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HRA 07/01/1999 - 00002703CITY OF FRIDLEY HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING J U LY 1, 1999 CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Commers called the July 1, 1999, Housing and Redevelopment Authority meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. ROLL CALL: Members Present: Larry Commers, Virginia Schnabel, Jim Mcfarland, John Meyer, Pat Gabel Members Absent: None. Others Present: William Burns, Executive Director Barbara Dacy, Community Development Director Grant Fernelius, Housing Coordinator Rick Pribyl, Finance Director Julie Vogel, Accountant Jim Casserly, Development Consultant Dave King, Center for Energy & Environment Todd Raveling, 5861 Main Street Stacey Burtyk, 5861 Main Street Mavis Pries, 5905 Main Street APPROVAL OF THE JUNE 3, 1999, HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING MINUTES: MOTION by Ms. Schnabel, seconded by Mr. Meyers, to approve the June 3, 1999 Housing and Redevelopment Authority minutes as presented. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. CONSENT AGENDA: CLAIMS AND EXPENSES: MOTION by Ms Gabel, seconded by Mr. McFarland, to approve the consent agenda and additional expenses. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 2 ACTION ITEMS: 2. APPOINTMENT OF HRA REMODELING ADVISOR: Mr. Fernelius stated that Virginia Harrington Sweeney has accepted the position as the new Remodeling Advisor. Ms. Sweeney has over 20 years of experience in the residential construction industry including 13 years as a Journey-level carpenter, 7 years as a General Contractor, and two years working for the Habitat for Humanity as a Construction Site Manager. She has a lot of good experience and skills and will be a very valuable employee for the HRA. Unfortunately, she could not attend the HRA meeting; but, hopefully, she will be present at the August meeting. Staff recommends that the HRA approve the appointment of Ms. Sweeney to the position of Remodeling Advisor. Mr. Commers asked if any HRA members had any comments or concerns regarding Ms. Sweeney. Mr. Meyer stated it sounded like Ms. Sweeney has very good credentials. MOTION by Ms. Gabel, seconded by Mr. Meyer, to approve the appointment of Virginia Sweeney as HRA Remodeling Advisor. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. PUBLIC HEARING: 3. PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING THE SALE OF 5857 MAIN STREET TO THE CENTER FOR ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT. MOTION by Ms. Gabel, seconded by Ms. Schnabel, to open the public hearing. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED AND THE PUBLIC HEARING OPEN AT 7:53 P.M. Mr. Fernelius stated the HRA is required to conduct a public hearing before it sells any property. The property in question at 5857 Main Street is located in Hyde Park neighborhood. It was acquired by the HRA in 1996 through the Scattered Site Program. A substandard house on the site was demolished in 1997. There were a couple of offers that never materialized until last spring when the HRA made a decision to work with the Center for Energy and Environment (CEE) to develop the site. CEE is a non-profit agency that administers the HRA's Housing Rehabilitation Program. They are branching out HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 3 into additional programs and services beyond housing rehab. This is a demonstration project for them. Mr. Fernelius stated CEE is proposing is to construct a new single family home with high performance standards. This would include super installation, building envelope, mechanical ventilation, sealed ductwork, and also advanced wall framing. Typically these features are included in higher value housing but are not incorporated into start-up housing. CEE is targeting this type of property to first-time homebuyers whose incomes are up to 80% of the median income. In this case it would be up to $48,650.00 for a family of four. CEE is proposing a two-story design, approximately 1,400 square feet in size, with two bedrooms, 1'/ bath, and a two-car attached garage. The projected value of the site would be $130,000.00. That includes both land and completed building. Mr. Dave King, CEE representative, spoke regarding the plans for the project. Mr. Commers asked Mr. King if there is anything else he would like to add regarding this project and also asked if it is the first of its kind for CEE. Mr. King stated that basically it is the first of its kind for CEE. He stated the agency has a lot of experience with rehabilitation projects but have many people on staff who have participated in new construction. Those people will be heading this project. CEE has transferred an employee with new construction experience to their Minneapolis office to facilitate this project. He stated they are basically trying to an affordable home in the Hyde Park area. He stated the reason the high performance