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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006 01-17 HCM MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE HOUSING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION JANLTARY 17, 2006 COUNCIL COMMISSION ROOM CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission was called to order by Chairperson Thorbus at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Chairperson Judy Thorbus, Commissioners Jean Schuster and Mark Yelich. Also present were Council Liaison Kathleen Carmody, Community Development Director Brad Hoffinan and Community Development Specialist Tom Bublitz. Commissioners Stan Leino and Kris Lawrence- Anderson were absent and excused. APPROVAL OFAGENDA There was a motion by Commissioner Yelich and seconded by Commissioner Schuster to approve the agenda as submitted. The motion passed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES NOYEMBER 1 S, 2005 There was a motion by Commissioner Yelich and seconded by Commissioner Schuster to approve the minutes of the November 15, 2005 Housing Commission meeting. The motion passed. CHAIRPERSONS REPORT Chairperson Thorbus noted a public meeting on the Opportunity Site will be held in Constitution Hall on January 25, 2006 between 6:00 and 8:00 p.m. The Community Development Director explained the meeting is designed as an open house format but with two planned presentations during the evening. Chairperson Thorbus reported on the joint meeting with the City Council where she, former Commissioner Johnson and Commissioner Yelich were present. She discussed several issues reviewed at the meeting including the Housing Commission's role in the revision to the City's rental ordinance, the composition of the Housing Commission, how often it would meet and the future direction of the Housing Commission. She added that she believes the City Council's direction was to return to the Housing Commission for additional input and then forward it to the City Council. Chairperson Thorbus then passed around the list titled, `Current Housing Related Concerns and Topics to Address in 2005' dated January 18, 2005. -1- 1-17-06 COUNCIL LIAISONREPORT Councilmember Carmody commented on a legislative hearing on eminent domain recently held at the City of Blaine. She noted the hearing at Blaine focused on proposed state legislation on the eminent domain issue. Commission Members discussed the eminent domain issue and also the future development of the old Northbrook Shopping Center site. ANNUAL ELECTION OF CHAIRPERSONAND APPOINTMENT OF VICE CHAIR Chairperson Thorbus opened the meeting for the purposes of nominations for Chair of the Housing Commission. Commissioner Schuster nominated Chairperson Thorbus to continue as Chair for 2006. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Yelich. There was a motion by Commissioner Yelich and seconded by Commissioner Schuster to close nominations for Chair. The motion passed. Chairperson Thorbus was elected to chair the Housing Commission for 2006 by general consent of the Commission members present. Chairperson Thorbus reappointed Commissioner Yelich as Vice Chair. DISCUSSION OF FUTURE ROLE OF HOUSING COMMISSION The Community Development Director suggested that the discussion this evening should focus on what the Housing Commission believes its role is and to follow up from the joint City Council and Housing Commission meeting. Commission Members discussed Item No. 3 on the Commission's list of concerns. It was noted this item was brought up by Commissioner Leino who was not in attendance this evening and that the definition of transitional housing may need to be further defined. With regard to Item No. 4, Commissioner Yelich stated his concern is with existing enforcement. The Community Development Director discussed the issue of chronic offenders and that the number of compliance orders issued per year, he believed, would compare favorably with what other cities are doing. Chairperson Thorbus pointed out that she believes Brooklyn Park has a very strict enforcement program focusing on items such as junk items in yards, illegally parked cars, noxious weeds and placement of garbage cans. Councilmember Carmody suggested that with regard to enforcement, the Housing Commission's recommendations should stay with what it sees as a proper focus for enforcement as opposed to addressing staff functions. Commission Members continued to discuss housing related concerns and noted that the Commission had already accomplished one of its goals and that was to meet with the Chair of the Planning -2- 1-17-06 Commission. With regard to Item No. 5 relative to communicating with diverse audiences, it was noted that the current position filled by Monique Drier in the police department was addressing this area. The next topic addressed by the Commission was why so many single family homes are being bought as rental properties. The Commission discussed the economics of purchasing single family homes as rentals. The Community Development Director pointed out that currently the rental subsidies for single family homes, provided by the Metropolitan Housing Authority, are very substantial. He explained the Metro HRA's goal is to place people in housing and that they are not particularly concerned with housing code issues. He discussed the city's efforts in discussing the rental ordinance and how the city addresses