborhoods, protecting the safety and health of all residents. Crime prevention efforts and enforcing housing and nuisance codes will complement the maintenance strategies and programs of St. Anthony's housing action plan. St. Anthony is a first-ring suburb that is completely developed. As such, our action plan will be addressing mostly maintenance and redevelopment issues. Our economic strategies will be those that assist residents to upgrade, remodel, renovate and, in some cases, demolish to rebuild existing housing. In adopting this strategy, we will need to manage redevelopment as opposed to other communities where managing growth is a priority. By taking an active role in housing redevelopment, the City can better provide a "mix of life- cycle and affordable housing" as envisioned by the Metropolitan Council's Regional Blueprint. At the same time, the "mix" will be one that preserves the community and exemplifies the historical, cultural and environmental characteristics of St. Anthony. • St. Anthony City Index Benchmark Goal Affordabilit Ownership 77% 77-87% 77-87% y Rental 45% 45-50% 45-50% Life Cycle Non-single 49% 33-41% 33-41% family detached Owner/Rental 61% / 39% 64-75%/25-36% 64-75%/25- Mix 36% Density Single Family 3.2/acre 2.3 - 2.9/acre 2.3 - 3.2/acre Detached • • Page 3 Multi-family 16/acre 13 -15/acre 13 - 16/acre a e As a participating community in the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act, the City of St. Anthony is required to adopt housing goals and implement an action plan that turns those goals into reality. The activities described herein will be exclusively for the maintenance of affordable housing and life-cycle housing goals as shown in Table I. According to the data, St. Anthony currently has 77% of the privately owned housing stock and 45% of the rental units considered affordable by the Metropolitan Council. The definition of affordable housing is that it cost no more than 30% of a family's income. Forty-nine percent of the City's housing stock is considered life-cycle homes. Traditionally, these life cycle homes are purchased or rented by senior residents who no longer require or want single family homes. This cycling of single family homes, in turn provides home owning opportunities for families moving into our community. As the data from the table suggests, St. Anthony meets or exceeds the benchmarks established by • the Metropolitan Council. While the City meets the benchmarks for affordability, the City proposes to increase the percentage of affordable homes to 79 - 80% in the next five years. The density of the City's housing stock is another issue in which the City meets the benchmark, but where efforts by the City through flexible application of zoning and land use regulations could positively affect this figure without impacting the public health of the City or a resident's sense of privacy. Density can be addressed through flexible implementation of land use regulations and City zoning ordinances. The City recently demonstrated its willingness to be flexible when it changed the required lot coverage percentage. This action has made it possible for property owners to build homes on lots that are smaller than the residential lots heretofore considered "buildable". The last issue that the City needs to address in its action plan is to increase the ownership of life-cycle housing. As the benchmark data suggests, the City needs to adjust the owner/ rental ratio of the life-cycling housing options. Currently, sixty-one percent of those who live in non-single family detached housing own their unit as compared to thirty-nine percent who rent. The established benchmark suggests that the City needs to try to reduce the number of residents who rent life-cycle housing, thereby increasing the number of those who own their unit. The City can accomplish this in two ways: 1.) encourage developers to build only owner-occupied housing projects; and/or 2.) provide information on financial assistance programs available for those who want to purchase life-cycle • housing. • Page 4 The remaining portions of this document discusses activities that the City will be involved in so that affordable and life-cycle housing goals and objectives can be accomplished. It is presumed that the private sector will provide for the development of upper scale housing based on the current market rates. ST. ANTHONY VILLAGE ACTION PLAN NARRATIVE FOR THE YEARS 1996 - 2000 The following narrative describes in detail those activities that the City will undertake in an effort to achieve the affordable and life-cycle housing. Several of these efforts will be on-going and therefore without a determinable time line. For example, once a property has been identified by the City's Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) as one that will qualify for City assistance, the time line for its redevelopment will be nebulous until a developer becomes committed to the project. A time line can then be established contractually between the HRA and the developer. Under the guidelines of the City's HRA, the developer usually has six months to one year to complete the proposed project. • HOME OWNERSHIP: b Rehabilitation Programs for Single Family Homes. • CDBG Funds. The City recently joined with other smaller municipalities of Hennepin County to pool funds that in the past were allocated individually to each city within Hennepin County. These allocated funds usually proved to be too little to be of use in the provision of much housing rehabilitation activity. As a result of participating in the "Urban County" program, St. Anthony has the opportunity to access through a granting process, a larger amount of CDBG funds. The City of