Agenda - 02-04-2014 - 6a - Laserfiche WebLink

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4 1 He said one of these projects is a 233 unit development that will provide, for the first 2 time, payment in lieu of developing affordable housing. He said the other project is a planned 3 affordable townhome development in the Waterstone Community. 4 5 Mayor Chilton arrived at 7:19pm. 6 7 Alderman Lavelle asked Tara Fikes if it was possible to identify the projects in the 8 clearinghouse network that accept section 8 vouchers. 9 Council Member Harrison said one of the mid-range strategies identified by the 10 affordable housing committee was land banking for future affordable housing units. He said 11 one struggle is that land is expensive in the southern part of the County. He said he was at a 12 recent meeting of the planning committee for the North Carolina League of Municipalities 13 (NCLM), regarding land banking, where it was pointed out that counties have a key role in 14 identifying foreclosed properties. He said his understanding is that the Town is developing a 15 good working relationship with the County appraiser. He said more help is always better in the 16 effort at land banking. 17 Alderman Gist said she wanted to make sure the other boards were aware of a negative 18 experience the Town of Carrboro had with using the low income tax credit for affordable 19 housing. She said the Town approved a developer using these credits instead of the Home 20 Trust, and it has now come back to bite them. She said the HOA fees are going up beyond 21 what the owners can afford, and there is no backup organization like there would be with the 22 Home Trust. She said there are also issues with the maintenance of the properties, since the 23 residents own them. 24 Council Member Ward asked if anything was already in place to institutionalize quarterly 25 or regular meetings of the various municipal and county efforts. He said is important to make 26 sure efforts are not being done in individual silos, and that opportunities are taken to identify 27 successful ways to work together. 28 Tara Fikes said there is currently no structure for that type of collaboration; however it is 29 obvious that there is a need for this. She said there is a need to develop a coordinated 30 affordable housing plan in 2014, and said staff recognizes that there is an opportunity for 31 sharing. 32 Commissioner Dorosin said that much of the current process is about creating new 33 affordable housing. He does not feel that enough attention is paid to the support of existing 34 affordable housing owners in the community. He referred to the earlier suggestion regarding 35 foreclosed properties, and said he is wary of preying on people who are going through 36 foreclosures. 37 He would like to see efforts aimed at supporting existing homeowners, whether through 38 property tax subsidy, credit, or some other type of support. He feels that more direct subsidy 39 programs should be considered. He suggested the creation of a section 8 program that could 40 combine vouchers or incentive programs. He said this is not to take away from the emphasis 41 on creating new affordable housing, but the issue needs to be looked at from both ends. 42 Council Member Harrison said one of Jackson Center's major goals is the protection of 43 existing, long time home owners. 44 Commissioner Pelissier said everyone has an interest in affordable housing. She 45 suggested the pursuit of something modeled after the Partnership to End Homelessness group. 46 She said this could include the municipalities, the County, and people from the non-profit 47 sector. She said it seems that every one is creating a board to address affordable housing, but 48 this is not the best way to go forward. She suggested that the managers get together to create 49 a model for all of the boards to work together.