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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-01-16-AHTBT-min Affordable Housing Trust Meeting Minutes of January 16, 2025 12:30 pm Hybrid meeting on Zoom and attended in-person in Parker Room, Town Office Building Affordable Housing Trust Board Members present: Elaine Tung, Chair; William Erickson, Mark Sandeen, Linda Prosnitz, Tiffany Payne Staff present: Liz Rust, RHSO Director; Ragi Ramachandran, Administrative Assistant; Dana Bickelman, Director of Human Services; Mina Makarious, Jillian Barger, Town Counsel Ms. Tung chaired the hybrid meeting and called the meeting to order at 12:37 pm. Executive Session Ms. Tung moved to go into Executive session under Exemption 6 to discuss the value of real property in connection with Lowell Street Parcel 68-44. The Affordable Housing Trust Chair stated that an open session might have a detrimental effect on the negotiating position of the Affordable Housing Trust. Mr. Erickson seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 4- 0-0, by a roll call vote (Erickson – yes, Sandeen – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Tung – yes). Ms. Tung stated that the Trust will reconvene in the open session after the Executive session. The Trustees exited the regular session at 12:41 pm. The Trustees reconvened in regular session at 1:24pm. 1. Approve Meeting Minutes Ms. Tung requested a motion to approve the minutes of 11/14/24, 11/21/24 and 12/4/24 AHT meetings. Mr. Sandeen moved. Ms. Prosnitz seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 5-0-0, by a roll call vote (Erickson – yes, Payne – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Sandeen – yes, Tung – yes). Meeting minutes approved. 2. Chair, Select Board, Board/Committee Liaison and RHSO/staff report Ms. Tung reported that she met with the Capital Expenditures Committee that. Ms. Tung shared th the update from Planning Board meeting on Jan. 15 where they discussed the citizens petition. Ms. Tung also had presented slides re. affordable housing needs and AHT efforts to Lexington Human Rights Committee. Ms. Prosnitz reported that $75,000 would be sufficient for one study in regards to H.2740 Commercial surcharge. Mr. Sandeen added that based on the original language in 2022 Town Meeting Warrant Article, the Town Manager and Town Counsel were comfortable with not requiring another Town Meeting Warrant Article this year to proceed with the nexus study. Mr. Sandeen clarified that the Select Board is responsible for reviewing the study, and setting the transfer fee. Ms. Payne shared the liaison update from Lexington Housing Authority. LHA is working towards the formation of LHA Affordable Housing LLC. This step allows LHA to initiate the redevelopment process for the 17 scattered housing sites under its jurisdiction. LHA will present a proposal to revise the preference requirements for the Federal Public Housing and Housing Choice Voucher Page 1 of 3 (“HCV”) programs. The proposed changes aim to address and align with updated program priorities and community needs. Ms. Payne reported that these updates represent important progress in both redevelopment efforts and policy adjustments to better serve the Lexington community. Ms. Prosnitz reported that Ms. Tung and Ms. Prosnitz met with the 7 Hartwell Ave developer and they were hoping to receive buydown estimates from the developer soon. Ms. Prosnitz stated rd that the Housing Partnership Board meeting is on Jan. 23. th Mr. Erickson reported that the next LexHAB meeting was scheduled for Jan. 29 at 3:30pm and requested that a Trustee attend because he would not be able to attend the meeting. Ms. Prosnitz said she thought she could attend. The Trustees briefly reviewed the slides prepared for Annual Town meeting Warrant Article 10e and no changes were proposed. Ms. Tung requested a motion authorizing Ms. Tung to submit the Annual Town Meeting Warrant Article 10e slides, and the recording for the video presentation. Mr. Erickson moved. Ms. Prosnitz seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 5-0-0, by a roll call vote (Erickson – yes, Payne – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Sandeen – yes, Tung – yes). 3. Resident Support Programs Ms. Prosnitz presented the resident support program put together by the working group comprising of Ms. Payne, Ms. Rust and Ms. Prosnitz. Ms. Prosnitz shared a grant program for health and safety repairs for eligible homeowners within the community. There were detailed discussions on the proposed programs. Ms. Rust added that similar programs have been successful in other communities, although they may not directly help people stay in their homes. Ms. Bickelman suggested involving the Board of Health in the conversation. There was discussion on assistance with property taxes for seniors, preserving existing units, programs to help people get into a unit, on how to reduce administrative overhead, and on how to educate people about available resources. Mr. Erickson presented the resident support programs that he and Ms. Payne had worked on. There was discussion about potential programs to assist with housing and energy costs, education and setting parameters for eligibility, plan and timing of the programs, a potential study to assess the efficiency of housing developments, strategies for addressing energy burden and sustainability, strategies for low-income tenant support, community programs and resource allocation to support the initiatives. The group discussed the challenges of navigating federal and state programs, and the potential for a low-income variant of existing programs. Ms. Bickelman highlighted the importance of mental health considerations in these initiatives. The Trustees felt the programs they come up with should assist the community, focusing on sustainability, utility costs, and rental assistance. Ms. Prosnitz suggested concentrating on two programs to optimize resources. Ms. Payne expressed concern around rising energy bills and the difficulty of finding affordable housing, suggesting utility assistance and rental assistance as priorities. Mr. Erickson felt they should allow more time to deliberate on the suggested programs to finalize the ones to offer. Mr. Sandeen suggested that the priority should be decided based on data about what is causing people to fail in their ability to stay in housing, with energy costs being a significant issue. Ms. Tung felt the issue of homelessness is due to multiple factors, there is a clear need for assistance but there isn’t enough money then how could the Trust enable these programs. Ms. Tung will forward information on the State’s grant program on decarbonization to Caileen Foley from Lexington Housing Authority. Ms. Bickelman proposed working with Ms. Payne to provide more education to residents of LHA and LexHAB on assistance with utility costs and Page 2 of 3 sustainable housing efforts. The group will consider and research potential ownership programs to help lower-income households in Lexington. The Trustees will continue the discussions at a future Trust meeting. 4. Any other business that may properly come before the Trustees which could not be reasonably anticipated The Trustees agreed that the Trust should take a position on the Article 2 Citizen’s Petition in a future Trust meeting. 5. Adjourn Ms. Tung requested a motion to adjourn the Affordable Housing Trust meeting. Ms. Prosnitz moved. Mr. Erickson seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 5-0-0, by a roll call vote (Sandeen – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Payne – yes, Erickson – yes, Tung – yes). The meeting adjourned at 2:57 pm. List of documents reviewed: 1. Annual Town Meeting Warrant Article 10e slides 2. Proposed Resident Services Programs Page 3 of 3