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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996 03-19 HCM MINUTES 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 MARCH 19, 1996 CONFERENCE ROOM B BROOKLYN CENTER CITY HALL CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission was called to order by Chairperson Robert Torres at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Chairperson Robert Torres, Vice Chairperson Ernie Erickson, Commissioners Todd Cannon, Lloyd Deuel, Henry Yang, Jonathan Carter, Naomi Ische, and Rex Newman. Also present were Council Liaison Kathleen Carmody, City Building Official Clay Larson, and Community Development Specialist Tom Bublitz. Commissioner Amy Gonyea was absent and excused from this evening's meeting. APPROVAL OF AGENDA There was a motion by Commissioner Erickson and seconded by Commissioner Deuel to approve the agenda, as submitted. The motion passed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES FEBRUARY 20, 1996 There was a motion by Commissioner Deuel and seconded by Commissioner Erickson to approve the February 20, 1996, Housing Commission minutes, as submitted. The motion passed. REVIEW OF BLOOMINGTON TIME OF SALE HOUSING STANDARDS AND EVALUATOR GUIDELINES The Community Development Specialist commented that the Bloomington ordinance appears to be the most evolved and up -to -date ordinance currently being used as a Time of Sale ordinance and will be used as a model to develop Brooklyn Center's ordinance, but it will also be affected by the particular needs of the City of Brooklyn Center. Building Official Clay Larson briefly reviewed the range of ordinances available to communities with regard to Time of Sale which includes a disclosure ordinance only, similar to the City of Minneapolis and St. Paul, an ordinance that requires a significant amount of repair as reflected in the St. Louis Park and Crystal models, and the third approach being the Bloomington model which has also been adopted by the City of South St. Paul and addresses correction of hazardous 3 -19 -96 -1- items, but includes disclosure of additional items beyond those that are deemed hazardous. He pointed out Bloomington's ordinance appears to be one of the most mature ordinances available in the range of ordinances currently being used in municipalities. He also pointed out to commission members that none of the various models for Time of Sale ordinances are substitutes for code enforcement and they do not address junk cars and other types of nuisance items. Commissioner Erickson commented there appears to a consensus among commission members that immediate hazards should be corrected in a Time of Sale ordinance and he also pointed out some hazardous items are obvious and some are not. Also, he pointed out, the commission should address potential hardships under the program and develop provisions for dealing with these and also for escrowing funds so that repairs can be made even after a home is sold. The City Building Official commented it has been his experience escrowing is difficult in that Realtors tend not to like to include this in the closing since it will cloud the closing. However, he pointed out, it can be done to accomplish improvements after the closing. Commissioner Newman pointed out he would like to see this ordinance be used as a part of a fast -time buyer program. Commissioner Newman also questioned the necessity of the detail of the Bloomington ordinance as it is presented in the evaluator's guidelines. The City's Building Official commented that the detail in the Bloomington ordinance is an issue of "due diligence and care was taken so that proper procedures were in place to assure inspections were done properly, especially if any of the items are questioned in a court of law. Chairperson Torres inquired of the commission what they believe to be the top 20 hazardous items in most homes. The City Building Official pointed out the Bloomington ordinance specifies a listing of immediate hazards in Section 14.420 in the ordinance, and it includes heating systems, water heaters, plumbing, including venting, structural systems, including walls and roofs, fuel tanks, refuse and garbage and lack of properly located and /or operational smoke detectors. Chairperson Torres inquired as to the hazardous potential of abandoned wells on properties. The Building Official pointed out wells are addressed separately by the state and that in any real estate transfer, a well disclosure statement is required in any sale of property. Chairperson Torres inquired whether any of the commission members had any other commission items to include in the hazardous list, other than those included by the City of Bloomington. Commissioner Carter suggested the issue of carbon monoxide poisoning and detectors be considered. The Building Official pointed out carbon monoxide poisoning is relatively infrequent and most furnaces, if properly installed and maintained, will be safe. He emphasized the incidence of carbon monoxide poisoning is low, and an inspection could note the exterior signs of rust on a heat exchanger which could be an indication of a faulty heat exchanger. If these signs were noted, the inspector could call for a carbon monoxide test. 3 -19 -96 -2- With regard to the specifics of the Bloomington ordinance and potential changes to include in a Brooklyn Center ordinance, the Building Official commented on page one of the evaluator guidelines it states that handrails shall be grippable and located 34 to 38 inches above the tread nosing. He