St. Anthony would propose as part of this action plan to encourage the use of CDBG funds only for projects that would support its affordable and life-cycle housing goals. Ramsey County is also designated as an Urban County for the purposes of allocating CDBG funds. Because a portion of St. Anthony extends into Ramsey County, the City will also have the opportunity to access CDBG funds for affordable and life-cycling housing in that portion of the City in Ramsey County. For several years, St. Anthony has not actively participated in other financial assistance programs for homeowners. However, when a resident has • contacted the City regarding the availability of assistance for their particular housing need, staff have provided current information about available • Page 5 resources through state, county or federal programs. This is a service that the City staff will continue to provide as long as these funding sources and programs remain viable. The sources of information regarding financial assistance programs for housing rehabilitation activities for either individual homeowners or City initiated renovation projects that the City staff has available upon request include the following: • Department of Energy Fuel Assistance and Weatherization programs. • Housing Rehabilitation Deferred Loans (CDBG funds). • Minnesota Housing Finance Agency (MHFA). Housing Rehabilitation Program First Time Home Buyer Program • Purchase Plus Program • Livable Communities Demonstration Account THE CITY'S HRA FUNDS: Residential Lot Redevelopment Through the City's HRA Funds. The City of St. Anthony is committed to promoting and encouraging rehabilitation of its housing stock. As part of this commitment, the City established an HRA as authorized by the Minnesota Statutes (Section 469.012) to assist with the acquisition of blighted properties for redevelopment. The HRA is funded by money received as the result of the City's TIF districts. With these funds, the City is able to redevelop one or two blighted properties a year. HRA funding amount varies depending on the scope of the project. Since 1994, the City through its HRA acquired and demolished two substandard residential properties along Silver Lake Road, replacing them with single family residences. Both were eventually sold, one for $90,000 and the other for $125,000, to families with young children. The City has targeted several residential parcels throughout the City for redevelopment to either multi-family or single family dwellings. • This spring, two multi-family developments, with assistance provided by the City's i • Page 6 HRA, started construction. The Village Commons is a twinhome project being constructed in the northern portion of the City. This project will provide 12 two - three bedroom units. Previously, this property was vacant and secluded, which allowed for the dumping of various kinds of debris. The developer purchased the property and applied to the City's HRA for assistance to clean up the soils and add fill. These twinhomes The second project is located in the southern portion of St. Anthony. The Arbors is a townhouse project being constructed on property that had become run down and somewhat blighted. In order to begin the project extensive grading was required due to poor soils and difficult topography. There were three very old structures that had to be demolished as well. This developer too, applied for and received the use of HRA funds for soil corrections. The development will provide approximately 18 two three bedroom units. The construction of these two projects will increase the residential density, provide life-cycle housing opportunities, and are to be owner-occupied by the City's "empty nesters" and first time home buyers. The City in its redevelopment efforts will continue to encourage this type of housing redevelopment. • LAND USE PLAN AND ZONING REGULATIONS: Flexible Use of Local Land Use Plan and Zoning Regulations. Flexible use of local land use planning and zoning regulations has always been necessary in St. Anthony because of the limited amount of land available for residential development and the need to provide several varied housing opportunities. The City's Comprehensive Plan, written in 1979, states the following in its Housing Goals section, page 31: 2. Provide new housing which complements the existing housing stock and attempt to meet the housing needs of a variety of potential City residents. In order to ensure some degree of heterogeneity among the City's population as well as to avoid totally excluding all members of some particular segment of the Region's society who may have a need to live in St. Anthony, a variety of housing types should be developed in St. Anthony. Although limited opportunities exist for further residential development, the City should not, through its Zoning Plan, place excessive restriction on the ability of the private housing market to meet perceived housing needs. However, the City should actively encourage the development of townhouses, duplexes, quadraminiums,and apartment buildings so as to be able to satisfy various housing needs. The City's Housing Policies on the next page state various policy objectives in trying to achieve these housing goals as stated in the City's Comprehensive Plan (See Attachment A). • Also, several of the residential lots in St. Anthony are considered substandard • Page 7 because they are less than the required lot width, square footage or require soil corrections of some sort. The City through its HRA, flexible application by the City Council and Planning Commission of the City's zoning requirements and the creative abilities of some contractors, has been able to coordinate the construction of affordable