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13 <br /> 2. Define special needs populations as seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, <br /> individuals or families experiencing homelessness, and victims of domestic <br /> violence. The special needs score will be prorated based on the number of <br /> units dedicated to serving residents with special needs. <br /> 3. Define residency as households currently residing or working in Orange County. <br /> Clarify reporting to include marketing and recruitment efforts to Orange County <br /> residents and reporting requirements once the project is completed. <br /> 4. Eliminate the ability to pay property taxes for non-profit agencies as a scoring <br /> criterion since most affordable rental property is owned by a non-profit and <br /> exempt from property tax. <br /> 5. Eliminate the ability to repay bond funds as a scoring criterion for non-profit <br /> agencies since the focus of bond funds should be to serve lower income <br /> households. <br /> Commissioner Price asked if there was any discussion about increasing the number of <br /> applicants for the bond funds, and whether this should be opened up to smaller developers. <br /> Sherrill Hampton, Housing, Human Rights and Community Development Director, said <br /> staff is looking at how to build the capacity of the non-profits, so that they can take on more. <br /> She said there may be opportunities to bring in a national non-profit to assist and she said staff <br /> is encouraging private developers to look at what the County is offering, especially County- <br /> owned parcels. She said she hopes to update the BOCC at a later date. <br /> Commissioner Rich referred to the idea of tracking new construction versus existing <br /> construction, and asked if the decision-making process, for fund allocation to these two types <br /> of construction, could be clarified. <br /> Travis Myren said staff is not recommending setting aside any bond money for <br /> preservation of existing stock, but rather looking at the projects independently, and then <br /> bringing them to the Board for a discussion about the top priorities that the BOCC is seeking to <br /> accomplish. <br /> Commissioner Rich said she had concerns about this, and she is glad that staff is not <br /> doing this. She said there are advantages and disadvantages to both new construction and <br /> preservation, and she wants to stretch the dollars as far as possible <br /> PUBLIC COMMENT: <br /> None <br /> Commissioner Jacobs said his first suggestion is that if the BOCC wants to better <br /> define the criteria, he is unsure that spending 1/3 of the points on project feasibility is a good <br /> idea. He said a lot of this is pro forma, and should be expected of any solid application. <br /> Commissioner Jacobs said workforce housing is not really being addressed, and he <br /> would like to do a better job of capturing this population. He said there is a lot of need, but it is <br /> hard to determine who is most needy, other than simply looking at income. He said he spoke <br /> with Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools' (CHCCS) Superintendent Pam Baldwin, who was <br /> involved in a project in Asheville, where teacher housing was built on school property. He said <br /> he would like to consider these types of creative ideas. <br /> Commissioner Jacobs said there is almost nothing in this discussion about the private <br /> sector developers, and he said staff could work with the local chambers, businesses, etc. <br /> Commissioner Marcoplos said the developer experience category goes against private <br /> sector participation, and this is not in the County's best interest. He said the County should <br /> seek innovation. <br />