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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-07-13-AHTBT-min Page 1 of 3 Affordable Housing Trust Meeting Minutes of July 13, 2023 9:30 am Hybrid meeting on Zoom and attended in-person in the Parker room, Town Office Building Affordable Housing Trust Board Members present for the Public Meeting: Elaine Tung, Chair; Mark Sandeen, Linda Prosnitz, William Erickson, Tiffany Payne (arrived late) Lexington Staff present for the Public Meeting: Carol Kowalski, Assistant Town Manager for Development; Ragi Ramachandran, Administrative Assistant Other attendees: Elizabeth Rust, RHSO; Bob Pressman, Margaret Heitz, Mina Makarious Ms. Tung conducted a roll call to ensure all the members of the AHT Board and members of staff present could hear and be heard. Ms. Tung chaired the hybrid meeting and called the meeting to order at 9:33 am. The meeting was recorded by LexMedia for future on-demand viewing. 1. Approval of June 21 meeting minutes The AHT Board reviewed the draft minutes of the meeting held on 6/21/23. Ms. Tung and Mr. Erickson shared their edits to the meeting minutes. Mr. Erickson moved to approve the meeting minutes of 6/21/23 as amended. Mr. Sandeen seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 4-0-0 (Roll call: Erickson – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Tung – yes, Sandeen – yes). Motion passed. 2. Chair, Select Board Liaison, RHSO/staff report Mr. Sandeen shared that the Select Board was informed of a property available for LexHAB to purchase. He felt it important to have a process to notify the AHT when such an opportunity arises. The members discussed and some of the options considered were that the Select Board staff notify the AHT chair, review the housing stakeholders’ working group policy, and the AHT working in close liaison with the Housing Partnership Board to enable exchange of information. 3. MHP Housing Institute Ms. Tung shared a brief summary and her learnings from the MHP Housing Institute sessions held in June. She spoke about the complete neighborhoods’ initiative, and the housing challenges in MA in comparison to other states. She shared data on subsidized housing and age restricted housing. Ms. Tung quoted a Planner who spoke about ‘Housing for everyone’ – “Does Page 2 of 3 your town have room for me?”. Ms. Tung felt the AHT should value this thought in their initiatives to develop inclusive programs. Ms. Payne provided a synopsis of her learnings from the event. She spoke about senior housing, low income housing, the implications of zoning regulations and how to get more affordable housing in Town. She shared that the MHP sessions were very informative and they provided a broader picture of how the various towns were similar yet different in their approach to a ction. Ms. Tung and Ms. Payne shared their takeaways from these sessions. 4. H2747/S 1771, real estate transfer fee bill The Trustees discussed the H2747/S 1771 real estate transfer fee bill, and its implications. Mr. Sandeen shared that Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved two home rule petition warrant articles requesting legislative approval to establish residential and commercial linkage fees . Mr. Makarious advised the staff reach out to Michelle Ciccolo’s office to determine the efficient path to getting the transfer fees implemented. Would it be to support the state bill or would it be a better option to support the separate Town bills? Ms. Rust stated that the website, https://www.realestatetransferfee.org/ provides general information, and the specific proposals that various communities and municipalities have put forward. She felt the coalition approach of working with other Towns may help drive a positive outcome sooner. Mr. Sandeen asked if Mr. Matt Daggett, the Town Meeting member who proposed the two linkage fee home rule petition warrant articles, should be invited to an upcoming meeting to talk to the Trust about the linkage fee bills. Mr. Makarious suggested that if the Town manager or Ms. Kowalski authorize, the Town counsel could take the past Town bills that were passed and compare them substantively to determine what’s in the Statewide Transfer fee bill and what’s missing. This provides guidance on the differences if the bill passes. He also shared that the Town has taken a position on the Linkage fees but not the Transfer fees. The Trustees discussed the Linkage fees, its impact and as it relates to the Transfer fees. Mr. Pressman explained the difference between the Linkage fee and Transfer fee. The Linkage fee is a one-time fee, charged when a property is initially developed , and prior to occupancy. Transfer fee happens during the sale of a property. The Trustees further reviewed two things, if they would like to advocate for the Transfer fees, and whether they will recommend the Select Board and the Town staff to advocate the hearing for the Transfer fee bill. They discussed if there should be a warrant article to take advantage of the Transfer fee assuming that it passes in the legislature. The Trustees unanimously responded they are in support of the Transfer fees. It will be further discussed in conjunction with the Linkage fees at the next meeting. Page 3 of 3 5. Trustee Compensation Ms. Payne recused herself for this discussion. The Trustees discussed if they would recommend to the Select Board for a stipend for the resident Trustee with low or moderate income . The stipend would support the resident by alleviating some of the associated costs of fulfilling Trustee responsibilities such as child care, transportation and taking time away from work. Ms. Tung moved to recommend to the Select Board that the Trustee who is a resident of Lexington with low or moderate income receive a stipend of $3000 annually to be prorat ed monthly if they leave within a year. The money will come out of the Affordable Housing Trust funds, and they are non-CPA funds. Mr. Erickson seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 4-0-0 (Roll call: Erickson – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Tung – yes, Sandeen – yes). Motion passed. 6. Committee Assignments Ms. Tung would like for each Trustee to reach out to one other committee in Town that deals with housing, and to be a liaison. 7. Confirm next meeting dates The Trustees decided to have their next meeting on July 26th at 10 am. 8. Adjourn Mr. Sandeen made a motion to adjourn the meeting of July 13, 2023. Mr. Erickson seconded, and the Trust voted in favor of the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 11:01 am.