HomeMy WebLinkAboutRA Minutes 1999-09-20SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 9/20/99 Page 1
IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1999 AT
7:30 PM
Regular Meeting: Present: Albert J. Boro, Chairman
San Rafael Redevelopment Agency: Paul M. Cohen, Member
Cyr N. Miller, Member
Gary O. Phillips, Member
Absent: Barbara Heller, Member
Also Present: Rod Gould, Executive Director
Gary T. Ragghianti, Agency Attorney
Gus Guinan, Assistant Agency Attorney
Jeanne M. Leoncini, Agency Secretary
ORAL COMMUNICATIONS OF AN URGENCY NATURE: 7:35
PM
None.
CONSENT CALENDAR:
Member Phillips moved and Member Miller seconded, to approve the following
Consent Calendar items:
ITEM RECOMMENDED ACTION
1. Approval of Minutes of Regular Meeting of Tuesday, Minutes approved as
September 7, 1999 (AS) submitted.
2. Unapproved Minutes of Citizens Advisory Committee Accepted report.
Meeting of Thursday, September 2, 1999 (RA)
- File R-140 IVB
AYES: MEMBERS: Cohen, Miller, Phillips & Chairman Boro
NOES: MEMBERS: None
ABSENT: MEMBERS: Heller
AGENCY CONSIDERATION:
3. RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ALLOCATION OF $250,000 PER YEAR FROM THE HOUSING
SET ASIDE BUDGET FOR THE PROPOSED CANAL AFFORDABLE, SAFE, AND HEALTHY
HOUSING ("C.A.S.H.") PROGRAM (RA)
- File R-420 x R-173 X (SRCC) 13-1 x 13-16 x 218 x 240
Senior Development Specialist Stephanie Smith-Lovette explained the goal of
the C.A.S.H. Program was to provide rehabilitation funds in exchange for
rent restrictions. She noted the City and the Redevelopment Agency have a
variety of initiatives in the Canal, coordinated under the auspices of the
Canal Development Team, which include Code Enforcement and Housing
Standards coordinated by Community Development; Crime Prevention and
Enforcement coordinated by the Police Department; and Disaster Preparedness
and Life Safety Skills Training in the Canal by the Fire Department. She
noted the Redevelopment Agency was responsible for physical improvements to
the neighborhood, and preservation of affordable housing.
Ms. Smith-Lovette stated everyone was concerned with increasing rents in
the Canal, as well as decreasing property standards, and the Agency was
working with BRIDGE Housing to acquire, manage, and rehabilitate properties
in the Canal, and keep the rents affordable. She reported this program was
slow going, noting that due to the increase in rents in the Canal, the
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property owners were not willing to sell. However, she stated BRIDGE
Housing was committed to continuing the program, noting they had several
offers out, and were just waiting for one of them to be accepted.
Ms. Smith-Lovette explained staff was now proposing a new set of programs
to address issues in the Canal, programs in which the Agency would work
with property owners who wanted to keep their properties. Pointing out
that these new programs had been developed in a joint effort with Community
Development and Community Policing, she thanked Police Sergeant Jim Kelly
for all his work and the team leadership he provided in developing these
programs. She stated Sergeant Kelly had made some terrific contacts in the
neighborhood, and done a lot of research, and she believed staff would not
have been able to bring these programs to the Agency Members this quickly
without him. She noted staff had also had help from the Agency's Housing
Consultant, the Housing Authority, and two members of the Citizens Advisory
Committee.
Ms. Smith-Lovette stated the components of the Canal Housing Program were
owner education, certification, and low interest loans. She explained the
owner education program would be done by the Police and Fire Departments,
as well as BRIDGE Housing and the mediation services the Agency funds,
noting they would be providing seminars and property management techniques
for the property owners in the Canal. Ms. Smith-Lovette reported Code
Enforcement Officer Larry Salvisberg and Sergeant Kelly have found, in
working with some of the property owners in the Canal, that they lack a
sophistication in terms of property management, which has led to
overcrowding and other public safety issues, and staff is hoping to provide
education concerning those issues.
Ms. Smith-Lovette reported the second program was a voluntary certification
program, which she noted was a little tough to sell. She stated this was a
very effective program in an area where rents are low and vacancies are
high; however, unfortunately, that was not the problem in the Canal. She
noted this program also worked very well in an area that has gotten a bad
reputation, and where property owners have a problem getting tenants
because people are concerned about property standards, and she explained
this certification would show the property owner does care about the
property, and is willing to keep it up.
Ms. Smith-Lovette stated staff believed this program would work in the
Canal if it could be combined with other programs and benefits for the
property owners; therefore, the Redevelopment Agency would be working with
other public and private agencies to provide benefits to certified owners.
She noted the certification process would include physical inspection;
agreeing to keep the units in proper order; enforcing a model lease, which
basically addresses overcrowding issues; having an on-site manager for any
building over ten units; an annual resident meeting; and annual re-
inspection.
Ms. Smith-Lovette stated funding was already in the budget to fund the
first two programs, and staff was now before the Agency Members to request
funding for the C.A.S.H. Program, which she explained was an incentive for
affordability covenants. The hope was to provide housing for very low-
income people, at 50% of the County Median Income, with a goal of 50% of
the units in any rehabilitated building the Agency puts money into.
