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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1979 04-10 HCMMINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE HOUSING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION APRIL 10, 1979 CITY HALL Upy CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission met in regular session and was called to order by Chairman Plummer at 7:38 p.m. ROLL CALL Chairman Plummer, Commissioners Williams, Cilke, Hastings and Haroldson. Also present were Councilmember Bill Fignar and Administrative Assistant Brad Hoffman. Commissioners Duenow, Weitzel and Turner were excused. Chairman Plummer then took the opportunity to introduce new Commissioner Lowell Ainas to the Commission. REPRESENTATIVE FROM MINNEAPOLIS INSPECTION DEPARTMENT Chairman Plummer introduced Mr. Bob Lyons from the Minneapolis Inspection Department to discuss the Minneapolis Truth -in- Housing Ordinance. Mr. Lyons briefly reviewed the Truth -in- Housing in Minneapolis. He stated that prior to the sale of a one or two family unit, the owner is required to supply the buyer with a truth -in- housing statement. The statements are provided by a City certified inspector. Inspectors are from the private sector and have undergone extensive testing by the City of Minneapolis. He added that approximately 8,000 homes requiring inspection are sold annually in Minneapolis. Councilmember Fignar inquired as to the intent of the ordinance. Bob Lyons replied that basically the City of Minneapolis is concerned with providing consumer protec- tion. Commissioner Haroldson inquired as to the number of inspections an individual could conduct in the period of a day. Bob Lyons replied that the inspections are handled almost totally in the private sector and for an inspector to do a thorough job he could probably do one or two a day. He added if Minneapolis inspectors handled the inspection, the City Ordinances would require the City to issue a compliance order. Commissioner Haroidson then inquired as to the cost of inspection. Again, Bob Lyons indicated that the City was generally not involved, but on the average they run approximately $50. Bob Lyons added that the program has a great deal of realtor support. He noted that the seller obtains an inspector and must provide the buyer with a copy of the inspection sheet prior to the signing of purchase agreement. Commissioner Williams inquired if the majority of the inspectors were real estate agents. Bob Lyons indicated he was not sure but he added that the City certifies each of the inspectors and there was a code of ethics for those inspectors which does not allow the inspector to also be the realtor in the transaction. Commissioner Hastings inquired how people were made aware of the ordinance if they are selling a home. Bob Lyons replied through publicity, lending agents and realtors. Councilmember Fignar inquired if financing had an effect on inspections to which Bob Lyons replied that it did not. 4 -10 -79 -1- A brief discussion then ensued relative to the liability of the evaluator and the City. Bob Lyons indicated that the inspectors do carry insurance and are respon- sible for their evaluations. He is not sure of the City's liability but felt that the City probably was ultimately responsible for inaccuracies in the report. He noted that the first time the test was administered, 79 people took the test and only 23 passed the certification test for inspector. He also added that the last time the test was taken, 18 took the test and only 1 person passed. Commissioner Williams inquired if they only inspected single and two family housing to which Bob Lyons replied "yes Mr. Lyons then noted the need for procedural guidelines for the evaluators to assure consistency in their inspections. Councilmember Fignar inquired what changes in the program Mr. Lyons would make. Mr. Lyons replied that he felt the program was running quite smoothly, but added that the City has an obli- gation to periodically, update the evaluators with changes in the law and so forth. Commissioner Haroldson inquired as to how long an evaluation report was good for. Bob Lyons replied one year. Mr. Lyons added that the impact of the Truth -in- Housing in Minneapolis could be seen immediately by the number of permits being taken out after the ordinance went into effect. RECESS The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission recessed at 8:47 p.m and reconvened at 8:52 p.m. KALEIDOSCOPE The next agenda item was a brief discussion of Kaleidoscope. Commissioner Haroldson reviewed an updating of Housing Commission literature for Kaleidoscope. A brief discussion then ensued and it was agreed that the item would be printed for Kalei- doscope. A tentative schedule was then established for the Housing Commission mem- bers for their participation at Kaleidoscope. OTHER BUSINESS Commissioner Hastings indicated that a woman's group in Crystal had inquired as to when our next home workshop would be scheduled. They also requested that information on insurance be added to the workshop. It was agreed that these items would be taken up at the next meeting. Councilmember Fignar took this opportunity to briefly update the Commission members on recent Open Forum discussion. He noted that there had been numerous complaints about parking in and around the Ewing Square area. He also added that a petition signed by all the homeowners in that area requested that France Avenue in that area be signed for no parking. r t ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Williams moved and Commissioner Cilke seconded'', a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed unanimously and the meeting was adjourned at -9:41 p.m. 4 -10 -79 Chairman