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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-10-21 Bd Comm minutesSb 1 MINUTES APPROVED HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 - 6:30 PM LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Members Present: Steve Crane, Marcy DeFrance, Andy Douglas, Charlie Drum, Holly Jane Hart, Michael McKay, Brian Richman, Michael Shaw, Members Excused: Rebecca McMurray Staff Present: Tracy Hightshoe Others Present: Maryann Dennis, Gary Klein RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL (become effective only after separate Council action): The Commission voted 7-0 (McMurray and Shaw excused) to forward the FAIR! Affordable Housing Consumer Survey and Report to the City Council for its consideration at a Council work session when creating and considering affordable housing-related policies and issues for the community. The report is attached. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. APPROVAL OF THE AUGUST 18, 2008 MINUTES: Shaw motioned to approve the minutes; Crane seconded. The motion carried 8-0 (McMurray excused). PUBLIC COMMENT FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA: Maryann Dennis representing The Housing Fellowship, anon-profit community housing development organization, requested that the Housing and Community Development Commission (HCDC) be willing to call a special meeting in order to hear a request from the Housing Fellowship to amend the terms of the allocation they received in 2008 and 2009. This request is being made to enable the Housing Fellowship to submit aLow-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) application which is due October 31, 2008. Hightshoe said that the bylaws state that a special meeting can be called by the Chair or by a majority consensus of commission members. Hightshoe stated that the Housing Fellowship's request is considered a substantial change in the financial terms, there is no change in the allocation amount. Staff would make a recommendation on the request and send it to the Commission. HCDC's recommendation needs to be done in time for the Council to include it on one of their upcoming October agendas (goal is October 21 S' Council meeting) as the minutes of the HCDC meeting must be included in the Council packet. If the Council decides to approve the request, staff can then provide the documentation needed for the Housing Fellowship to submit their LIHTC application. Hightshoe noted that this meant the Commission would have to meet in the first week of October, suggesting Thursday, October 2°`~. Hightshoe said if a majority agrees to hold the special HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Page 2 of 9 meeting, then she can go ahead and set it. Richman asked if a staff report and recommendation would be given to the Commission prior to the meeting. Hightshoe said that it would, and that the Commission should receive its packet approximately a week before the meeting. Shaw asked if there is a required timeframe for letting the public know that a meeting will be taking place. Hightshoe said that an agenda must be posted 24 hours in advance of the meeting. Hightshoe noted that the Housing Fellowship's request was for the same project and had the same beneficiaries, just a change in financial terms. A majority consensus was reached to set a special meeting for Thursday, October 2°d at 6:30 p.m. in the Lobby Conference Room of City Hall. Maryann Dennis noted that the Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) approved the qualified allocation plan for the tax-credit application very recently using revised underwriting criteria. Hightshoe explained that low-income housing tax credits are administered by the Iowa Finance Authority, the source of funds are from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), not Housing and Urban Development (HUD). LIHTC projects are complex and must meet several underwriting guidelines. STAFF/COMMISSION COMMENT: Hightshoe noted that the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Mark Twain Elementary's new playground is September 19, 2008, at 12:45 p.m., and Commission members are invited to attend. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS: Hightshoe said that the usual process for nominating Commission officers is that every September a Chairperson and aVice-Chair are elected. She said that someone could nominate a Chair and then the Commission could vote on that, or someone could nominate both a Chair and Vice-Chair and they could be voted on simultaneously. Richman noted that this would be a good time to welcome aboard the newest member of the Commission, Michael McKay. He invited McKay to introduce himself and for Commission members to introduce themselves to him. Richman opened the floor for nomination of officers. Douglas nominated Richman for Chairperson. Shaw seconded. There was no discussion of the motion. The motion carried 8-0. Richman opened the floor for nominations for of aVice-Chair. Drum nominated Shaw for Vice-Chair. DeFrance seconded. Shaw asked for discussion of the matter. He said that while he is committed to fulfilling his current obligation to the Commission, it is likely that he will end his service next year. He said that he felt it was a very valuable HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Page 3 of 9 part of the transition process to have the Vice-Chair prepare to take over the Chair position at the end of the current Chair's term; that part of the process would be lost if he were to accept a nomination for Vice-Chair. He said that he would of course serve at the Commission's pleasure if that is what they choose. Douglas and Crane said that they were unable to commit to the Vice-Chair position for the coming year. DeFrance nominated Drum as Vice-Chair. Hart seconded. The motion carried 8-0. NEW BUSINESS:. • Discussion of the FAIRS Affordable Housing Consumer Surve The FAIR! Affordable Housing report was briefly discussed at the last meeting. Gary Klein of FAIR! made himself available for questions. Richman said that he believed the report was a great resource for those in the community concerned with affordable housing, and that he did not believe low-income residents had been so extensively surveyed before. Douglas said that FAIR! would like to put HCDC's recommendation on the report and forward it to City Council for further consideration. Hightshoe asked if it had already been submitted to Council. Klein said that FAIR! would find it valuable if HCDC would review the report, submit their own recommendations on top of it and forward it to Council, or forward it to Council as is with a recommendation that it be considered with other reports when making housing policy. Shaw said that he would like to move that HCDC forward the document without any additional recommendations to the City Council and advise that it be considered when making housing decisions in the community. Hightshoe said to summarize that HCDC's recommendation is to present the survey and ask the Council to consider the recommendation at