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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998 04-21 CCM Joint Session with Housing Commission MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE HOUSING COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND STATE OF MINNESOTA JOINT HOUSING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL SESSION APRIL 21, 1998 COUNCIL CHAMBERS BROOKLYN CENTER CITY HALL CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center: - City - Council was called to order by Mayor Pro Tem Kay Lasman at 7:00 p.m. 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 Lloyd Deuel, Mark Yelich, Donald Arm, James Lano, Christopher Russell, and Michael VonDeLinde. Council members present were Kay Lasman, Debra Hilstrom, Bob Peppe and Kathleen Carmody. Mayor Myrna Kragness was absent and excused. Also present were City Manager Michael J. McCauley, Community Development Director Brad Hoffman, Building Official David Fisher and Community Development Specialist Tom Bublitz. Commissioner Jonathan ,. rter was absent from the meeting. APPROVAL OF AGENDA There was a motion by Commissioner Erickson and seconded by Commissioner Arm to approve the agenda, as submitted. The motion passed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - JANUARY 20, 1998 There was a motion by Commissioner Arm and seconded by Commissioner Deuel to approve the January 20, 1998, Housing Commission minutes as submitted. The motion . passed, APPROVAL OF MINUTES - FEBRUARY 17, 1998 There was a motion by Commissioner Arm and seconded by Commissioner Deuel to approve the February 17, 1998, Housing Commission minutes as submitted. The motion passed. 4 -21 -98 -1- STAFF PRESENTATION ON PROPOSED TIME OF SALE ORDINANCE The Community Development Specialist reviewed a series of question and answers included in the Housing Commission and Council packets and made available to persons in the audience. He explained the purpose of the proposed Time of Sale Housing Inspection Program is to provide potential purchasers with information about the condition of a dwelling and would require the correction of items defined as immediate hazards. He reviewed the following list of questions and answers with regard to the proposed Time of Sale Inspection Program. What dwelling units are affected? All single family and two family, including condominiums and townhouses. Mobile homes are included. When must the property be inspected? The property must be inspected and a report form completed prior to offering the property for sale. The Housing Evaluation Report must be available for review by potential purchasers at all times that the property is offered for sale. Who does the evaluation? The seller can choose any licensed independent housing evaluator who maintains a current certificate of competency from the City of Bloomington, Minneapolis or St. Paul. These cities provide for testing and certification of private housing evaluators. The City will maintain a list of private housing evaluators who meet the certification requirements of the cities designated in the City of Brooklyn Center's proposed ordinance. Evaluators must request to be placed on the list and show proof of the required insurance. What does an evaluator do? The evaluator will examine the dwelling's visible structural elements, heating, electrical and plumbing systems; and other components of construction. The evaluator will look into accessible, unoccupied areas such as attics and crawl spaces, but will not take apart any building components. The evaluator cannot identify conditions that are hidden and inaccessible. How much does it cost? Based on similar programs in other cities, the initial evaluation report may cost the seller $100 to $125. This is an estimate only and the actual fee will be negotiated between the seller and the private evaluator. If hazardous items are noted in the initial evaluation report that do not 4 -21 -98 -2- require permits and it is necessary for the private evaluator to re- inspect the property to evaluate correction of the hazardous items, the inspector may charge an additional fee. Hazardous items requiring permits to correct will be reinspected by City building inspectors. Standard building permit fees will be charged for these items. How are corrections of hazardous items monitored? Then hazardous items are identified by the evaluator, correction of the identified hazardous items must be made. Follow -up on the correction of hazardous items will be done in the following ways: 1. For hazardous items not requiring building permits to correct, private evaluators will follow -up to make sure the items have been corrected. 2. For hazardous items requiring building permits to correct, City building inspectors will follow -up through the normal building permit process to make sure the items have been corrected. When must corrections of hazardous conditions be completed? Hazardous conditions must be corrected before the dwelling is occupied. If the dwelling is already occupied, corrective action shall be taken by the owner or agent of the owner. What are the most common hazardous items called out in housin g evaluations? ? Based on the experience of other cities with similar programs, the following items are the five most common hazards found in housing evaluations. 1. Lack of or improperly installed smoke detectors. 2. Electrical fixtures and cover plates. These include outlets and junction boxes with missing cover plates and broken or cracked switches, outlets and fixtures. 3. Backjlow prevention devices. Protection of potable water for inhabitants of a dwelling (and also the city water supply) is of great importance. In most cases, a hazardous water supply condition can be corrected by adding an anti - siphon backflow prevention device to the water supply. Common locations where a backflow prevention device is required are: a. Outside garden hose connections. (All must be protected). b. Laundry tubs with a threaded faucet for a hose connection. c. Hand -held shower sprayers that could hang into tub water. 4 -21 -98 -3- Other locations where backflow or siphoning could occur are toilet ballcocks that are not located above the tank water line, any faucet that discharges below the spill line of its receptor, and lawn irrigation systems having improper backflow protection. These hazards must also be corrected. 