pointed out this is the code requirement for new construction and prior to the 34 to 38 inch height, handrails were at 30 to 34 inches. As a result, only a handful of Brooklyn Center homes would comply with the newer 34 to 38 inch requirement. Additionally, he pointed out, the headroom on a stairway in the Bloomington ordinance is six feet eight inches. Fifteen to 20 years ago, the stairway minimum was six feet six inches; likewise with the handrails, this would be an item that could be addressed in a Brooklyn Center ordinance since none of the homes in the City would likely meet the six feet eight inch requirement. With regard to these kinds of revisions, the Building Official stated he would let the inspectors use their judgment that a handrail is in place and is usable and not debate the height as long as it is serviceable and is not a hazard. Council Liaison Carmody asked for an explanation on the item in the Bloomington ordinance relating to handrails for stairways with four or more risers. The Building Official stated this is addressing guardrail enforcement around decks. He pointed out more attention is being paid in the building codes to exterior items and approaches. Commissioner Newman suggested having a newsletter article discussing issues relative to home improvements, particularly those that, when improperly done, can come back to be a significant problem. Council Liaison Carmody asked the commission how they wanted to proceed on the Point of Sale ordinance. The Building Official explained what the staff is looking for is how detailed the ordinance should be. Council Liaison Carmody noted the consensus at the February Housing Commission meeting was that the commission and City Council did not want a St. Louis Park -type ordinance, but does want to bring up homes to a safe level, especially for first -time buyers. Commissioner Erickson brought up the issue of maintaining a reasonable exterior appearance on properties. He noted this issue is important because many homes have a problem exterior even though they may pass a Point of Sale inspection. Commissioner Newman commented that as he recalls from the last meeting, this would be a code enforcement issue. The Building Official commented many of these types of homes with problem exteriors are not the ones on the market, and many of the people living in these types of properties will remain and not sell. 3 -19 -96 -3- After continued discussion of Time of Sale ordinances, there was a consensus of commission members to follow the Bloomington ordinance which addresses correction of hazardous items with a disclosure of non hazardous items. Commissioner Erickson stated he would also like to look at the appearance issue with regard to housing. Commissioner Newman suggested at the next meeting the commission discuss the items they are most concerned about with regard to hazardous items requiring correction. He pointed out he has a concern with using the term "below minimum standard" in the inspection report for the disclosure section. Commissioner Newman also inquired as to who will be hiring the inspector and how will this process take place. He added he would like to keep this open as part of the discussion in preparing the ordinance. There was a motion by Commissioner Erickson and seconded by Commissioner Carter to direct staff to prepare a Time of Sale ordinance as a working draft for commission consideration. The motion passed. Chairperson Torres left the meeting for another appointment at 8:45 p.m. and turned the chair of the meeting over to Vice Chairperson Erickson. Council Liaison Carmody suggested doing a comparison of the cost of in -house versus private inspectors for a Time of Sale ordinance. Building Official Clay Larson suggested the commission talk to a representative from a private inspector's group for the next meeting and noted he could arrange to contact someone to attend the next Housing Commission meeting. It was the consensus of commission members to accept the Building Official's suggestion and invite a representative from a private inspection group to the next Housing Commission meeting. OTHER BUSINESS Council Liaison Carmody reviewed the status of the Hennepin Community Works Program, which included a draft report prepared by the consultant on the project. She noted some of the recommendations by the consultant in the draft report included "day lighting" Shingle Creek at the Brookdale parking lot, construction of a roadway along Shingle Creek from Minneapolis to Brookdale crossing Highway 100, and creation of a "green necklace" concept which would essentially uncover old wetland areas and recreate them providing an amenity for construction of new housing. She continued to review information with regard to the Hennepin Community Works Program and noted the planning committee for the Hennepin Community Works Program has requested the consultant to rethink some of the recommendations, including the day lighting of the creek at Brookdale. 3 -19 -96 -4- ITEMS FOR APRIL HOUSING COMMISSION MEETING Commission members discussed the agenda for the April Housing Commission meeting and it was agreed that a speaker would be invited from a private inspection group to discuss Time of Sale inspections. Council Liaison Carmody also requested the discussion of housing goals be continued at the next Housing Commission meeting. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Newman and seconded by Commissioner Deuel to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission adjourned at 9:25 p.m. Chairperson 3 -19 -96 -5