CITY COMMISSION AGENDA ITEM

Department:	City Manager’s Office		Commission Meeting Date:  5-7-19
Staff Contact:	Britt Crum-Cano, Economic Development Administrator Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager
Recommendations/Options/Action Requested:
Receive proposed revisions to City’s Economic Development Policy, adopted January 15, 2018 by Resolution No. 7184, clarifying administration and compliance requirements for affordable housing. Refer to the Public Incentives Review Committee (PIRC) and Affordable Housing Advisory Board (AHAB) to review and provide recommendations.
Executive Summary:		Background: The City’s economic development policy was updated and adopted January 15, 2017. This update included an affordable housing provision specifying a percentage of units to be set-aside for affordable hosing if the project included four (4) or more residential units. When the policy was drafted, it did not contemplate various tenant scenarios that might impact affordable housing compliance. At that time, the Affordable Housing Advisory Board (AHAB) was still working on defining affordable housing and related details. It was expected the policy would need to be revised in the future to align with AHAB’s affordable housing parameters after they were determined. Staff has consulted and worked with Shannon Oury of the Lawrence Douglas County Housing Authority (LCDHA) and Tom Jackson of the National Development Council (NDC) to draft additional affordable housing guidelines that accommodates tenant changes as well as keeps with the intent of the affordable housing program and goals.  These policy revisions include those guidelines which are intended to clarify reporting and compliance requirements related to affordable housing.  In general, the proposed revisions aim to: · Address the rounding issue for the Affordable Housing set-aside percentage when a fraction of a unit is calculated. · Clarify tenant eligibility and provide flexibility in addressing changing tenant income scenarios to better align with the overall intent of the City’s affordable housing program. · Clarify City compliance when projects are qualified under a federal affordable housing program. Next Steps: The proposed policy changes are ready to be reviewed by PIRC and AHAB for providing further recommendations to the City Commission.  The AHAB meeting is scheduled for May 13, 2019.  The PIRC meeting is scheduled for May 15, 2019.
Strategic Plan Critical Success Factor		Effective Governance/Professional Administration Sound Fiscal Stewardship Collaborative Solutions
Fiscal Impact (Amount/Source):		The fiscal impact to the City is negligible and this item was not in the 2018-2019 budget or CIP since proposed changes are for administrative and compliance clarification purposes.
Attachments:		City of Lawrence Economic Development Policy, adopted January 15, 2017 by Resolution No. 7184 Proposed Economic Development Policy changes (draft)

Reviewed By: (for CMO use only)

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