a work session as a way of opening discussion on the issues? Shaw said he would like HCDC to withhold recommendations on the study itself and simply to present it to the Council as is. Hightshoe noted that typically the mechanism for doing that would be through the recommendations section of the minutes. The Council would then decide whether to act on it or not. If they do, then it would be put on a City Council agenda, and go into their information packet. Richman noted that the report shows that the preferred housing situation for the majority of survey respondents is to live in a home they own. Richman asked if Klein felt the greatest need in the community was affordable owner-occupied housing, affordable rental housing, or a balance of the two. Klein said that FAIR! believes the first step would be education about home-ownership; he said that he believes that there is a lack of understanding about the requirements of home ownership among respondents to the survey. Klein said that what people want and what people can afford are not always one and the same. As policy-makers, Klein said, it is unwise to set up expectations that are unrealistic, but one certainly needs to make sure people are educated to make the best possible decision for their situation. He does believe there is a need in the city for more affordable owner-occupied homes, but he also thinks the issue extends beyond Iowa City and throughout Johnson County. HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Page 4 of 9 Richman asked if Klein was saying that what is reflected in the survey results are people's desires, rather than what may or may not be best for the community. Klein said that the report was done to inform policy-makers what consumers of affordable housing are thinking about and what they perceive their needs to be. He said that FAIR! learned a lot in the process, and had some of its own assumptions proven wrong. Hightshoe asked what results were surprising or different than expected. Klein responded that the perception of the quality of respondents' current housing was generally higher than FAIR! thought it would be; in general, people seemed to think they were living in better-quality housing than they may actually have been. Klein said that overall respondents found their homes to be located conveniently from their workplaces, and that was also a surprise. FAIR! had expected proximity to workplace to be a major concern for respondents. Again, he said, this is a perception issue: for longtime residents of Iowa City, a 15 minute commute to work seems long; for residents coming from larger cities, an hour-long bus ride is not unexpected. Klein said the report is educational on two levels: on understanding the consumer and on shaping good public policy. Douglas asked how Klein came to the conclusion that education was the number one priority when the data does not seem to show any direct deficiency in education. Klein said that this conclusion is an extrapolation. Klein said that when people say they want something that economists say they cannot afford, such as home ownership in an area where even affordable homes are out of reach for them, policy-makers need to decide if they will subsidize to the level that housing is made affordable enough for everyone, or educate to the level that consumers understand what is truly affordable for their circumstances. He said that FAIR! does not always like the conclusions they reach, but that this seems to be the answer based on the data they have. Richman reconfirmed that the scope of Shaw's motion is to forward the document to Council without comment and recommend that it be a part of discussions on affordable housing. Shaw confirmed that. Richman asked if it could be forwarded without endorsement. Hightshoe said that it could be forwarded simply with the recommendation that the Council review and place it on a work session. She said that there will be follow-up conversations by the Council on affordable housing issues regardless. Crane said he feels it provides some good data and some good comments and concerns; he asked if the comments were generalized and reflected the concerns of more than one person. Klein said that the comments section was intended to humanize the report and that the comments do reflect the thinking of more than just the respondents who provided them. He said that he felt the comments section would be valuable in instructing policy-makers on arriving at public-policy positions that are meaningful and work well. Drum asked what role such a study would play in CDBG and other funding allocations. Hightshoe said it would be considered as more public input in establishing HCDC funding priorities. Crane asked if the priorities would be changing soon. Hightshoe said that every five years the Consolidated Plan must be rewritten. She said that HCDC would be writing one soon because the next round of allocations will be for fiscal year 2010, which is the fifth and final year of the plan. When creating afive-year plan, current public input as well as past studies are looked at for consideration of priorities. Shaw withdrew his motion as he had to leave prior to the end of discussions and a vote. Hart motioned to forward the FAIR! Affordable Housing Consumer Survey and Report to the City Council for its consideration at a Council work session when creating and considering affordable housing-related policies and issues for the community. Drum seconded. There was no additional discussion. HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Page 5 of 9 The motion carried 7-0 (McMurray and Shaw excused). • Selection of Proiects to Monitor in FY09 Richman explained that once a year CDBG and HOME funds are allocated to a variety of projects, and annual monitoring reports have to be done throughout the subsequent year to follow-up on the projects. Each Commission member picks a few projects to monitor from a list developed by Hightshoe: the role is one of reporting, not of oversight. McKay: Aid to Agencies (United Action for Youth, Elder Services); Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County -Facility Rehabilitation Richman: IC Free Medical Clinic: 1) Building Acquisition, 2) Operations; Wetherby Splash Pad Douglas: Extend the Dream Foundation -Operations; HACAP- Transitional Housing; Habitat for Humanity -Homeownership Hart: Compeer- Operations; Local Foods Connection -Operations; DVIP -Facility Rehabilitation; Shelter House 1) Operations 2) Land Acquisition Drum: The Housing Fellowship - 1) CHDO Operating, 2) CHDO Pre-Development Loan, 3) FY08 & FY09 Rental Housing; Twain Elementary -Playground Equipment Crane: Arc of Southeast Iowa - 1) Facility Rehabilitation, 2) Operations; Neighborhood Centers of JC DeFrance: Dolphin International LLC -Homeownership; Blooming Garden- Down Payment Assistance; MECCA- 1) Operations, 2) Facility Rehabilitation, 3) Aid to Agencies Shaw: ICHA Tenant-Based Rent Assistance; Goodwill Industries- Facility Rehabilitation; Isis Investments LLC -Rental McMurray: ICHA- 1) Homeownership, 2) TBRA • Timeline for the Annual