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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001 02-20 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 FEBRUARY 20, 2001 CONFERENCE ROOM B CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission was called to order by Chairperson Erickson at 7 p.m. ROLL CALL Chairperson Ernie Erickson, Commissioners Shawn Taylor, Dennis Snook, Michael i VonDeLinde, and Mark Yelich. Also present were Council Liaison Ed Nelson and Community i Development Specialist Tom Bublitz. Commissioners Martin Frawley, Lloyd Deuel, Kathleen Carmody and Elizabeth Davis were absent and excused from the meeting. APPROVAL OF AGENDA There was a motion by Commissioner Snook and seconded by Commissioner VonI)eLinde to approve the agenda as submitted. The motion passed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES -January 16, 2001 There was a motion by Commissioner Yelich and seconded by Commissioner Taylor to approve the January 16, 2001 Housing Commission minutes as submitted. The motion passed. CHAIRPERSON� REPORT Chairperson Erickson noted he had been asked to attend the March 5"` meeting with the City Council and Chairs of the various City Comrnissions. He explained this was an annual event conducted by the City Council to provide an oppoi�tunity for the Chairs of the Commissions to give the Council an update on their work and also to get some feedback from the City Council. Councilmember Nelson explained that on April 16`� the annual commission reception will be held at 7 pm in Constitution Hall. He encouraged commission members to attend the April 16 meeting. REVIEW AND DISCUSSION OF CITY ORDINANCES Chairperson Erickson opened up the meeting for continued discussion of the Housing Commission's consideration of recommendations regarding amendments to various City Ordinances. He referred Commission members to page four of the January 2001 minutes and noted that Mr. Warren gave the Commission some insight into ordinances and the difficulty in drafting ordinances and subsequent enforcement. He also noted that the data the Commission has 02-20-01 -1- reviewed seems to indicate that the street rehabilitation projects seem to have influenced the paving of driveways. Councilmember Nelson noted that the 1991 surve data showed that there were 258 un aved Y p driveways on single family properties in 1991. Chairperson Erickson noted that Mr. Warren indicated the number of unpaved driveways has gone down since 1991 and it seems, according to updated data from street improvement project information, the highest concentration of unpaved driveways occurred in the southeast section of the City and that this area has been completed in terms of street improvement projects. Councilmember Nelson brought up the possibility of those remaining properties with unpaved driveways working together to get a better price for the work. He inquired how the Commission feels with regard to whether or not they believe this is a lazge enough problem for the City to necessitate the change to paved driveways. Commissioner Yelich commented that another aspect of driveways is not just the driveway paving but the parking of vehicles. He suggested perhaps the Cominission should separate these issues. In the past he thought the Commission could deal with the parking and paving issues together but now it may be advisable to separate the paving issue from where cars can be parked on properties. He observed that in some areas it seems people are parking cars all over the place on their lots. Chairperson Erickson questioned whether or not the Commission wants to mandate paving and requiring parking on an improved surface since this could lead to paving of rear yards and that once an area becomes paved, the paved area might never be taken out again. Comxnissioner Yelich stated that the Commission would have to deal with the maxirnum azea that I could be hard surfaced. Chairperson Erickson next addressed the issue of fencing and fence maintenance and noted that the Housing Commission has reviewed several ordinances from other cities. He noted one of the issues under consideration is to require material used for fences be from materials designed for fencing. He explained this would get away from using items like corrugated metal and scrap metal made into a fence. Commissioner VonDeLinde suggested that the Commission could add a provision to our existing ordinance relative to specifying materials to be used for fences. Chairperson Erickson briefly reviewed ordinance section 12-706 of the City Code regarding fence maintenance. The Commission continued its discussion of r v' e isions to Ci Ordinances. The Co ty mmunity Development Specialist suggested that the Commission could consider preparing a report to the City Manager and the City Council outlining the issues the Commission has been addressing and requesting the Council to give them some direction regarding whether they want the Commission to continue in a particular direction. 02-20-01 -2- Commissioner Yelich addressed the issue of fencing and noted that the fence maintenance language in the ordinance is somewhat vague and the ordinance requires persons to "maintain 'I fences in good condition." He suggested that the standard for maintenance be specifically stated in the ordinance. I OTHER BUSINESS Councilmember Nelson informed the Commission the Mayor's Regional Housing Task Force had developed a report titled Affordable Housing for the Region Strategies for Building Strong Communities. He suggested the Housing Commission review the report and noted a concem for 20 to 30 year old workers cited in the report and who need housing. He cited an e�nple of restaurant managers who do not earn high wages and have a need for affordable rents. Also he noted a concern for affordable senior housing. He urged commission members to read the Affordable Housing report. The Community Development Specialist noted that he would make copies of the report and distribute them to the commission. Commissioner Yelich commented that it seems Brooklyn Center has a great deal of affordable housing but not a lot of businesses that pay livable wages. He also noted a need for move up housing which would help attract industry, specifically housing for people who start businesses. Commissioner Yelich also stated he would like to see information on the current status of the values of Brooklyn Center housing compared to other cities. The Commission briefly continued its discussion of affordable housing and then moved on to an update of the Brookdale demolition project by Councilmember Nelson, who also informed the Commission of the status of the Highway 100 project and the proposed development for 69�' and Brooklyn Boulevard. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Snook and seconded by Commissioner Taylor to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission adjourned at 8:40 Chairman 02-20-01 -3-