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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-02-23-AHTSC-min RECEIVED 2022 22 ' air, SLLSS morn The Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee (ad hoc) "T W'N CLERK Meeting Minutes of February 23, 2022 LEXINGTON Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee members present for the public meeting: Gretchen Reisig, Chair; Betsey Weiss, Kathryn Roy, Jeri Foutter, Linda Prosnitz, Carol Marine, Tara Mizrahi. Lexington Staff present for the public meeting: Carol Kowalski, Assistant Town Manager for Development; Kiruthika Ramakrishnan, Administrative Assistant. Non-voting liaison of the Select Board: Mark Sandeen Other Attendees: Shelly Goehring from Massachusetts Housing Partnership Ms. Reisig conducted a roll call to ensure that all the members of the Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee (ad hoc) and members of staff present could hear and be heard. Ms. Reisig chaired the meeting and called the meeting to order at 4:01 pm. The meeting was recorded by LexMedia for future on-demand viewing. 1. Approval of The Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee Minutes of 01/26/2022 The Affordable Housing Trust Study committee reviewed the draft minutes of the meeting held on 01/26/2022. Ms. Roy moved that the Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee vote to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 01/26/2022, as presented. Ms. Foutter seconded the motion. The Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee voted in favor of the motion 6-0-0 (Roll Call VOTE, MOTION PASSED UNANIMOUSLY) 2. Implication of MBTA Rule Ms. Kowalski gave a brief overview of the MBTA rule. She explained how with the signing of the economic development bill by the Governor of Massachusetts, in December 2020, a few zoning regulations were changed. One of the changes being, that communities with MBTA service will be required to adopt a by right zoning district to allow multifamily housing— apartments or condos. In Lexington right now, you cannot build multifamily housing. In order to be in compliance with the law, the Select Board has to be briefed on the MBTA zoning before May 2nd, which has been tentatively scheduled to be on March 91". Ms. Kowalski added that there is also a comment period for the draft guidelines which closes on March 31St. For communities that do not comply with the guidelines, some funding sources would no longer be available. It would require a zoning district with a minimum of 50 acres, fifteen units per acre, and for Lexington 2,462 units have to be zoned for by right, in accordance with zoning regulations and within % mile access to MBTA bus stop. It is a zoning regulation, not a housing production plan. There are 3 sources of grants if we comply with the MBTA guidelines. We have received MassWorks grants in the past. 3. Address by Guest Speaker Shelly Goehring Ms. Goehring's presentation was shared. Ms. Goehring gave a brief overview of the Massachusetts Housing Partnership and explained that their mission was to increase the number of affordable housing units in Massachusetts. Ms. Goehring focuses on helping communities establish trusts for affordable housing. Ms. Goehring explained what constitutes a housing trust, the operations and best practices and some of the eligible activities for a housing trust in Lexington. Ms. Goehring went over the entire process of creating a Trust and explained what activities an Affordable Housing Trust (Trust) can focus on. Ms. Goehring then went on to say that a minimum of five trustees are required by the statute and that it is mandatory for a Select Board member to be one of the trustees; a trustee is appointed by the Select Board and have a term of two years and the trustees are public agents. Ms. Goehring talked about the Board's powers as outlined by the statute and explained that the powers can be modified by Trusts based on their requirements. Ms. Goehring went over a few examples of Affordable Housing Trusts created by different cities. Ms. Goehring listed money, vision, leadership and transparency as some of the key factors to succeed. Ms. Goehring gave a list of the types of funds that can be used by an Affordable Housing Trust. CPA is the most common source; not every community has it. • Swampscott—Trust determines the amount of in lieu of payments and it is directed to the Trust • Brookline and Truro transferred municipal free cash funds to the Trust. • Chelsea is transferring property to the Trust • In Norfolk, a developer doing a friendly 40B that $10k/market rate would be transferred to the Trust. • Medfield doesn't have an CPC but they bonded $1M against the municipal budget and designated that to the Trust. • Orleans passed a $275k tax override to support the Trust. Because of the guaranteed income, they were able to get a loan. Ms. Goehring encouraged the committee to start by determining their needs, setting priorities and creating benchmarks based on the needs they want to focus on. Ms. Goehring suggested the committee to create a mission statement and to involve the community in the process, so that the community understands the purpose of the Trust. Ms. Goehring said that the roles of the different housing entities should be clearly defined from the beginning to facilitate better outcomes. Ms. Goehring said it always helps to determine the operating approach and explained the different approaches taken by different communities. Ms. Goehring went on to explain the various types of activities Affordable Housing Trusts can be engaged in, based on examples from various communities. Ms. Goehring asked the committee to consider the local infrastructure and, the needs and resources of the community, and to develop realistic goals based on those needs. 4. Follow up on Action Items Ms. Mizrahi discussed the suggestions of the committee members with regards to the goals of the trust: the ability to purchase land, the ability to purchase smaller homes that come to the market, and the ability to support more highly leveraged affordable housing projects. Discussion ensued. Ms. Kowalski wanted the committee to look at the list of the sixteen powers in the statute and, identify the powers that corelate with the goals that the committee wants to achieve and decide on the powers of the committee. Ms. Kowalski offered to share the Declaration of Trusts and bylaws from other communities for reference.There was general agreement. Adjourn Ms. Roy moved that The Affordable Housing Trust Study Committee adjourn the meeting held on February 23, 2022. Ms. Mizrahi seconded the motion. Meeting adjourned at 5:59 pm.