Review of the Consolidated Plan Hightshoe said that typically public meetings in two to three places are set up to gather information about the needs of the community. Hightshoe said the public meetings are summarized and sent to all of the city departments. An evaluation of the comments then takes place to determine whether the CITY STEPS plan needs to be revised. Hightshoe said that the five-year plan has typically been done in-house; however, with the flood and the implementation of the supplemental CDBG funds and the hazard mitigation program, a consultant will probably be hired to do the Consolidated Plan, which is also known as CITY STEPS. Hightshoe said that CITY STEPS goes through a very large review process in which priorities, census information, housing market-analysis, and other studies are examined. Typically, Hightshoe said, the Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report would also be reviewed right now; however, due to the flood, HUD has granted the City a waiver. The report is due in December. Usually year end report offers a good review of the year's project accomplishments. The old Consolidated Plan, Hightshoe said, was realistic in the way that it allocated money and in the amount of money that would be available over that five years, but not in the housing goals. The amount of units the Consolidated Plan hoped to assist given the money that was allotted was not realistic. Hightshoe said she would recommend that with the next version of CITY STEPS the goals consider the amount of money available, the typical cost in assisting a given unit, and that the goals set are more realistic. Hightshoe said that while the percentages of units assisted by category HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, C[TY HALL Page 6 of 9 were on target, when the actual number of units is reviewed, it will look as though the goals in the plan have not been achieved. Hightshoe asked if there was a target population or a certain clientele that HCDC wished to get feedback from for the Annual Review. Hightshoe said that in previous years meetings have been held at: HACAP, Forest Ridge Mobile Home Park, Lakeside, Mercer Park, Successful Living, Neighborhood Center at Broadway and Pheasant Ridge. Hightshoe said she sets the meetings up and then she will e-mail out the locations at a later date. She advised that it was not an HCDC meeting and so the Commissioners are welcome, but not obligated to be there. She said she will put discussion of the summary and conclusions of the public input they receive on the October 16`h agenda. Crane asked if a suggestion box had been used in the previous year's meeting, as he recalled discussions that it might be a good idea for people who wanted to voice their opinions but did not want to speak publicly in a large group. Hightshoe said it was not done last year, but could be done this year. On a suggestion from a Commissioner, Hightshoe noted that it might be possible to combine a forum and a Public Housing workshop to solicit input from those living in City-owned housing. Richman suggested getting participation from diverse geographical locations in the community. Hightshoe pointed out that the Iowa City Housing Authority's programs are not necessarily held in the Civic Center. If a meeting is planned for the Baculis-owned trailer court, then a separate meeting place would have to be found as there are no meeting facilities there. Hightshoe said she has found that if you simply have a public comment meeting about the Consolidated Plan, few people come; but if you consolidate it with an agenda for another event, then we receive much more input. Richman said that anything that can be done to increase participation would be encouraged. • Discuss the Iowa Housing Conference There is an Iowa Housing Conference in Des Moines on October 2"d and 3`d. Typically there is enough money in the budget to send one or two HCDC Commission members if they wish to go. It was pointed out that this was the same date as the special meeting that had been scheduled earlier. Hightshoe said that the special meeting could possibly be rescheduled but that she was just trying to ascertain if there was interest on the part of any Commission members in attending. McKay expressed interest in attending. OLD BUSINESS: • Discuss Community Development Block Grant Supplemental Funding: Hightshoe said that on September 17`h the Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) contacted all of the entitlement cities and the regional Council of Governments (COG) affected by the flood by conference call to announce that money would be coming shortly. In fact, Hightshoe said, IDED wanted to do training on how to receive the funds and input data on September 19`h. Iowa received $85 million in supplemental recovery funds. $40 million of that is slated for housing programs. The aim is to concentrate on rehabilitation, down-payment assistance, and internal mortgage assistance for people affected by the flood. There was a variance for this program -typically 70% of CDBG funding has to go to people below 80% median income-requiring that only 50% of the funding recipients be below 80% of the median income. That said, money still must first go to people under median income. Hightshoe said that the areas in Iowa City that were hit by the floods had a substantial mix of income levels. Once the program is advertised, Hightshoe said, the number of people who are eligible will be examined. Iowa City is still unsure how much money it will HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Page 7 of 9 receive, though the City will be a direct recipient of these funds. Hightshoe said she assumes that the majority of the funds will go to Cedar Rapids because there is a formula which takes into account how many people received Federal Emergency Management Assistance (FEMA) assistance as one of its criteria for figuring the percentage of need. Hightshoe said that the Jump Start program will be funded by the State of Iowa, and will not have all of the federal regulations attached. She believed that Jump Start too had $40 million in funding, $20 million of which is to go to businesses and $20 million toward housing. Hightshoe said no written guidelines have yet been received. The IFA will be administering the housing assistance program through Jump Start and the small business program will be operated by IDED. Hightshoe said no written guidelines have been received yet. Once the guidelines are received, staff will be able to better direct people to the program for which they are eligible based on their circumstances and income. Hightshoe said that the application process is simply that a letter must be submitted stating that the City of Iowa City will administer the funds. Some form of environmental review must be done for the CDBG funds. Workshops will soon be held for both programs, and staff will then be able to get the necessary information out to folks in need. Stanley Consultants has finished their report on flood mitigation measures and it is being reviewed by Public Works. Hightshoe