rental units that are not licensed, pointing out that owners are often required to appear in court. The Community Development Director next discussed the city's license fee structure pointing out that by law, license fees are required to reflect the costs for administering and regulating a licensing program. The Commission discussed the city's rental fees and the recent increase in fees including that it appears additional fee increases would be unlikely at this particular time. Commissioner Yelich commented on Item No. 7 regarding promotion of city assets to promote Brooklyn Center as a great place to live, noting that this is one of many thoughts and items the Commission has explored in past discussions. Chairperson Thorbus discussed the promotion of special events in the city through organizations and on cable television. Councilmember Carmody discussed the current cable channe116 and noted the expense of improving the technology to change the system. Chairperson Thorbus next discussed the AARP study relative to livable communities and the importance it placed on making people aware of events happening in cities. Chairperson Thorbus also stated she thinks the proximity of city hall to Target in a high traffic area could have good potential for an information sign that cycles information taking advantage of the high traffic in the area. Chairperson Thorbus next asked whether Councilmember Carmody would ta.ke the list the Commission had prepared to the City Council. Councilmember Carmody commented that a couple of the items such as 3 and 4 would need to be defined further and restated. She pointed out that Item No. 5 and 7 appeared to be okay. Commissioner Yelich addressed Item No. 8 relative to the value of single family homes and questioned why the Brooklyn Center median home values are lower than other areas. The Commission discussed this item and issues such as school districts, size of housing, type of housing and surrounding commercial impact such as Brookdale which all have effects on home values. Commission Members continued to discuss factors affecting the values of homes. The Community Development Director noted that Item No. 1 on the list relative to the Opportunity -3- 1-17-06 Site will be discussed by the City Council in February. The Community Development Director noted that the Housing Commission's studying of issues may continue the Commission's sense of frustration and pointed out that the Commission should really examine what they believe their role should be in the future. Commissioner Yelich noted that the Opportunity Site was discussed at the Housing Commission and City Council joint meeting and that it was discussed that the Housing Commission may review particular housing proposed for the Opportunity Site. The Community Development Director discussed the general time line of the Opportunity Site and noted that the Task Force was creating a vision and guidelines for the site and that market demands and opportunities along with the design guidelines will direct the development of the Opportunity Site. Councilmember Carmody next discussed issues relative to the Commission's undertaking ofprojects without full Council direction. The Community Development Director discussed past Housing Commission projects such as the point of sale issue and noted that it was best to have a clear direction from the City Council on projects so that they value the task of the Commission. Councilmember Carmody summarized the status of the items on the Housing Commission's housing related concerns and topics pointing out that Item No. 1 addresses the future parameters for housing in the Opportunity Site. Related to Item No. 2, the Community Development Director pointed out that the Planning Commission will be reviewing information to prepare an updated Comprehensive Plan probably sometime in 2008 and that the Housing Commission has reviewed the Housing portion of the plan in the past. With regard to Item No. 3, the term transitional housing should be further defined. Item No. 4 could be addressed as a policy discussion and Item No. 5 could include such things as translating some of the city's information on code enforcement. Chairperson Thorbus suggested that Item No. 5 could address communication in the City Watch and at the Remodeling Fair. Councilmember Carmody inquired whether the Commission would like to see Item No. 6 relative to single family homes being converted to rental units left on. Chairperson Thorbus suggested that the Commission could send statistics to the City Council regarding how Brooklyn Center compares with other cities. With regard to Item No. 7, promoting city assets to make Brooklyn Center more liv�ble, it was determined to leave this item on. Regarding discussion of Item No. 8 relative to valuation of single family homes, it was decided that -4- 1-17-06 this item needed to be defined further. As a final item, recruitment of new Housing Commission members was added. Councilmember Carmody indicated this list should be presented to the City Council at its first meeting in February. OTHER BUSINESS It was noted that February 4�' is the City's 95�' birthday party. There was no other business addressed by the Commission. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Schuster and seconded by Commissioner Yelich to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission adjourned at 9:05 p.m. �.,,;�C� A Chai an -5- 1-17-06