homes on many of these "less than perfect" lots. Being flexible in land use and zoning regulations has allowed St. Anthony to provide housing opportunities which in the past may not have existed. Most of the housing projects requiring assistance from the City's HRA also require rezoning, replatting and/or variances in order to take the concepts from paper to reality. Construction of multi-family housing, single-family dwelling construction on smaller lots or residential construction on poor soils will help the City maintain its density goals as established by the City in conjunction with Metropolitan Council's benchmarks and provide housing that is affordable. The Metropolitan Council suggests that a community's most important and most effective tool that can be used to attain its LCA housing goals is its official controls and approval mechanisms. This year the City will have the opportunity to re- examine its land use and zoning regulations as the result of updating the Comprehensive Plan. The City will consider the effectiveness of including and/or continuing the following Metropolitan Council suggestions: 0 Minimum and maximum densities; • amounts of land planned or zoned for multifamily housing; • environmental protection regulations; • public dedication requirements; • cluster-design site planning; • planned unit developments; • zero-lot-line approaches; and 0 "accessory housing" ordinances that allow single-family homes to have apartment units in basements or converted space in a separate structure. In addition to considering the above suggestions, the Planning Commission and the City Council can also effect the realization of the City's housing goals through a more flexible approval process for projects that demonstrate housing activities that coincide with City's action plan to implement its LCA goals. • This year, the City is also in the process of revising its Comprehensive Land Use • Page 8 Plan. As part of that revision process, the City intends to incorporate many of the City's LAC action plan strategies into the Comprehensive Plan. By making the City's action plan a part of the City's land use planning document, the City will be able to review each land use plan or zoning request against its LAC goals so that the City can attain its housing goals. In five years, the Comprehensive Plan will be reviewed in anticipation of the required updating. This will also be an appropriate time to review the action plan so that the City's success in meeting the LAC goals can be ascertained. RENTAL HOUSING: St. Anthony has approximately 1,144 aging rental units for individuals and families with the average monthly rent being approximately $496. The definition of affordable rental housing according to the Metropolitan Council is approximately 50% of median income or in 1990, that was about $500 per month. As stated earlier, the City has no vacant land on which to construct new residential rental units, but there are some redevelopment possibilities in areas that would surely benefit from redevelopment. Currently, along Kenzie Terrace, there are several pieces of property that are being acquired by the City's HRA for • redevelopment. The City has received some inquiries from developers interested in expanding senior housing units. In addition to other rental housing available in St. Anthony, Walker on Kenzie and Autumn Woods are two senior housing complexes that provide 246 rental units for the senior residents in St. Anthony. In addition to providing developers with financial assistance for a qualifying project, the City staff can provide residents with assistance in locating and obtaining information about rental assistance programs. When programs are announced or the staff receives updated information, this is also communicated to the residents through the community's newsletter. These programs include: • Section 8 voucher/certificate program. • Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program. • Low and Moderate Income Rental Program. • Home Rental Rehabilitation Program. • Hennepin County Rental Rehabilitation Program. • • Page 9 CONCLUSION "Since housing is the principal physical element of the City of St. Anthony, its proper maintenance and continued development is of great importance. At this point in the development of the City, few opportunities remain for significant new housing growth. Housing goals and policies at this stage are aimed chiefly at maintaining the high quality of housing and the pleasant neighborhood environment which has been established in St. Anthony. However, recognition is also given to the need for the City to strive to accommodate its fair share of the Region's demand for housing affordable by families of limited means", page 31 of the City's Comprehensive Plan, 1979. The City is and has always been committed to maintaining and enhancing its residential • development. The City through its participation in the Livable Communities Act and commitment to its housing goals has prepared this housing plan. This document discusses three major ways by which many activities committed to varied housing opportunities can be accomplished. 1.) St. Anthony will provide financial support through its HRA and access to other funding sources to qualifying residential redevelopment projects that complement the City's LCA goals. 2.) St. Anthony will continue to be flexible in decisions regarding local zoning and land use controls during the City's approval process; and, review the effectiveness and possibly revise these local controls to facilitate the City's housing action plan. 3.) City staff will continue to assist residents with requests for information on purchasing, owning, improving, or renting affordable homes. •