attended abenefit/cost analysis training for the hazard mitigation grant program. Surveyors have been sent out to flood-effected homes to measure first floor elevations and determine eligibility. Hightshoe noted that one frustrating thing that she learned in the training was that if a property sustains damage only in a 250 or 500-year flood, then the probability of a future flood plays against you and makes it difficult to reach the ratio to receive abuy-out. The analysis is done by a software program that takes into account first floor elevations, information from the flood insurance study, cost of structure replacement and other data to determine the benefit/cost ratio. The City is beginning by having a surveyor evaluate 30 of the lower elevation homes, working on the assumption that if the homes in the low-elevations do not qualify, then the homes in higher elevations will not qualify either. If the building is in the 100-year floodplain and sustained more than 50% damage, then the cost/benefit analysis does not have to be performed. For those properties that are eligible for a buyout, the City used 110% of the pre-flood value for statistical purposes; however, the buyout prices will be set on a home by home basis, taking into account recent appraisals and market-value analysis. There is no duplication of benefits allowed under the buy-out program. Hightshoe gave the following example to illustrate this: if a property-owner is paid $70,000 by their flood insurance provider and does not put the money back into the home (keeps it in the bank), then when the City goes to buyout the home, worth $100,000, the City would only pay that property owner $30,000. On the other hand, Hightshoe said, if a property-owner received $70,000 from their flood insurance and can document that they have done $30,000 worth of work on their home, then the City would buy out the home for $60,000 ($100,000 - 70,000 + 30,000). It is still a question as to how the supplemental CDBG funds and the Jump Start programs will work. Hightshoe said that it is unlikely that Iowa City will be given enough money to restore everyone to their pre-flood condition. Within the next month, much more information should become available to flood- effected residents. Hightshoe said that it is possible that another staff member could be hired to help with the flood relief efforts, depending on how much money is received. There is a maximum dollar amount per unit for both business and homeowners that can be received in assistance. Hightshoe estimated that for businesses it may be up to $50,000 per recipient, and for homeowners it may be up to something like $37,000. Hightshoe said it might not be enough to repair the whole house, but it might help those who have nothing get some repairs done. She HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION SEPTEMBER 18, 2008 LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL Page 8 of 9 said it is also possible that those maximums could be waived; she will not know any details until she receives the guidelines in writing. ADJOURNMENT: Drum motioned to adjourn; DeFrance seconded. A vote was taken and the motion to adjourn carried 7- 0 (McMurray and Shaw excused). The meeting adjourned at 8:09 p.m. Housing & Community Development Commission Attendance Record 2008 Name Term Expires AM 2/12 PM 2/12 2/20 3/13 3/27 4/17 5/15 7/17 8/21 9/18 Jer Anthon 09/01/08 O/E X X X X X X X X X Steve Crane 09/01/09 O/E X X X X O/E X O/E X X Marc De France 09/01/09 X X X X X 0/E X X 0 X And Dou las 09/01/08 X X X O/E X X X O/E X X Charlie Drum 09/01/10 X X O/E X X X X O/E X X Holl Jane Hart 09/01/10 X X X X X X X X X X Rebecca McMurra 09/01/08 X X X X X X X X O/E 0/E Brian Richman 09/01/10 O/E X 0/E X X X X X X X Michael Shaw 09/01/09 X X X X X O/E X X O/E x Key: X = Present O = Absent O/E = AbsenUExcused NM = No Meeting -- -- = Not a Member The following FAIR AFFORDABLE HOUSING CONSUMER STUDY was not attached to the HCDC minutes when distributed to Council October 16, and when brought to staff attention was added at the time the meeting folder was finalized. FAIR! AFFORDABLE HOUSING CONSUMER STUDY 2007-2008 PRESENTED TO IOWA CITY HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION 9/18108 PRINCIPAL RESEARCHERS: GAIL ARDERY ANDY DOUGLAS GARRY KLEIN KAREN KUBBY MONIKA RATNER CAROL SPAZIANI CHRIS TRAYNOR WENDY ROBERTSON CITY ADVISORY: STEVE RACKIS STEVE LONG 1 AFFORDABLE HOUSING CONSUMER STUDY INTRODUCTION FAIR! is a progressive voice on local issues of importance to Johnson County residents. We work to build a sustainable, livable, and humane community. FAIR! works for social, economic and environmental justice; promotes fair and accountable government; and builds community by strengthening local democratic practices. A key priority of the organization has been to advocate for increased availability of affordable housing for low-income residents in Johnson County. FAIR! has undertaken numerous activities related to affordable housing: ^ FAIR! held a forum in 2006 on affordable housing for low income residents in the Broadway Street neighborhood. ^ FAIR! interviewed members of numerous local agencies in 2006 in order to determine what those agencies were already doing, what those agencies planned to focus on for their future activities, and how those agencies perceived FAIR! could advocate for affordable housing in the community. ^ FAIR! participated in the area's first two Housing Summit in 2006 and 2007. FAIR! members researched inclusionary zoning ordinances in other communities, summarized the findings and provided the findings to the City of Iowa City. ^ FAIR! has representation in meetings of a group of interested builders, realtors, non-profit providers of housing and other interested citizens. GOALS With the anticipated release of the Mullins & Lonergan authored Affordable Housing Market Analysis commissioned by the Iowa City Council in late 2007, FAIR! chose to survey members of the community who utilize low-income assistance programs. The goal of the survey was to collect qualitative and quantitative housing data from area residents, especially those in need of affordable housing, and to report findings to the City Council of Iowa City and interested other parties. We were interested to learn how their current needs are being met, how satisfied they are with their current situations, and how their future needs may be met. We anticipated that this information would complement the City's Affordable Housing Market Analysis whose purpose was to: • Identify demographic and economic trends that affect the demand for housing • Define the supply and demand characteristics of the housing market as a whole • Analyze the demand for affordable housing • Determine if there are any barriers to affordable housing • Recommend actions and initiatives aimed at expanding the supply of affordable housing for those in lower-income sectors. (See page 5: http://www.icgov.org/site/CMSv2/file/planning/commDev/hsngAnalysis.pdfreport) METHODS Members of the FAIR! developed questions that would elicit basic