09/06/2012 EDAC Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Search

1 APPROVED CITY OF LINO LAKES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES DATE: September 6, 2012 MEMBERS PRESENT: J. Stranik, J. Schwartz, B. Combs, L. Masonik, M. Kassner, L. Thor, D. Johnson, C. Wagner MEMBERS ABSENT: B. Terrick OTHERS PRESENT: M. Divine APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of August 2, 2012 were approved. DEVELOPMENT PROPOSALS Dominium: Ms. Divine reviewed the presentation that Dominium made to the City Council. Dominium is a national developer of affordable and market rate apartments and townhomes. They own and manage the Lakewood Apartments in Lino Lakes. They would like to build 45-50 affordable rental townhomes in the Legacy development. Mr. Stranik asked about Section 8. Ms. Schwartz said Section 8 is usually run on a county basis, getting money from the state. It’s for people who are less than the affordable group that would go into affordable housing. Usually the entire complex is Section 8, and usually 3-4 bedroom units. A lot of developers like it because it’s 100% occupancy. The rent is subsidized. You don’t have to be on welfare to get it. It’s based on the amount of income and dependents you have. Affordable housing starts at 50% of the median income. Mr. Thor questions whether a developer getting tax credits must keep a certain percent of the project available for Section 8. Ms. Divine said she will clarify whether this project could be Section 8. Ms. Divine said that the county can sell the Legacy property to an affordable housing developer for below market rate. This could be an advantage to get the property developing again. The only other times the county can do that is to remove blight and for public purposes, such as parks. Mr. Masonik asked if the city has talked to other developers about this. Ms. Divine said the city has talked to many major housing developers but has not been able to attract a market rate project to date. The city council wants to continue to discuss whether this project is what they want to see. This plan would take approximately 3 acres of the 22 remaining. Mr. Combs asked if this project could affect how the rest of the land would develop and what was intended to be there. Ms. Divine has asked developers about the effect of affordable/rental, how much is too much, but got a range of responses. What was intended to be there was always high density. A townhome project much like what Dominium is proposing was ready to go in before the recession, only it was market rate for sale housing. Mr. Combs said this isn’t that far off. Mr. Stranik said the shift in society is more toward rental. Mr. Combs said the seminar they attended said this is the exact