4. Garage door openers. Many garage door openers are plugged into extension cords. This type of wiring is a hazard. All garage door openers must be plugged directly into approved outlets. An electrical permit must be secured to install a new electrical outlet. Other appliances which cannot be connected to extension cords are water softeners, window air conditioners, washing machines, clothes dryers, sump pumps and other `permanent" appliances. S. Electrical ground. Electrical systems must be properly grounded. One of the areas where grounding is required (and many times omitted) is around the water meter. A #6 wire (a #4 wire if electrical service is ISO amp or greater) is required to be attached to the house side of the water meter with an approved clamp and also to the street side of the water meter with an approved clamp. Must the seller correct hazardous items even if the house does not sell? Hazardous items noted in the evaluation report must be corrected even if the home does not sell. Owners will be given a reasonable amount of time to correct hazards not to exceed 90 days. Is the evaluation a warranty? y No. The evaluation is not a guarantee or warranty. The Housing Evaluation Report will be completed through visual inspection of the property. The evaluator cannot guarantee that problems will not occur after the inspection. Building Official David Fisher then reviewed a slide presentation from the City of Bloomington. Mr. Fisher noted the slide presentation documents a typical housing evaluation done under Bloomington's ordinance which is the ordinance upon which Brooklyn Center's proposed ordinance is modeled. He noted the slides cover a "test house" done by the City of Bloomington and pointed out that a "test house" is essentially a means of testing housing evaluators with regard to their ability to perform evaluations under the City's evaluator guidelines. The slide presentation pointed out items that would be noted as acceptable, below minimum and also those items that would be called out as a hazardous condition under the ordinance. Examples of hazardous conditions in the slide presentation included lack of proper grounding for electrical systems, improper venting on water heaters lack of cover plates on electrical outlets and lack Y g P of backflow prevention devices. He pointed out that the items in the slide presentation would be very similar to items that could be found in homes in Brooklyn Center under the ordinance as proposed. 4 -21 -98 -4- A resident in the audience stated that she does not think condominiums would require a Time of Sale Inspection and pointed out as an example the water marks on the ceiling of the home in the slide presentation wouUnot be found in a condominium. The Building Official pointed out that even if water stains were found in the ceiling that it would be a disclosure and not listed as a hazardous item to be corrected. The condominium resident stated that most items in the inspection don't relate to condominiums. She pointed out that she believes that a condominium is not like a single family home or even a town home. She also stated that people buying condominiums will check these items out before they buy. Councilmember Carmody commented that one of the issues discussed by the Housing Commission is the fact that most first time home buyers do not perform inspections on homes they are buying. Commissioner Arm commented that there really is no difference between single family homes and condominiums when things deteriorate, noting that both structures can have problems. The condominium residents in the audience noted that in their condominium, maintenance personnel are on site and handle the small problems and a maintenance- company handles larger repair items. The residents stated that if condos are included in the ordinance this could create problems for the sale of condominium units. Commissioner Erickson inquired whether the inspection provisions of Chapter 12 addresses condos. The Building Official noted that the ordinance does not address condominiums unless they are rental properties. Commissioner Erickson commented that when the Housing Commission initially started looking at a Time of Sale ordinance one of the individuals on the Commission at that time had moved into a Brooklyn Center home and within a month the deck fell off the side of the house. He noted the individual had to lire a contractor to repair the deck. He pointed out that this situation is an example of how vulnerable first time home buyers can be since they tend to be the least experienced home buyers in the market. He noted that in his estimation the ordinance is a tool to attract buyers to the City and to make the city's housing stock more viable. Councilmember Carmody commented that there are a great number homes in Brooklyn Center that have been owned for over 30 years and some have been maintained and some have not. She noted a Time of Sale ordinance would begin to address some of the deferred maintenance items. A single family resident in the audience stated that he has owned his single family dwelling since 1954 and inquired as to what has happened that we now need a Time of Sale program and who is it designed to help. He explained his son bought a house in south Florida which was 13 years old and had lived there for 3 years when he was required to repair mildew and insect problems for a total cost of $2,000. -He inquired as to whether or not people will be taking advantage of homeowners by such an inspection program. 