information on housing, including current living situation, the cost of housing relative to household income, satisfaction with their present housing situation, and perceived housing needs. Steve Rackis (Iowa City Housing Authority) and Steve Long (Iowa City Department of Planning and Community Development) provided feedback on the questions, which were modified to reflect their recommendations. Survey questions were not scientifically tested for reliability or validity. With the help of native speakers, we translated the survey into Spanish. Copies of the English and Spanish Surveys are located in Appendix A. Our goal was to obtain 300 completed questionnaires. We contacted many local agencies to seek out occasions and locations where we might administer the questionnaire. These agencies helped us to identify 16 unique sites (See Appendix B). FAIR! members distributed the survey at numerous events during October and November 2007. The surveys were completed by a convenience sample of area residents who were present in Appendix B. All survey data were entered into an Excel spreadsheet file. Data analyses consisted of descriptive measures, including number, percent and mean (average). LIMITATIONS Our selection and choice of sites was limited by several factors: ^ The number of sites surveyed was limited by the volunteer person power we had to devote to this project. ^ Due a relatively recent housing study that was conducted by the University of Iowa's Center on Aging (http://www.centeronaginq.uiowa.edu/), we did not distribute the survey at any sites where elderly citizens specifically might congregate (e.g., the Senior Center and retirement residences). Hence, elderly were surveyed only if they were present at one of the other sites. ^ We did not use any sites outside of the Iowa City city limits (e.g., Coralville, North Liberty, rural mobile home communities). Citizens living in other communities would only have had a chance to respond if they attended an Iowa City event. Consequently, our findings do not accurately reflect citizens living outside of Iowa City. ^ We did not identify participants by gender identity, sexual orientation. ^ We did not specifically survey college students. FINDINGS ^ A total of 292 persons completed the survey, 97.3% of our goal. ^ The overwhelming majority of respondents lived in Iowa City (Table 1). TahlP 1 ~ Place of Residence Iowa City Coralville Kalona RuralCJnrynson Elsewhere Not specified 261 (89.4%) 18 (6.2%) 1 (.003%) 7 (.024%) 1 (.003%) 4 ^ 22 respondents (7.5%) completed the Spanish version of the survey, suggesting that their primary language was Spanish. ^ Seven respondents (2.4%) were homeless. ^ An additional 26 respondents (8.9%) were living in a temporary housing situation. ^ Respondents lived with an average of 2.2 other persons. The largest household included 13 individuals. The average number of related persons living with a respondent was 1.7. ^ Seventeen respondents (5.8%)were receiving government assistance. ^ 63 respondents (21.6%) were disabled. ^ 61 respondents (20.9%) were 62 years or older, and an additional 31 respondents (10.6%) were aged 55-61. ^ 123 respondents (42.1 %) had minor children in their household. INCOME DATA ^ 16 respondents (5.5%) reported having no annual income. ^ 26 respondents (8.9%) reported an annual income that was less than $5,000. ^ 51 respondents (17.5%) reported an annual income of $5,000-$10,000. ^ 53 respondents (18.2%) reported an annual income of $10,001-$20,000. ^ The total number of respondents making $20,000 or less was 146 (50.0%) ^ 29 respondents (9.9%) reported an annual income of $20,001-$30,000. ^ The total number of respondents making $30,000 or less was 175 (59.9%). ^ Nearly half of the respondents had an income at or below the poverty level. An additional 21.2% were very-low or low income. Only 10.3% were 80-100% of median income or higher. See Table 2. Table 2: Income Level* Poverty Level Very-low Low 80-100% of Above Unable to (30% of (50% of (80% of median median Determine Median Median Median Income) Income) Income) 141 (48.3%) 37 (12.7%) 25 (8.6%) 13 (4.5) 17 (5.8%) 59 (20.2%) 4 *According to the City of Iowa City's Table of Income Guidelines and Definition (Appendix B) THE RELATIONSHIP OF INCOME TO AGE, DISABILITY, ETHNICITY AND CHILDREN ^ Although 61 respondents (20.9% of the entire sample) were 62 years or older, only 16 of the 141 respondents with a poverty level income (11.3%) were 62 or older. Similarly, 31 respondents (10.6% of the entire sample) were aged 55- 61, but only 17 of the 141 respondents within a poverty level income (12.1 %) were aged 55-61. Therefore, older respondents were found less in the lowest income group than in the entire sample. ^ Although only 63 respondents (21.6% of the entire sample) were disabled, 50 of the 141 respondents within a poverty level income (35.5%) were disabled. An additional seven disabled respondents did not disclose their income. ^ Of the 22 respondents who completed the Spanish survey, 14 (63.6%)were at the poverty level, six (27.3%)had a very low income, and one had a low income. The remaining one Spanish speaker did not providing sufficient information to determine income level. Therefore, at least 95.5% of Spanish speakers made less than 80% of the median income. ^ 123 households, or 42.1 % of the entire sample, had minor children. Of the 141 households living at the poverty level, 61 (43.3%) had minor children. Of the 203 households with an income less than 80% of median, 93 (45.8%) had minor children. COST AND BURDEN OF HOUSING ^ The average monthly rent or mortgage payment reported by respondents was $559.49 (standard deviation $631.15). ^ 164 respondents (56.2%) reported that they needed better housing but couldn't afford it. SATISFACTION WITH PRESENT HOUSING SITUATION Respondents expressed satisfaction with many aspects of their present housing situation, rating their housing as convenient to work and school, shopping and essential services, and public transit. Although most respondents felt safe where they live, 72 (24.7%) did not. An even greater number of respondents (87 or 29.8%) felt that their present housing was not adequate for their family's needs. More than 1/3 of respondents (101 or 34.6%) judged their housing to be too small for their family's needs. Nearly 40% reported that their housing was not in good condition or needed repair. Persons living in temporary housing had the highest report of housing that was not in good condition (N=13 or 54.2%). Table 3: Degree of Satisfaction with Aspects of their Current Living Situation Number Responding "Yes" Location is convenient to shopping and essential services 283 (96.9%) Location is convenient to public transit 283 (96.9%) Location is convenient to work and school 221 (75.7%) I feel safe where I live 210 (71.9%) I like my neighborhood 209 (71.6%) My housing is adequate for me/my family's needs 188 (64.4%) The level of noise is comfortable 185 (63.4%) My landlord provides maintenance as needed 156 (57.1%) My housing is not in good condition, needs repairs 116 (39.7%) My