2005-04-18(2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mr. Caravati suggested having one representative from the non-profit sector and limiting it to either the Chair or Executive Director of CRHA. He said the representative from Quality Community Council could be someone other than the Director. He agreed that some people can be brought in at the appropriate time and do not need to be members. Dr. Brown agreed that he would like to see the membership pared down. He asked if the review should be done on an annual or biennial basis. Ms. Hamilton suggested that the review be done as part of an annual forum rather than separate. She expressed concern about the work required with an annual reporting and asked how much staff support the task force will have. Mr. Tolbert said that staffing the task force will be a function of the grants administrator and interns will be available to help as well. Mr. Caravati said he would favor requiring the affordable housing goals where the City provides financial assistance. He said he thinks that closing an alley or street could be considered financial assistance because it could otherwise be a cloud on the title of the property. Mr. Caravati reiterated his position that he has problems with the median income defined and he disagrees with the goals of 50% of median income and would prefer to skew it more toward 50% of the median income in Charlottesville. He said he would prefer 25% from 65-80 and 75% from 65 down. He said there is very little attention given to low income rental housing. He said if we are interested in protecting those who need help we need to try to pursue legislation that will give us flexibility to serve the lowest 25% of the population. Dr. Brown agreed with the need for affordable rental housing and suggested adding to the charge to study this issue and make recommendations. Ms. Hamilton said that when she served on the Housing Policy Task Force there was an emphasis on home ownership. She said the sense was that there is a glut of rental housing coming on the market and eventually market forces would adjust down. She said she would support adding rental housing to the charge. Mr. Lynch said it would be helpful to involve surrounding counties in the affordable rental housing discussion. Mr. Caravati said we still need to help people even though we have more than our share of affordable rental housing in the region. He noted that we could give our HOME funds for affordable housing in other communities. Ms. Hamilton noted that JABA and PHA have formed a partnership to provide elderly housing and said we should keep an eye on that project. Ms. Hamilton made a motion to adopt the Housing Policy Strategy and Mr. Lynch seconded the motion. Mr. Schilling said that prices are an important part of the equation. He said rising prices result in increased assessments and increased taxes which results in an exodus of long-term home owners. He said having prices drop would be a blessing in disguise. He said he cannot support the Housing Policy Strategy and feels we are not addressing the problem as well as we could. Dr. Brown said the main concern about Mr. Caravati's idea about the definition is that it may be self-defeating. Mr. Lynch said that the median income is skewed by students and feels using the median family income would be a more accurate gauge. Mr. Tolbert said it would be simple to use the Charlottesville median income. Mr. Tolbert suggested that the phrase household income be used.