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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023.06.20 HCMMINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE HOUSING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION JUNE 20, 2023 CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission was called to order by Chair Enger at 7:00 p.m. MEETINGATTENDEES Chair Gretchen Enger Vice Chair Michael Donnelly —Excused Commissioner Lori Best-Deyoe — Excused Commissioner Laura Freund Commissioner Jerry Gayflor Commissioner Elizabeth Riel Commissioner Florence Williams City Staff present: Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson and City Council Liaison Kris Lawrence - Anderson. Also present: Nahid, Claudia, Huldah Hiltsley, Matt Branch, Julie B WELCOMEAND INTRODUCTION The Commissioners, Staff, and Council introduced themselves. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted the Commission is now full and there has been a Chair and Vice Chair elected. APPROVAL OFAGENDA There was a motion by Commissioner Freund and seconded by Commissioner Gayflor to approve the agenda as submitted. The motion passed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES There was a motion by Commissioner Riel and seconded by Commissioner Gayflor to approve the minutes for the April 18, 2023 and May 16, 2023 Housing Commission meetings. The motion passed. NEW NEIGHBOR PROGRAM Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted the Program was not completed in previous years, and he also pulled new numbers to add to the Program. He showed a map with different neighborhoods of Brooklyn Center. 120 residences were not welcomed in previous years, and there are 245 new residences that also need to be welcomed. NEWNEIGHBOR PROGRAM —HOUSING COMMISSIONERS TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK ON PACKETS 6/20/23 -1- Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson asked for feedback from the Commissioners. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson noted the ice cream shop and chicken restaurant are opening soon. Those could be highlighted in the packets. There is also a new food market by the liquor store. Commissioner Freund pointed out a school district map had some outdated language, including the name Earle Brown Heritage Center. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated the district lines were recently redrawn for voting. Chair Enger asked for Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson to read off everything currently in the packet. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the packet includes a new neighbor welcome letter, which needs an update, There is a quick reference guide. Chair Enger stated there is a new reference guide available online. Chair Enger noted it could be beneficial to provide a link rather than an information sheet because the Councilmembers may change. Chair Enger asked what the social media postcard is. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated it has a QR code on it, but he didn't have a copy of it either. Chair Enger pointed out the social media card has an outdated Crime Prevention Specialist on it. Commissioner Riel stated her biggest pet peeve is parking on the streets. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the packet includes an ordinance post card and parks and trail map. Chair Enger stated the names of some buildings have changed, and the change should be reflected on the parks and trail map. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated Three Rivers Park District has their own maps that they could order from their website. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted there is a school district map. Commissioner Freund pointed out a school district map had some outdated language, including the name Earle Brown Heritage Center. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated there is a separate map for school district and voting districts. He made note of changes needed. Chair Enger asked if it makes sense to list the schools in the district on the school district map. Commissioner Gayflor and City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson agreed it would be helpful. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated there is a pamphlet on good neighbors. Updates are needed due to code changes and website updates. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted there is information on hiring a contractor, and updates to the website are needed. There is information on home improvements, but there are changes needed to reflect new fence regulations. 6/20/23 -2- Commissioner Williams stated the proper name of the car wash mentioned on the Shingle Creek Crossing info sheet is Pop's Car Wash. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson made a note to change the name of the car wash. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the programs postcard doesn't need any updates unless commissioners had other input. It was last updated one year ago, and there haven't been any changes. Chair Enger suggested they add the updated review date to the postcard. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted there is both a post card and a pamphlet that explains when and where people can drop off items for disposal. Both are available online. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated he needs to reach out to the entity that runs the resource fair for confirmation of information. Chair Enger stated she would appreciate more information on the paper. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated there is a form about volunteering for the Charter Commission. Chair Enger noted there is another application form. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson explained the Charter Commission oversees the Charter but other Commissions are advisory to the Council. There needs to be more information added to the Commission application form. Commissioner Williams stated Jamrnin Wings is closed. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated their plan is to make renovations and reopen. There is also a plan to add a second floor. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the voter registration form is not something they can change as it is a State form. The Code Red information sheet doesn't need any updates. Chair Enger asked if the packet needs the sticker and the information sheet. Commissioner Williams stated it would be helpful to keep both because folks that aren't as computer -literate might benefit from the packet of information. Commissioner Gayflor agreed the packet should include both items. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the Implementation Committee application is no longer needed. There is then a page on crime prevention tips that needs updated contact information. Chair Enger asked if there will be another coupon book. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated one needs to be removed as the store is no longer open. He pointed out there are some rules the Housing Commission previously set up regarding what types of coupons can be included in the packet. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson suggested the City post a request for coupons and vendors on social media that could be included in the packet. Chair Enger asked how often the coupons are used. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated he was unsure. Commissioner Gayflor asked if information on CAPI's extension should be added to the packet. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the project has yet to be approved by Council. 6/20/23 -3- City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson explained CAPI is a nonprofit organization that stands for The Center for Asian and Pacific Islanders. She pointed out they serve all cultures and have a variety of services. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted the packet mostly highlights food, shops, and recreation. It should be added to the social services list, however. Chair Enger asked if there should be City newsletters included in the packet. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated that information used to be included, but the information quickly became outdated because the newsletter is quarterly. Chair Enger asked if information on Night to Unite should be included. There are also new businesses in the City. She asked if information on business licensing should be included. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated Brooklyn Center doesn't do business licensing. Commissioner Williams suggested there be information on rental licenses. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson noted there is a pamphlet that includes some information on rental licenses. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson suggested the quick reference guide include information on how to access the free subscription to the local newspaper. Chair Enger confirmed that information is already included. Commissioner Williams stated the voting registration form doesn't include information on how someone with a criminal history can vote. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated that is a State form that they cannot change. However, the information could be added to the voting district map. Commissioner Williams stated the KMOJ radio station provides a lot of information on resources available to Brooklyn Center folks. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the radio station could be included on the form that mentions other broadcast resources. NEW NEIGHBOR PROGRAM— 41212023-21112023 (245 NEWNEIGHBOR& NEWNEIGHBOR PROGRAM— 512112021-313112022 (120 NEWNEIGHORS NEW NEIGHBOR PROGRAM — SELECT DELIVER YDATES Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson asked if the Commission wants to discuss dates for delivery. In the past, the Chair would send out a doodle poll to get availability from Commissioners for delivery dates. . Chair Enger asked if August would be appropriate for deliveries. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated it will take a while to update all of the documents and assemble the packets. They could discuss dates at the July meeting instead. Commissioner Williams asked if they each get to choose which area they can deliver to. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated it is up to the Commission. He added the Commission can also decide if they want to deliver as individuals or in pairs. He pointed out some neighborhoods are denser due to undelivered packets from previous years. 6/20/23 -4 Commissioner Williams stated it would make sense for each Commissioner to deliver to their respective districts. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated it is the decision of the Commission. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson suggested the Commission discuss which days of the week work the best for most Commissioners. Weekends can be sacred to some people. Wednesdays is a common evening for folks to be at religious functions. PRESENTATION ONNEW CONSTR UCTION MUL TI FAMIL Y LICENSE AND REPEAT TYPE 4 LICENSE Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson introduced the item. He stated there has been a rental licensing program since the 1970s. Mr. Anderson explained system was last modified in 2010, and it is intended to promote quality assurance. Additionally, it is meant to reward landlords for quality rental services and to provide extra attention to lower -performing rentals. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson explained there is a four -tier structure of licensing in Brooklyn Center. A license is required when a unit is not owner -occupied. After a license is granted, there is a required inspection. The tiered structure is performance -based, and each tier has different requirements. A license cannot move up to another tier unless they meet all of the current tier's requirements, have no violations, and successfully complete an inspection in a particular timeline. Mr. Anderson noted validated police calls are an example of what can be used to count violations. Mr. Anderson stated the ordinance covers length of license, application, revocation, definition of a valid police call, and tenant protection ordinance. Mr. Anderson stated after the inspection, Staff reviews police service calls. He showed a list of valid calls. Different amounts of validated police calls count against license levels in different ways. The validated police calls haven't impacted properties in a while, mostly because those with several validated police calls are already at the 6-month license level. Commissioner Williams stated the rule impacts the tenant and not the landlord. Mr. Anderson stated it impacts both parties. Commissioner Williams stated the landlord is more likely to evict someone if they are causing multiple police calls. Domestic violence shouldn't be a reason for an eviction. Mr. Anderson stated domestic violence isn't a valid call. Commissioner Williams asked what nuisance calls are. Mr. Anderson stated it is not just a noise complaint. Instead, it is related to more serious offenses such as drugs. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated each license level correlates with a different level of crime- fiee housing requirements. He showed a slide with information on the various licensure tiers. If the property owner doesn't fulfill the requirements, then they are not eligible to move up to a higher license tier. The license repeats as a six-month license if the crime -free housing requirements are not met or if there are a high number of qualified police calls. 6/20/23 -5- Mr. Anderson showed a slide with the distribution of the various license types. The lowest tier is only eight percent of the units in Brooklyn Center. The tiers do not reflect the size of the residence. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson showed some of the numbers Council used to make changes in 2018. At that time, 44 percent of type four rentals were repeats. 38 percent of the repeats were due to violations. In 2022, there were 76 repeats, 60 percent of which were only due to failing to meet requirements. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated of the type four licenses issued in the 2015-2018 period, 86 percent of them improved from the previous inspection. Since 2018, that percentage has increased. The percentage is lower for 2023, but it is early in the year and Staff has been stricter on rental licensing lately. Mr. Anderson noted the Commission has also been asked to consider new construction licensure. The ordinance is written somewhat weirdly, and the current City Attorney agrees. As it stands, new construction houses can't get higher than a tier one license. Mr. Anderson stated Sonder House has gotten a lot of attention. There are 127 units, and their license expired May 31, 2023. At that time, there were zero violations. They have recently paid the renewal fee. A full inspection was conducted on April 26, 2023 and 168 property maintenance code violations. A majority of the units had few or no violations, and the common areas were well - maintained. Several units had multiple property code violations, which resulted in the large total number. A follow-up inspection is scheduled. Mr. Anderson explained Sonder Point, a senior living facility, hasn't had their initial inspection. The Sanctuary is also a senior living facility. They are in the renewal process. Maranatha is an older rental, and they have done well with inspections over the years. Mr. Anderson noted the City Attorney reviewed some licensure options. The first suggestion was new developments can only qualify for a Type 3 license and require an action plan. This would require the fewest number of changes to the existing City Code and the Rental License Category Criteria Policy. As it stands, new licenses start at Type 2. Type 3 requires an action plan, so this requirement would automatically be in place. The language of the City's form Rental License Plan would have to be tweaked because it assumes that the property has been placed in the Type 3 category for known nuisances and calls. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the City Attorney had a response to the second option, which was that a new license could quality for a Type 2 license, but it will be reviewed at the one-year mark; if their license changes based on code violations or validated nuisance police calls for service, it would be change to that new license type. This would require a few more additions and changes to the City Code. If the goal is a one-year review, rather than saying that a new license qualifies for Type 2, the City Attorney recommends a one-year provisional/probationary license that will be reviewed at one year, and at that time, placed in the proper category. It may be confusing for a licensee if they think they have a two-year Type 2 license, with everything that comes with that, but it's not really a two-year license. It seems like it would be cleaner to just say it's a one-year license. 6/20/23 -6- Commissioner Williams stated the language is targeting low-income and people of color. Mr. Anderson stated the suggestions were created by the Housing Commission and he was just relaying the response from the City Attorney. Commissioner Williams noted her surprise that the Housing Commission would offer such ideas. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated the goal of the Council is for Brooklyn Center to have high -quality, safe housing. They would hope there are no Type 4 licenses as that shows the housing is low quality and a lot of Staff time is used. The rules target management of the building to provide the best housing to renters. Commissioner Williams agreed she wants the housing options to be well -maintained. However, the police calls for service does not reflect the maintenance of the building. Mr. Anderson stated the police calls for service doesn't have much of an impact on licenses. Commissioner Williams stated the nuisances and the nuances from cops jeopardized the tenants. The Housing Commission is meant to protect the tenants. The wording seems to target the tenants rather than the renters. Commissioner Williams added tenants are going to be able to understand the wording. Chair Enger stated the language on the slides are just responses from the City Attorney. The City Council asked the Housing Commission to come up with some options to alter the licensure process for new rentals. Commissioner Williams asked why the Housing Commission was tasked with creating other options. The new rentals coming into the City are affordable units. Chair Enger stated there isn't a rule in place for how to handle new rentals, and the Council asked for the Housing Commission to help develop a policy on how to address new rentals in the licensure process. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated Sonder House is brand new, and the Council was extremely excited about the opportunity for additional affordable housing. However, there have been several issues at Sonder House such as shootings in the parking lot. The Council discussed the issue and thought that the automatic two-year license for new builds may need to be readdressed. Commissioner Williams stated the Council is assuming that new affordable housing will be problematic. Sonder House is near the public transportation hub which likely contributes to the crime issues. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated the issues with Sonder House showed the Council that there isn't a method to address the issues because it was treated as an existing rental rather than a new rental. The hope is to be proactive and help landlords fix issues earlier on. Commissioner Williams asked if long-term rentals have had similar issues to Sonder House. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated the long-term rentals that are consistently a Type 4 license have similar issues. 6/20/23 -7- Commissioner Williams noted the issue is not with the code enforcement but with the tenants themselves. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated that is not necessarily true. Security cameras and security protocols, which are related to code enforcements, are an effort to mitigate crime. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson added the third option was offering a six-month licensure and requiring a mitigation plan with police calls for service as part of the review. As discussed, six months seems like a pretty short period of time for the initial license period and may not necessarily be representative of a longer period of time. With the mitigation plan requirement, this would effectively be a Type 4 provisional license from the outset and would be particularly restrictive for potential landlords. Of the three options, this is the only one that pose some concerns with regard to the legal impact and a potential claim that it is too restrictive. Commissioner Williams stated the Council is looking for a way to violate new rentals. Chair Enger asked what the next step is. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the Housing Commission can make a recommendation for him to bring to Council, be it one of the three presented options or a new option. Commissioner Gayflor stated he prefers the option of a one-year license. If there are any issues, then the City could punish them. Mr. Anderson stated it is unlikely that a rental property would score low enough to result in a lower license. The property would likely obtain a three-year license at the one-year mark. Commissioner Williams asked why they don't keep the two-year license for new rentals. Mr. Anderson stated that is up to the Housing Commission. Mr. Anderson stated he doesn't see how the second option would be implemented. Commissioner Williams pointed out the second option still has an emphasis on criminal calls. Chair Enger stated the code violation is the first consideration then police calls for service can be considered. Commissioner Williams stated the language is still putting pressure on the tenants. She stated she would like to see the statistics on rentals that didn't obtain licensure due to police calls. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated Sonder House's aforementioned 168 violations were due to maintenance code issues. Commissioner Williams stated the majority of the units had few or no property code violations, and the common areas were well maintained during the inspection. Several units had multiple property code violations, which caused a large number of property code violations. City Staff informed property management about their willingness to work with Sonder House on an event to engage residents. That means the City's main concern is still the residents. Mr. Anderson stated the event was in response to some tenant's comments to the City regarding poor management practices. For example, tenants have gotten a late rent notice when the rent had been paid or issues with checks. He added he doesn't even have police calls data. 6/20/23 -8- Commissioner Williams stated the building is new, so she doesn't buy the 168 property maintenance code violations. Mr. Anderson stated the building is two years old, and only a few units had multiple property code violations, which caused a large number of property code violations. Commissioner Williams added the policy change would be enacted right before a bunch of affordable housing is supposed to go into Brooklyn Center. Mr. Anderson stated the next three projects are Wangstad for affordable housing and two buildings at the Opportunity Site, the first being around 300 market -rate units and the second also being market -rate units. Chair Enger asked what the next steps are. Mr. Anderson explained the Commission could make a recommendation on the policy that the City Attorney would write up. From there, it would be recommended to the Council. Chair Enger stated the third option of the six-month license doesn't make sense because there wouldn't be much to review at that time. Commissioner Gayflor stated he prefers the second option of a two-year license with a review at the one-year mark. Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson pointed out Staffs recommendation is to set a new license for one- year, in line with option one. The two-year option with a one-year review, Staff would be relying on the cooperation of the landlord rather than requiring an inspection in order for a property owner to get a new license. At the same time, landlords would prefer the two-year license portion of that option. The Commission can also choose another option to recommend. Commissioner Williams noted Staff has already shared which option they want. Chair Enger stated Staff works with licensing daily, so they have insight into what would work best. Commissioner Williams stated making Staff s jobs easier isn't the point of a policy. Commissioner Gayflor stated he prefers option one after hearing more. Commissioner Freund stated she doesn't feel educated enough on the topic. Commissioner Riel noted her agreement. Chair Enger asked what information they would like to feel more educated. Commissioner Freund explained she would like to understand the impetus of the direction from Staff. She asked if it was just Sonder House. Chair Enger stated Council has asked for a policy to address licensure for new construction rentals. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson added the Council wanted to be proactive with the thousand plus units coming into the City in the next couple of years and have a specific policy for new construction rentals. There also doesn't need to be a recommendation to the Council. Chair Enger asked if there is an option to table the item to allow the Cormnissioners to learn more about the topic. 6/20/23 -9- Staff Liaison Jesse Anderson stated the Commission has the option to leave the process as -is with a two-year license to start with. Otherwise, the Commission, if they believe the two-year license is too generous, can provide an alternative recommendation to Council. Commissioner Williams stated the Council didn't previously think the two-year license was generous because it has been the policy for a while. Mr. Anderson pointed out the City has only had about four new build units in the past forty years, all of which were shared in the presentation. Commissioner Freund noted the Council asked for a new policy in pant because residents of Sonder House have complained about the management and other issues with Sonder House. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson confirmed that was an issue that brought Sonder House to the Council's attention, along with criminal concerns. City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson suggested Staff look into how neighboring cities handle new build rentals. The Commission does not have to move forward with a policy that evening. Commissioner Freund asked if Sonder House will still get a two-year license. Mr. Anderson stated as it stands, they would qualify for a two-year license. However, they haven't reviewed police calls for service. Chair Enger noted there were also management issues at Sanctuary soon after opening. Commissioner Williams stated the role of the Housing Commission is to discuss licensure not management. The City is still prioritizing crime reports in order to give out licensure, and they are using nuisance calls to violate the landlords. Chair Enger stated only validated nuisance calls are considered in the count. Crimes such as murder and arson are counted but domestic violence and noise complaint calls are not. Commissioner Williams asked Chair Enger if she has heard about any murders or arson at Sonder House. Chair Enger has heard about violence, such as the shootings in the parking lot. Commissioner Williams stated Chair Enger is assuming there are higher level crimes based on the residents that live there, which are primarily people of color. The two-year license should continue because that has been the norm. Instead, the City is targeting low-income people of color. Commissioner Riel stated she still prefers option one. Commissioner Freund stated she is not ready to make a decision. Chair Enger asked for Mr. Anderson to send the PowerPoint to the Commission. CITY COUNCIL LIAISON REPORT City Council Liaison Lawrence -Anderson stated she won't go into depth due to time constraints. Council is working on the budget. Staff is conducting an employee survey, and there is a very broad community survey being handled by a third -party firm. 6/20/23 -10- FUTURE MEETING TOPIC SCHEDULE July 18, 2021 — Presentation on Tenant Protection Data and invite property owners/representatives August 15, 2023 — Presentation on Tenant Protection and invite Tenants & advocacy group September 19, 2023 — ULI Housing Report Presentation OTHER BUSINESS There was no other business addressed by the Commission. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Riel and seconded by Commissioner Gayflor to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission adjourned at 9:12 p.m. Chair Enger 6/20/23 -11-