housing is the wrong size for my/our needs 97 (33.2%) ^ My housing is too small 100 (34.2%) Detailed information on satisfaction by location/site can be found in Appendix B. HOUSING PREFERENCES Most respondents were able to identify a preferred type of housing, if the cost of that housing fit into their budget. Sixty-three respondents (21.6%) owned their own home, while 131 (44.9%) cited owning a home as their preferred housing. Similarly, of the 145 respondents renting an apartment, 66 (45.5%) preferred owning their own home. Conversely, while 124 respondents (43.5%) were renting an apartment, only 1/3 as many (43 or 14.7%) preferred renting an apartment. Similarly, 14 (60.1 %) of the 23 individuals who owned a mobile home preferred owning non-mobile home. Table 4. Current and Preferred Type of Housing Type of Housing Current Housing Situation Preferred Housing Situation Live in temporary housing 26 4 Rent an apartment 124 43 Rent a house 18 20 Rent a room 16 8 Rent a mobile home 4 7 Rent a condominium 1 0 Rent a duplex 4 0 Own a mobile home 21 13 Own a condominium 2 19 Own a duplex 2 13 Own a home 63 131 Homeless 7 0 "Prefer any of the choices" N/A 1 HOUSING NEEDS Respondents identified several factors that would help them better meet their housing needs (Table 5). The three factors cited most frequently were a higher income, lower rent payments, and down payment assistance or a loan. Individuals with poverty-level 6 and very low incomes cited most factors at higher frequencies than did individuals in other income groups. Current homeowners did not indicate a frequent need for financial assistance related to housing costs. Of the 63 homeowners that completed the survey, only nine indicated a need for home financing with lower mortgage payments, and only four indicated a need for financial counseling. However, 15 homeowners reported that they needed a better job with a higher salary. The respondents that did not provide income data reported that many of the factors would be helpful. Indeed, these participants responded positively to the following factors more than 25% of the time: a better job with higher salary, lower rent, down- payment assistance or a loan, help with rental and utility deposits and more job training and education. Table 5: Factors That Would Help Respondents Meet Housing Needs Positive Responses by Income Group Total Positive 80-100% of Above Unable to Factor Responses pove Level ~ Very-low Low median median Determine (N=292) (N=141) (N=37) (N=25) (N=13) (N=17) (N=59) A better job with 126(43.2%) 71 (50.4%) 17 (45 9%) 5 (13 5%) 4 (30.8%) 3 (17.6%) 26 (44.1%) higher salary . . Lower rent 123 (42.1%) 75 (53.2%) (45 9%) 5 (20%) 2 (15.4%) 1 (5.9%) (35.6%) Down payment 102 (34.9%) 60 (42.6%) 15° (40 5 / ) 7 (28%) 2 (15.4%) 2 (11.8%) 27 6%) assistance or loan . ° Home financing with lower monthly 89 (30.5%) 42 (29.8%) 22 (59 5%) 7 (28%) 3 (23.1 %) 4 (23.4%) 11 (18.6 %) payments Help with rental g3 (28.4%) 55 (39%) 7 (18.9%) 3 (12%) 3 (23.1%) 0 15° (25.4 /°) and utility deposits raining or 75 (25.7%) 43 (30.5%) (32 4%) 2 (8%) 3 (23.1%) 0 (25.4%) education Housing that is more physically 46 (15.8%) 31 (22%) 6 (16.2%) 2 (8%) 1 (7.7%) 1 (5.9%) 5 (8.5%) accessible Financial management 39 (13.4%) 24 (17%) 6 (16.2%) 2 (8%) 0 1 (5.9%) 6 (10.2%) counseling A location more convenient to work 33 (11.3%) 16 (11.3%) 2 (5.4%) 1 (4%) 1 (7.7%) 1 (5.9%) 12 (20 3%) or school An affordable lot to 3%) 33 (11 12 (8.5%) 8 (21.6%) 4 1 (7.7%) 2 (11.8%) 6 (10.2%) build on . (10.8%) Better access to 25 (8.6%) 18 (12.8%) 1 (2.7%) 0 2 (15.4%) 1 (5.9%) 3 (5.1 %) public transit CONCLUSIONS Survey respondents represented persons with both financial and housing needs. More than two-thirds had an income less than 80% of the median. Persons living at the lower income levels were less likely to be over age 65 when compared to the total sample. Older adults in our sample did not appear to be disproportionately at need for affordable housing. However, disabled individuals were disproportionately represented at the lowest income levels. More than half of the respondents reported that they needed better housing but couldn't afford it. More than one-third reported that their homes needed repair and that their homes were too small. Home ownership was cited most often as the preferred housing situation. Indeed, the number of persons desiring home ownership was more than double the number of actual homeowners. Conversely, renting an apartment was viewed as preferred by only 1/3 of those who were renting. At three places in the survey, respondents had the opportunity to write in comments. A detailed summary of the comments is presented in Appendix D. A number of themes emerged from respondent comments: ^ The area needs more low-cost housing. ^ Disability/medical problems/healthcare costs create hardships. ^ Homelessness is recognized as a major problem. ^ Safety concerns are widespread. ^ Housing costs are too high and wages are too low. ^ Housing inspections and regulations are burdensome. ^ Residents need increased assistance in obtaining housing assistance. ^ Racial concerns affect feelings of safety in the community. RECOMMENDATIONS This report sheds some light on the needs of persons utilizing assisted affordable housing. The following recommendations are not intended to be exhaustive, but to emphasize actions that could be taken to address the housing needs of lower-income residents: ^ Educate the community about the differences between workforce housing and other affordable housing (i.e., market-rate and subsidized affordable housing). ^ Encourage in-fill development in areas that continue to meet transportation, access to services, school, and work needs. Inclusionary zoning and scattered site housing policy are tools that can be applied to accomplish this recommendation. ^ Step-up efforts to improve public safety efforts in the areas that were surveyed. Neighborhood Watch programs, community policing are tools that could be applied to accomplish this recommendation. ^ Encourage consumer education for persons of lower income to help them develop realistic expectations of housing choices. Strategic, coordinated community education programs and resources via the Neighborhood Centers, the Public Housing office, City buses, and the Public Library could offer materials and information sessions are tools that could be applied to accomplish this recommendation. ^ Promote public education sponsored by Diversity Focus, the City Human Rights Office and other such agencies that focuses on the importance of welcoming diversity, both economic and racial within our community, as we are a service based economy and need workers at all ends of the economic spectrum. ^ Prioritize Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) dollars to provide low- income rental units is needed to meet the gap between what the private-sector alone is able to develop and what the non-profit sector is able to fund. ^ Agencies that provide housing assistance in the form of down-payment and security deposit aid should be funded at higher levels