aspect came in is that they received funding through the Minnesota Housing Financing Agency through their proposal process. They submitted two proposals--this one and another one in Fridley, and received financing for the project. Part of the funds they received is going towards the incremental cost of providing this study or demonstration to measure the cost of completing a high performance project on an affordable property. Mr. Meyer asked Mr. King a question about the financing relating to USBank. Mr. King explained that they secured financing through MHFA. The end purchaser will have to be a first-time buyer and attend a first-time homebuyer training course so they partnered with USBank on this endeavor. The buyer will participate in their services and ultimately receive USBank's product. Mr. Commers asked if there was any assistance with that mortgage. Mr. King stated there is a variety of different assistance available. Mrs. Schnabel asked what the estimates of the benefits to the homeowner would be in terms of savings with this high performance system. HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 4 Mr. King stated that Mr. Bob Rosenthal, the construction manager on the project, was not able to be present and he apologized for that. Mr. King said he didn't know what the hard numbers for savings are. This construction provides a very durable property that has the highest energy efficiency and safest construction techniques currently known. It should allow someone a little more affordability with energy costs. Mr. Meyer asked who would be building the house. Mr. King said they would hire a builder. CEE would own and develop the lot, then market it, and sell it to a qualified buyer. Mr. Meyer asked if the builder would get the job on the basis of a bid. Mr. King stated it would be the competitive bid process, essentially Category 1. Ms. Gabel asked if they would find a buyer first. Mr. King said it was their focus to find a buyer through one of the homebuyer training courses and let them put the finishing touches on the property like colors, cabinets, sinks and fixtures, etc. Mr. Commers thanked Mr. King for presenting the information for CEE. Mr. Commers asked if there were any other members in the audience who wanted to address any concerns with the public hearing. Mr. Todd Raveling, 5861 Main Street, asked what happens if his fiance's (Stacey Burtyk) house at 5861 Main Street goes down (meaning damage to more than 50% of the value of the house) and the lot is only 40 feet wide. The HRA has a 60-foot limit on lot width so how would that affect Stacey Burtyk's property? Mr. Commers said he wasn't sure what he meant. Mr. Commers asked if he meant if it would reduce Ms. Burtyk's lot size when the house was built. Mr. Raveling stated that if her house goes down due to a fire or something, is it grandfathered to be rebuilt, or is she limited to 60 feet? A couple years back the HRA offered to buy her property, but she declined at that time. The lot next to hers is 80 feet; and if HRA had purchased her property, the HRA could have built two houses. Mr. Burns stated that it sounds like Ms. Burtyk's property is a non-conforming property; and if there was damage to more than 50% of the value, she would not be able to rebuild. Mr. Raveling stated he wondered why the purchase of the lot didn't go forward. HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 5 Mr. Fernelius stated he did have a discussion with Ms. Burtyk, but they were not able to reach an agreement with the price and the deal fell through. Mr. Commers said he wasn't sure if anything could be done at this time. Mr. Raveling stated Ms. Burtyk was offered less than what she paid for the property. Mr. Commers said she could possibly turn around and sell it at a higher price because this might add to the value. Mr. Commers stated he appreciated Mr. Raveling coming to the meeting. MOTION by Ms. Schnabel, seconded by Ms. Gabel, to close the public hearing. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE PUBLIC HEARING CLOSED AT 8:02 P.M. Mr. Commers asked if there was any further discussion on the sale of 5857 Main Street to CEE. Mr. Raveling asked if there was a chance that they could purchase a portion of the lot to make Ms. Burtyk's lot a 60-foot lot. Mr. Fernelius stated it is a conforming 80-foot lot; and if any portion were sold, it would become another non-conforming lot. Ms. Dacy explained that in the Hyde Park area, S-1 district, the width of the lot shall not be less than 60 feet at the required setback. At this point in time, the HRA cannot make any commitment if that's an option or not. Mr. Commers stated it would be up to CEE to diminish the value of the property, and it is not a matter the HRA can consider at this time. Ms. Schnabel asked when construction would be anticipated on the property. Mr. King stated they would try to solicit bids starting July 15, select a contractor, and, hopefully, break