Minutes 03-12-2013 - Laserfiche WebLink

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z 'ommunity Home Trust - Housing Bond Program- Greenbridge Tara Fikes, Housing/CD Director, said there is a letter in the Commissioners' packet, dated Dec. 18th from Robert Dowling of the Community Home Trust (CHT). She noted that this is one of two letters asking that a portion of the county bond funds be set aside for anticipated repairs at the Greenbridge Condominiums in Chapel Hill. She said that this property was one of the inclusionary developments and has 15 condos that were sold to low income households. It was later discovered that the HVAC systems installed there are problematic, no longer under warranty, and very costly to replace. She said that the thought is that if some repairs can be done, the units may last longer. She referred to a letter from Attorney David Brooks, explaining what happens in the event of foreclosure and its impact on the warranties. She said that it has been requested that$75,000 be set aside for these anticipated repairs Commissioner Rich asked if these units will be replaced with longer lasting units that are not as costly to repair. Commissioner Gordon arrived at 6:08 PM . CHT Executive Director Robert Dowling said that the problem is that the units are no longer being made and when some units at Greenbridge broke down, someone cannibalized the parts from the unsold units to fix them. This meant that when those units were sold, the cannibalized units had to be replaced with a compatible system. He said that compatible replacements will be more reliable, but not as efficient. Chair Jacobs asked how much is being spent per existing units to fix the systems and how many units $75,000 will cover. Robert Dowling said 15 units will be fixed. He said new systems costs around $11,000/unit now but will likely cost more in the future when replacement is needed. He said the $75,000 is being requested with the thought that it will provide a $5,000 down payment toward the future cost of a new unit for each of those 15 units. Chair Jacobs asked if this will proactively replace all 15 or just the ones not functioning. Robert said none will be replaced until necessary. Tara Fikes said the $75,000 will be used for repairs to extend the life of the units. Arthur Sprinczeles questioned how repairs can be made if parts are not available. Robert Dowling said it is complicated. He explained that the sensors can be replaced and this had been done in several instances over the winter. He said that the vision was that the $5000/unit x 15 units will be put into a stewardship fund, and when a unit breaks, the $5000 can be put toward a new unit. Commissioner McKee asked if there is any way to disassociate the individual units from the linked system as they break, replacing them with new individual units. Robert Dowling said this can be looked into. Frank Clifton said the units were not selected by the county. The developer put "green" units into the project and the county and town had no role in selection of this. He said this situation should be considered in future discussions about housing inventory. Commissioner McKee clarified that he is not criticizing any county actions.