to meet the need ^ Implement universal design features and energy-efficient design to increase the overall access to housing and affordability. ^ Encourage economic development policy that increases the number of jobs paying a liveable wage ($12 to $13 per hour in Johnson County). ^ Due to the limited nature of this study and as a result of the flooding in the summer of this year, we recommend that other communities and/or Johnson County should commission a comprehensive study of low income consumer housing needs in our area. APPENDIX A English Survey and Spanish Survey 10 • Works for social, economic and environmental justice. • Promotes fair and accountable government. • Builds community by strengthened local democratic practices. . ~r~ ; ;1 ;~;e on local issues of importance fo Jahnsan Cacv~xty resicter'tts. mile wank to 6~r;fd t`z ., ,~;~ lit ,: =, . ~ td hurnar~e camrt7unity. our tap current interest is affarr~i:~bic 1~cusin~ for persans liY~it~t~ i,'? Jc?r~r~:-gin Cai~~;',. Please help us advocate for housing that you can afford by filling out this AFFORDABLE HOUSING QUESTIONNAIRE I. TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOUR CURRENT HOUSING SITUATION: A. Are you? (check all that apply) ^ 55-61 years old ^ 62 or older ^disabled ^ a family with minor children B. How many people live with you? How many are related to you? C. What is your total yearly household income? $ D. Do you currently? (check one) ^ rent an apartment ^ rent a house ^ rent a room in another's house ^ rent a mobile home ^ own a mobile home ^ own a condominium ^ own a house ^ own a duplex (zero lot line building) ^ live in temporary housing (in a shelter, with a friend or relative) ^ other (explain) E. How many bedrooms are in your current residence? F. How much do you pay each month for your rent or mortgage? $ G. Where do you live? (check one) ^ Iowa City ^ Coralville ^ North Liberty ^ Another town in Johnson County ^ Rural Johnson County ^ Elsewhere (explain) H. Are you currently receiving government housing assistance? ^Yes ^No II. TELL US ABOUT YOUR SATISFACTION WITH YOUR PRESENT HOUSING SITUATION: General Satisfaction A. The location is convenient to work and school ^Yes ^No B. The location is convenient to shopping and essential services ^Yes ^No C. The location is convenient to public transit ^Yes ^ No D. I like my neighborhood ^Yes ^No E. I feel safe where I live ^Yes ^No F. My housing is adequate for me/my family's needs ^Yes ^ No 11 G. My housing is the wrong size for my/our needs ^ Yes ^ No ^ too small ^ too large H. My housing is not in good condition, needs repairs ^ Yes ^No I. My landlord provides maintenance as needed ^ Yes ^No J. The level of noise is comfortable ^ Yes ^ No Housing Preferences K. I need better housing but cannot afford it ^ Yes ^ No L. If the price met my budget, I would prefer to: (answer only if it applies) ^ rent an apartment ^ rent a house ^ rent a mobile home ^ rent a room in another's house ^ own a house ^ own a condominium ^ own a mobile home ^ own a duplex (zero lot line) ^ live in temporary housing (in a shelter, with a friend or relative) ^ other (explain Comments: (optional) III. WHAT DO YOU NEED TO BETTER MEET YOUR HOUSING NEEDS? (check all that apply) ^ Lower rent ^ Housing that is more accessible ^ Help with rental and utility deposits ^ A location more convenient to work or ^ Down payment assistance or a loan ^ Home financing with lower monthly payments ^ An affordable lot to build on ^ Financial management counseling school ^ Better access to convenient public transit ^ Abetter job with higher salary ^ More job training or education ^ Other (explain IV. TELL US ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT YOUR NEED FOR ADEQUATE HOUSING: V. TELL US HOW HOUSING IN THE JOHNSON COUNTY AREA COULD BE CHANGED TO BETTER MEET YOUR NEEDS: THANK YOU FOR HELPING FAIR! GATHER INFORMATION TO ADVOCATE FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR,iOHNSON COUNTY! To ~;~ntact FAIR!, write us at PO Box 1812, lovra City, (A 52244-1 81 2 or email us ~` jc.fair tr yahocr.caln 12 ~ ~ • Trabaja pars justicia social, economics, y ambiental. • Promueve gobierno que es justo y responsable. ~ ~- • Construye communidad por metodos fortalecidos locales ~- "~' que son democraticos Nosotros somas crna voz progresiva sabre probiemas locates de importancia a residentes del Condado de Johnson (Iowa) Trabajamos para consfruir una communidad susfenfabfe,digna y humans. i~luestro inferes principal es para viviendas adecuadas para personas que viven en of Condado de Johnson {lows). Por favor ayludenos a abogar por las viviendas que Ud. puede pagar facilmente Ilenando este cuestionario. I. DIGANOS SOBRE UD Y SU SITUACION ACTUAL DE VIVIENDA: D. ~Tiene Ud.? (marque todas las que le correspondan) ^ 55-61 anos ^ 62 anos o mss ^discapacitado ^ Winos menores E. ~Cuantas personas viven con Ud? ~Cuantos son parientes? F. ~En su casa, cual es el ingreso total acual? $ D. Actualmente: (escoja una.) ^ Alquila un apartamento ^Alquila una casa ^Alquila un cuarto en una casa de otra persona ^ Alquila una casa rodante ^ Es dueno de una casa rodante ^ Es dueno de un condominio ^ Es dueno de una casa ^ Es dueno de un duplex ^ Vive en una vivienda transitoria (en un refugio, o con parientes o amigos) ^ ~Otra casa? (explique) E. ~Cuantos dormitorios hay en su residencia actual? F. ~Cuanto pogo Ud. cads mes por el alquiler o su hipoteca? $ G. ~Donde vive Ud.? (escoja una) ^ Iowa City ^ North Liberty ^ Condado de Johnson Rural ^ Otro lugar (explique) ^ Coralville ^ Otro pueblo en el Condado de Johnson H. ~Recibe Ud. actualmente asistencia para vivienda del gobierno? II. DIGANOS SOBRE SU SATISFACCION CON SU VIVIENDA ACTUAL: Satisfaccion en General A. EI lugar es conveniente para mi trabajo y escuela. ^ Si ^No B. EI lugar es conveniente para tiendas y servicios esenciales.^ Si C. EI lugar es conveniente para transito publico. ^ Si ^ No D. Me gusts el vecindario de mi casa. ^ Si ^No E. Me siento seguro donde vivo. ^ Si ^No ^Si ^No ^No F. Mi vivienda es adecuada para las necesidades miss o mi familia. ^ Si ^ No G. EI tamano de mi vivienda no esta bien para nuestras necesidades. ^ Si ^ No ^ demasiada pequeria ^ demasiada grande 13 H. Mi vivienda no esta en Buenas condiciones; necesita reparaciones. ^ Si ^No I. EI propietario hace reparaciones cuando es necesario. ^ Si ^No J. EI nivel de ruidos es comodo. ^ Si ^ No Preferencias Para Vivienda K. Yo necesito vivienda mejor pero no puedo hacer el gasto. ^ Si ^ No L. Si el precio cupiera en me presupuesto, yo preferiria: (responds solo si aplica) ^ Alquilar un apartamento ^ Alquilar una Casa ^ Alquilar un cuarto en casa de otra persona ^ Alquilar una casa rodante ^ Comprar una casa rodante ^ Comprar un condominio ^ Comprar una casa ^Comprar un duplex ^ Vivir en una vivienda transitoria (en un refugio, o con parientes o amigos) ^ Otra cosa (explique) Comentarios: (discrecionales) III. QUE NECESITA UD. PARA MEJORAR SUS NECESIDADES DE VIVIENDA? (escoja todos que aplican.) ^ Menos rents ^Vivienda que es mss fisicamente accesible. ^ Ayuda pars alquilar y depositos de servicios ^ Un lugar mss conveniente pars el trabajo y escuela ^ Ayuda con pago inicial o un prestamo ^Mejor acceso a transito publico ^ Financiamiento pars una vivienda con menos ^Mejor trabajo con mss sueldo. pagos mensuales ^ Un terreno en donde construir una casa y to ^ Mas adiestramiento o educacion pars trabajo que yo pueda proveer ^ Consejo financiero ^ Otra cosa (explique) N. DIGANOS TODO LO QUE GUSTE SOBRE SUS NECESIDADES PARA VNIENDA ADECUADA: V. DIGANOS QUE CAMBIOS DE VIVIENDA EN EL CONDADO DE JOHNSON LE PUDIERAN SERVIR MEJOR: G BIAS POR AYUC7AR FAIR! A CONSEGUIR INFORMACi{7N PARA MEJORAR VMENDAS EN EL CONDAL?O DE JOHNSON. Para comunicarse con FAIR! escribanos a P.O. Box 1812, Iowa City, IA 52244-1812 o a jc.fair(a.,yahoo.com 14 m ~ X C Z W ~ a < a Q E °' ~ a o o a o ~ o o ~ ~ o ~ o ~ ~ ~ O ~ ~ O M ' CO M N '~ M _ y N ~ ~ ~ ~ O lv O .