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Home My WebLink About1984-03-27-LEXHAB-min.pdf aki RECEIVED -- G (! SELECTMEN' 84 II 9 19 LEXHAB •(i aMinutes of the Me t±ng of March 27, 1984 Present. Jean Gaudet, Don Wilson, Dave Eagle, Bill Hays, Linda Conrad, Bill Kennedy; Bea Phear Minutes The minutes of the meetings of January 5, 1984; January 19, 1984; and January 26, 1984 were accepted as mailed The Minutes of the meeting of February 23, 1984 were accepted as ammended - the final paragraph on the first page should read Don Wilson distributed papers summarizing rental subsidies available from Section 8 (federal) and 707 (state) A household may have maximum assets of $15,000 Utilities may be added to the subsidy of rent, but not so as to create a negative rent Nothing over the base rent can go to the landlord A section 8 certificate holder has 30 days in which to find an apartment, and then must turn back the certificate Lexington usually has two or three section 8 certificates to spend each year Affidavit Bea was asked to find out if Dave Rogers and Bob Hutchinson talked about the issue of buyers filling in section (d) on the affidavit form Report on March 1 meeting Politi, Hays, Zorka, Wilson and Hutchinson met on March 1 Bob Hutchinson circulated notes of that meeting to LexHAB Bill Hays reported that the message was very clear that the Town does not stand behind any debt that LexHAB incurs; financially LexHAB is autonomous In the discussion of rent structure, both Hutchinson and Politi gave a strong sense that the spirit of Town Meeting was that rents should be lower than the lowest market rents in town. Since all decisions must be approved by the Selectmen, they were asked if the Selectmen wanted to designate the rents, but Politi and Hutchinson said they wanted recommendations from LexHAB first, and suggested a public hearing as part of that process Rent Structure There was discussion about setting rents at the section 8 level Jean said she was comfortable with that level Don felt he could also support that, and it could dilute public criticism. Dave thought rents might be somewhere between market and section 8 Bill Kennedy spoke to a woman at Countryside who was paying only $97, but Don said that is federally subsidized, and not all tenants pay that little Don had asked Rita Sullivan at the Housing Authority what they assume for minimum maintenance needs at Parker They use $40 per month for maintenance LexHAB will also have to build in administration. Dave said his administration costs come to one month's rent per year, or 81% If LexHAB's rents are $600/month, that would be $14 for administration It was tentatively decided to use a figure of $54 per month for administration and maintenance to be built into the rent, above the condo fee Financing Jean talked with Kirk Noyes last week He said he has his mortgage financing, and his construction loan is tied up in the ammendments to the Land Disposition Agreement, but that should be solved in a few weeks He has agreed to try to set up a meeting with his banker and LexHAB at the next LexHAB meeting on April 3 It was agreed that LexHAB would have to start shopping for mortgages Jean asked Don and Dave to talk to local bankers prior to the meeting with Noyes' banker, to get a frame of reference Linda pointed out that we wouldn't be borrowing much more than that needed for an expensive Lexington house, but would be spreading the risk among a number of units The concept could be sold to the banks either as one large mortgage or as several small ones Bill Hays thought the banks could treat LexHAB as a commercial borrower, which might mean tougher terms Don said a bank would ask about the restrictions Are LexHAB's units holding the same restrictions as the other units? Bill Hays thought our units, once they leave our hands, have the same restrictions as the others The agreement now says that the Town is able to pick up a unit during foreclosure, and we may want to suggest, if they are going to amend the agreement, that the Selectmen haul our units out of restrictions, since we are the body for which the restrictions are designed, and it may cost us money to have the restrictions in Unit Designation If LexHAB builds in maintenance and administration to the rents, and using John Zorka's estimates based on section 8 rental limits, then it is beginning to look like it would be possible to purchase six or seven units Bill Hays pointed out that the agreement calls for the Town to designate up to ten units within the fourteen day period, but then there is an additional 120 days prior to signing a purchase and sale agreement and paying the $5,000, with no penalty for not buying some of the designated units LexHAB could allow itself some more time to make the final selection, and keep several configurations still in the air For example, dropping a two bedroom unit to save money, or dropping a one bedroom unit We want to retain approximately $40,000 as a buffer Another consideration is what options to buy, which would influence cost. Jean suggests getting an expert to examine what the impact of the energy option might be, and the committee had discussed the possibility of negotiating on part of the kitchen package, getting dishwashers across-the-board but not the more expensive cabinets Jean wondered who would want the one bedroom units, since the current elderly housing has already met that need for the elderly population, and one of LexHAB's targets was families Jean felt we needed to go to the Selectmen with something soon, as Kirk is planning to start construction in three or four weeks It was decided to discuss this further, giving the Selectmen a sense of what LexHAB is trying to do, but not with a specific recommendation on rent level Administration/Staffing aveasked where LexHAB would sit, after they take over the money At Emerson, the secretarial work is done two days per week, with leases renewed together on the word processor Linda suggested contracting for space, and perhaps a staff person, from the Council on Aging, since they are going to be in the building and accessible Don suggested the possibility of contracting, on a per unit basis, with the Housing Auhtority, as they already have the office and file space, and there would be coverage at all times siioe they have three people He felt they could do it more efficiently The committee asked Don to continue to explore that possibility Muzzey Buyers Jean reported that Kirk had complained that Bob Hutchinson had not averaged Luca Jr's income when he denied him. Bill Hays said that Luca had complained to him that his 1983 income was used, not 1981/82 as for the earlier buyers LexHAB thought that was correct to use 1983 Bill Hays spoke with Dave Rogers about the issue of the 120 days expiring before a certified buyer could pass papers The time limit had been written into the agreement to prevent people from delaying their purchase, but didn't take into account delays due to construction. It does appear that the Hutchinson certifications will expire, and the people will need to be recertified The question is on what basis Linda thought we might grandfather the first 21 buyers Construction Quality Jean received a call from Julian Bussgang, who cited a Hancock owner who had complaints about Noyes and suggested LexHAB keep a close eye on construction quality Jean then talked to other Hancock owners who had no complaints about construction other than minor start-up problems, which were addressed promptly Jean suggest we talk to those Hancock owners we know Next Meetings Tuesday, April 3, room G-15, 8 00 pm. meet with Noyes and banker Wednesday, April 4, Selectmen's Meeting Room. meet with Selectmen 7 00 pm Tuesday, April 24, room G-15, 8 00 pm draft recommendations to Selectmen Respectfully Submitted, Beatrice Phear