ground in September. Mr. Meyer asked why the home was only 32 feet wide on an 80-foot lot. Mr. Fernelius said he guessed the primary reason is to keep the cost down. Mr. Meyer asked what they could do in this pending motion to leave the door open for negotiation for Ms. Burtyk's property and the property located at 5857 Main Street. HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 6 Mr. King stated they could see if something could be worked out. Mr. Commers stated he hoped CEE could examine the situation for possible negotiations. Mr. Commers asked about the setbacks in Hyde Park. Ms. Dacy replied that side setbacks are 10 feet on one side, and 13 feet on the other side, except when there is an attached garage reducing the setback to 5 feet. Mr. Commers stated that Mr. Raveling and Ms. Burtyk should try to meet with Mr. Fernelius and CEE to see what can be done. Ms. Schnabel commented that the designs presented are newer designs of houses. She said it would be nice to see some different designs incorporated in the future. MOTION by Ms. Schnabel, seconded by Mr. McFarland, to approve Resolution No. HRA 8-1999, Authorizing Execution and Delivery of a Contract for Private Redevelopment By and Between the Housing and Redevelopment Authority in and for the City of Fridley, Minnesota, and Center for Energy and Environment for Property Located at 5857 Main Street. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 4. CONSIDER DEVELOPMENT CONTRACT WITH CENTER FOR ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT: Mr. Casserly, Development Consultant, recommended approval of the development contract. Mr. Burns asked if there is a possibility of reopening the negotiations for the other property of Ms. Burtyk's. Mr. Commers stated they should recognize there is a little difficulty with that property and they should talk to the other party about this issue. Mr. Fernelius stated he could talk to them about that and pursue all angles. MOTION by Mr. Meyer, seconded by Ms. Schnabel, to approve the development contract. HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 7 UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON COMMERS DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY INFORMATION ITEMS: 5. UPDATE ON ARCHITECTURAL DESIGNS FOR SCATTERED SITE PROGRAM: Ms. Schnabel commented that the same designs have been constructed for a number of years with the garage in the front with very little of the house showing. She liked the recent presentations with the garage styles. Mr. Fernelius clarified the plans shown before were given to Mr. Gerloff. Mr. Gerloff had the challenge of building something sensitive to the other properties around it in terms of existing homes but included amenities in demand by today's homebuyers. Mr. Gerloff didn't want to part radically from the designs that were dominating the City of Fridley. He stated it was a blending of new and old. Mr. Fernelius stated they are trying to get consensus on whether the designs are attractive. They met with a builder and a realtor and also want to know how the HRA authority feels as they are still in the process of revising. Ms. Gabel stated there are some garages in Fridley that resemble barns. Ms. Dacy said there are no codes requiring whether the garages look like a barn. The zoning code can only go so far regarding architectural issues as long as the garage meets all the guidelines for setbacks. Mr. Commers asked Ms. Gabel to bring a picture of this property to show for future reference in decisions. Mr. Meyer stated there is a certain charm to having diversity in houses in a neighborhood. Ms. Dacy stated diversity is also a part of the planning to prevent a cookie cutter design for the neighborhood. Ms. Schnabel stated she thinks there are more interesting concepts that could be built than what she has seen in the presentation. She believed it was very sterile and bland, and she found the interior uninteresting. The kitchen is part of where the living space is, so if you're cooking you have your pots and pans in view. She had a question of how the plans would be presented to builders. Mr. Fernelius stated they hadn't decided that yet. There are pros and cons requiring a builder or using a concept and having them modify it as they see fit. The HRA would still be reviewing any plans prior to construction however. HOUSING & REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING. JULY 1. 1999 PAGE 8 6. DRAFT BUDGET1999-2000: Ms. Dacy stated that staff is not suggesting any formal action tonight and would represent the budget at the August meeting. There is nothing to be added over and above what was discussed in the budget work session. Mr. Primly stated he is placing the budget as a priority to be completed. ADJOURNMENT: MR. COMMERS DECLARED THE JULY 1, 1999, MEETING OF THE HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY ADJOURNED AT 8:38 P.M. Respectfully submitted, Signe Johnson Recording Secretary