4 -21 -98 -5- Councilmember Carmody noted that in her estimation the benefit of a Time of Sale program is to the first time home buyer. She cited the St. Louis Park Time of Sale ordinance, noting it is a very restrictive ordinance, and that the proposed Time of Sale ordinance in Brooklyn Center benefits the City of Brooklyn Center by improving the maintenance of its housing stock. Commissioner Arm noted that Brooklyn Center has an aging housing and that many people buy started homes and then proceed to move up housing and may not maintain the starter home as well as it should be maintained. The single family resident noted that he is concerned that outside inspectors are brought in to inspect homes and that they will most certainly find things wrong with a house. Councilmember Lasman noted that the evaluator will receive their fee for the inspection whether they find in any items for correction or not. The ordinance is essentially designed to maintain the overall housing stock in the City. The single family resident noted that if a person decides to sell their house now no special inspection is required but if this ordinance is passed sellers will have to go through this process. He suggested that it may be better if we had City inspectors performing the inspections. Mr. Jack Kelly, who noted he was a previous Housing Commission and is a licensed realtor, noted that the inspectors under this program will be licensed and that he believes every suburb in the area will eventually have an ordinance similar to this and many now already do. Councilmember Carmody commented that on the City side to have the City staff administer the program is too costly. Councilmember Hilstrom explained that she had talked to realtors and they had brought up two issues with regard to a Time of Sale ordinance. She noted the realtors indicated that it was a positive thing that the ordinance will be disclosing items that are inspected in a house and secondly if any items need to be replaced they would suggest that the repairs be done in a quality fashion. In regard to maintaining quality in the repairs of any needed items Councilmember Hilstrom suggested that the repairs be negotiated between the buyer and the seller. She cited an example of a situation where the ordinance may require that a furnace be replaced and the seller would likely put in the most inexpensive furnace they could get and still comply with the ordinance. She noted that if the seller and buyer are able to negotiate this, the quality of the replacement furnace could be improved. The single family resident, who had previously addressed the Council and Commission, stated that he is concerned that houses with older furnaces like his, even though they are in good condition, may be called out to be replaced. Commissioner Erickson pointed out that the evaluator would need to find specific problems with the furnace that could be verified by a heating contractor and could not call out for the 4 -21 -98 -6- replacement of a furnace simple because it was an older style furnace. Councilmember Lasman noted that the inspections under a Time of Sale program are objective inspections and evaluators are not looking for problems since they do not receive more compensation if they find items to be corrected. Councilmember Hilstrom left the meeting at 8:15 p.m. Commissioner Arm commented that, with regard to the mold and insect problem in the home in Florida, mold can be a very significant health problem and that this is probably something that should have been corrected. Councilmember Carmody left the meeting at 8:20 p.m. Mr. Bill Gerst addressed the Housing Commission and Council and noted that is was representing the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors. Mr. Gerst noted that the ordinance as proposed is not out of line with the Association's guidelines for these types of ordinances and the use of private evaluators and correction of hazardous items is in keeping with the Association's guidelines. Councilmember Carmody returned to the meeting at 8:25 p.m. Mr. Gerst continued his comments noting that the City of Minneapolis is now debating a change in their ordinance which would add correction of hazardous items to its disclosure type ordinance. He noted that one of the more important issues he would like to address is that in any Time of Sale ordinance he does not want to see the ordinance slow sales down in any way. He noted the ordinance proposed by the City of Brooklyn Center is somewhat of a hybrid ordinance based on the Bloomington ordinance. He also pointed out that more and more people are doing buyer inspections even with Time of Sale ordinances in effect. The buyer inspections typically involve a more comprehensive inspection than the Time of Sale type inspection. The Housing Commission and City Council continued to discuss the ordinance and the City Manager pointed out it is up to the City Council to put the item up for first reading if they believe it is acceptable. Councilmember Carmody stated that she believes the ordinance is ready the way it is and Councilmember Peppe stated that he wants to make sure that we do not slow the process down. Mr. Bill Gerst commented that under the ordinance if the seller puts their home on the market and it does not sell the ordinance requires that the hazardous items must be repaired. He pointed out that the Council should make sure there is an enforcement mechanism to assure the correction. The Housing Commission and Council continued to discuss the enforcement mechanisms in the ordinance and expressed concern over the monitoring of corrections of 4 -21 -98 -7- hazardous items in cases where the correction of hazardous items are deferred to the buyer and also in cases where the home does not sell and the owner is required to correct the hazardous items. The Community Development Specialist noted that this particular ordinance has less staff involvement than other similar ordinances in other cities and that there are some items with regard to monitoring hazardous items that will be done by private evaluators and that this is part of the trade off for less staff involvement in an ordinance of this nature. After continued brief discussion of the ordinance, there was a general consensus among Council members and Housing Commission members to go forward with a first reading of the ordinance. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Councilmember Carmody and seconded by Councilmember Peppe to adjourn the City Council meeting. The motion passed. There was a motion by Commissioner Arm and seconded by Commissioner Deuel to adjourn the Housing Commission meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center Housing Commission and City Council joint meeting adjourned at 8:35 p.m. ivya or C -hfrir Y r P v � e wt 17cis�- ' 4 -21 -98 -8-