Financing would be a twenty-year affordability covenant at 4.00% simple
interest, deferred for twenty -years, and there would be an ability to pre-
pay, although there would be a pre -payment penalty. In addition, this
program would have the same annual certification requirements as the
existing BMR (Below Market Rate) Program.
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As an example of the affordability, Ms. Smith-Lovette noted a 2 -bedroom
unit would rent for $977 to $1050, compared to current rents in the Canal
of approximately $1,200 to $1,400 for a 2 bedroom apartment. She explained
staff would be working with property owners who either are not yet charging
those rents, or are willing to reduce their rents. Ms. Smith-Lovette
stated there would be an inspection of the units, and then the Agency's
funds could be used to correct Code deficiencies, take
public safety security measures, improve the units, improve the common
areas, and do exterior improvements. She stated the goal of the
Redevelopment Agency has always been to help the tenants, as well as help
the neighborhoods, by doing exterior improvements.
Ms. Smith-Lovette stated this program was going to be a very hard sell,
noting some of the property owners had stated they were not interested in
getting involved with the government, as they did not want the Agency's
money, and they did not want to reduce their rents. Therefore, staff was
suggesting a pilot program with a willing property owner, whose units are
in fairly good shape and not overcrowded. She stated staff would return to
the Agency sometime between January and March, with the initial building
and first loan.
Member Cohen noted the recommendation was to allocate $250,000, and asked,
if all that money was placed, how many units would be impacted? Economic
Development Director Nancy Mackle stated that would depend on how bad a
shape the property was in, noting the Agency could easily spend $20,000 per
unit for a full-blown rehabilitation; therefore, staff was planning on
doing one building per year, getting a percentage of the units as
affordable. Ms. Smith-Lovette pointed out staff was recommending that for
the pilot program the Agency look for a building that is not in terrible
shape, and a building that is not currently under Code Enforcement action.
Member Cohen asked if staff had one or two buildings in mind, and if they
could give the Agency Members a sense of how many units might be subject to
the rent restriction? Ms. Mackle stated that rather than an eighty or one
hundred unit building, staff would first look for small apartment buildings
of twenty or thirty units, and then make half the units affordable through
this program. She stated the Agency and the property owner would have to
"pencil -out" how much they were rolling their rents back, or whether they
were already below what the Agency's goal for rents would be, and then the
Agency would have to determine for how long a period of time it wished to
buy that subsidy. She stated all that would have to be calculated, as
would the cost of the rehab. Ms. Mackle noted this was still a program in
concept, and each building would be brought back before the Agency Members
for final approval. Mr. Cohen asked if staff would be returning to the
Agency with specific proposals, reporting on how many units the Agency
would be "buying" to maintain affordability, the cost, and the period of
time? Ms. Mackle stated every project would come back before the Agency,
and staff would show exactly what the Agency would be getting for its
money, with such information as how many affordable units the Agency would
get, the period of time, the nature of the rehab, what the rents had been,
and what the rents will be.
Member Cohen felt this was an interesting concept; however, he noted this
program would have to be monitored to see whether or not it was effective
in terms of the use of funds, which would be determined by the number of
units the Agency is keeping at this level of affordability, and whether
there is another way to use the money that would achieve the same end.
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Chairman Boro referred to pre -payments, asking if someone were to pre -pay
their loan, would the twenty-year low rent continue? Ms. Mackle stated it
would not, explaining that was why there would be a pre -payment penalty.
She acknowledged the terms would be fairly harsh; therefore, the
participants would likely be those who intended to keep their properties
for a long time, and those who did plan to sell their properties probably
would not go for it.
Member Miller stated he was particularly pleased with this program, because
the Agency was taking yet another approach. He noted the Agency continues
to use all the good work of Code Enforcement and Community Policing in
wrapping everything together, pointing out that was a major effort for the
Agency. He stated we were in an era of small government, and what the
Agency was addressing was a very serious, systemic problem, likely the
greatest problem being faced in the Canal neighborhood. Mr. Miller
believed the Agency was going about this in the best way it possibly could,
to maximize what it has, and assist where it can, and commended the Agency
for this program. In tallying the amount of overall money the Agency is
putting toward affordable housing for renters, he pointed out the C.A.S.H.
Program would be $250,000, BRIDGE Housing was another $250,000, CDBG
(Community Development Block Grant) was approximately $550,000, and all the
efforts of the Code Enforcement Department would be approximately $200,000.
He stated he appreciated all the Agency was doing, as did the residents in
the Canal area.
Member Miller moved and Member Cohen seconded, to adopt the Resolution.
RESOLUTION NO. 99-29 - RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE ALLOCATION OF
$250,000 ANNUALLY FROM THE HOUSING SET ASIDE BUDGET
FOR THE PROPOSED CANAL AFFORDABLE, SAFE AND HEALTHY
HOUSING ("C.A.S.H.") PROGRAM.
AYES: MEMBERS: Cohen, Miller, Phillips & Chairman Boro
NOES: MEMBERS: None
ABSENT: MEMBERS: Heller
4. AGENCY MEMBER REPORTS:
a. CANAL MERCADO - File R-140 #8 x (SRCC) 251
Economic Development Director Nancy Mackle reminded the Agency
Members that the Canal Mercado, which is held on Tuesday evenings,
would be ending this month, and urged everyone to try to attend.
There being no further business to come before the Redevelopment Agency, the
meeting was adjourned at 8:10 PM.
JEANNE M. LEONCINI, Agency Secretary
SRRA MINUTES (Regular) 9/20/99 Page 4