~_. ) lf ~ O ~ ~ ~ M C ~ ~ _ CD ~ N ~ O tt r 00 f~ ~ ~ . i N N V C O_ ;' N ~ ~ O O ~ a0 M ' M ~ ~` ~ i a 7~ L O M ~ ~ O € ~ ~ N ~ V +_' ~ O ~ ~ M O O ~ r N ~ ~ ~ ~'`~ M N v ~ ~.. ~ V t ~+ ~ O _ CO _ Cfl O ~ ~ M ~ M ~ O M a. 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L ~ -C ~` '_' I O ~ a a, ~~ cn ~ U ` ~ O ~ Q c~ .S ~ ~ a~ .r > p m Z ~ ~ coo 3 ~ s ~ ~ ~ ~ Vic' J o ~ N ~ ~ a~ a~ ~ Q a~ ~ o> rn o . a~ :a '~ ~~.N ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ o ~ I a~ ~ Z >, N ~ ~ ~ ~ ca ~ o in in = ~ ~ 3~ ~ ~~ ° ~ _ ~ Q~ ~ >, >. o . o ~ ~ o a I >, >, ~ 3 ~ N 3' 3 o cn = ~~a, ~ C ~ J ~~' ~ ~ }. U moo: Uv ~ a, o~ - o ' o ~ ~° ~ ~ ~ aoi ~ ~ Q ~ 0 3 ~ .Y~ ~ m m m U LL U~ LL c u C~ 2 2 O O O H J ca ~ J d 7 C 0 m x v a~ Q a~ ~ ~ r ~ ,~ ~ a1 R ~ ~ ~+ ~ N C ~ ~ C ~ ~ R ~ _ s ~ c O ~+ N 3 ~ O ~ ~~ C O ~ L2 V •N ~ y L ~.:. ~ .~ :a N !: N ~ O = d ~ ~ = V C O r ~ N N j ~ ~N ~ ~ O N ~. M ~ p >' d ~ d 0 L a ~ 3 ~ c 'a >, d ~ ~ ~ t w C Q. !~ ~ N Vl ~ _ ~ ~' C O N ~ ~ _v) 3 3 t ~~.~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ w Z y t6 Vl - _ d ~ i d d w ~ - 3 L ~_ ~ Q 3 N Z y c a~ w d y 7G' 0 O O ti N M i-. 0 d: N Lf') 0 c'~ N M O ~' N o ' N V ~; ~ ', .-. \° N .-. ~' N r I a~ c T a~ ~_ U ~ ~ ~ ~ c o ~ ~ ~~a~ `oU~ ~ ~ U ~_ C ~ ~ ~ ~ Z ~ v,'~n O ~ ~ ~. =a ~ ~ n u~i U c~ L3a'~ ~ O ~ c 0 '~ C '~ M_ i ~, E Q c 0 N N N I o o ~_ i O o N N N_ N .-. ~_ ~-. 0 ~_ Cfl ~_ \° ~ ? ti 00 o o M M M d' ~-. '', '',, O ~_ CD .-. 0 c'~ M M d' N 0 O O N ~_ O 0 O_ O 0 O O ~`. N \° O O r N N L ',Z >+ (B E C7 c 0 c U ;~ a~ c c ? C N U! ~ ~ ~ a~ ~' ~ Q a. ' ~ L 0 (~ Z APPENDIX C TABLE OF INCOME GUIDELINES AND DEFINITIONS 30% Median 50% Median Household Income .:Income (Very Size (Poverty Level) Low Income) 1 $15,250 $25,400 2 $17,450 $29,000 3 $19,600 $32,650 4 $21,800 $36,300 5 $23,550 $39,200 6 $25,300 $42,100 7 $27,050 $45,000 8 $28,800 $47,900 80% Median Income (Low Income) Median Income $40,650 $50,800 $46,500 $58,000 $52,300 $65,300 $58,100 $72,600 $62,750 $78,400 $67,400 $84,200 $72,050 $90,000 $76,700 $94,800 Source: Iowa City Housing Authority webpage, http~//www icgav orq/housing/authority/section8/incomeguidelines.htm, March 9, 2008. 17 APPENDIX D SUMMARY OF RESPONDENTS' HANDWRITTEN COMMENTS Respondent comments are presented in three major sections that reflect the place in the survey where the comment was made. The major groups are denoted by roman numerals and include a description of the location of the comment. Next, subgroups were created according to the theme of the comment. A letter of the alphabet denotes each theme. The parentheses following each subgroup theme indicate the number of respondents who somehow conveyed that theme. Beneath each thematic subgroup, specific comments are quoted verbatim and italicized. I. The first space made available for comments occurred on page 2 of the survey under Section II entitled Tell Us About Your Satisfaction With Your Present Housing Situation. However, some comments seemed directed specifically at the sub-section entitled Housing Preferences. A. Satisfied with what I have (N=8) "...but for so many years could barely afford housing on minimum wage, and what 1 lived in was in dire need of maintenance." ...but too many of my friends are being squeezed onto the streets or are in dire straits." "1 own a house that is satisfactory forme, but 1 am sharing it with my niece, her husband, and their 4 children because they cannot find affordable housing or day care." B. Prefer owning a house (N=5) "..but housing is too expensive in this town." C. Health care/medical problems create hardships (N=4) "Had an injury and lost job; waiting for doctor clearance and can't pay the rent; will be evicted soon." "1 have a handicap and need to work near where I live." "Current landlord refuses to make accommodations for service animal for my husband who is deaf." (N=1) D. Comments on size of house (N=4) "Prefer a house with more bedrooms." "1 am totally in favor of small housing units for small families-even efficiencies." "My husband and l live in one room in another's house and pay too much." 18 E. Safety concerns (N=1) "Need safe, clean housing to avoid coercive, abusive property management." F. Need housing near public transit (N=~) G. Need more storage space (N=~ ) H. Problem with a disability claim (N=~ ) I. Too lazy to move (N=~) II. The second group of comments were clearly made in response to Section IV entitled Tell Us Anything Else About Your Need For Adeauate Housing: A. Happy with what we have. (N=8) "But scattered low income housing is important in Iowa City." "B+ut too many live under bridges and on the streets and much housing is sub-standard." B. Need housing for those with disabilities and with pets. (N=7) "1 currently live in a van." "More adequate housing for the impaired and mentally ill." "1 am waiting for a second Social Security disability appeal and need to have a house that will allow my elderly mother to live with me." (Now owns a house) "1 now own a house but it is not wheel-chair accessible." "Current housing is too noisy for my disorder." "1 live with my parents and have a mental disability. 1 need housing close to my parents that is safe and affordable to me as a single, young mom." C. Location issues (N=7) "I want a good yard with a park nearby." (This was an extremely low-income person currently renting an apartment.) "Better access to convenient public transit from Coralville to Iowa City." "1 want to own a house and land in the countryside." (This person now rents an apartment.) "A location with less traffic, more security." 19 "The neighborhood is too noisy with cars, music, people walking down middle of the street." "Need a home in a safe neighborhood with people of my own culture; our apartment is a nightmare." D. Problems with landlord or City housing staff (N=~) "1 need Sect. 8 assistance and 1 am waiting for the Housing Authority to stop dragging its feet with me." "Intrusive HUD/Iowa City inspections, some several times per month" "Section 8 should stop denying us for no reason at all." "Cities of Iowa City and Coralville need city representatives (other than what UI-IMU has for students) to help with landlord concerns." "Housing inspectors work with the landlords and pass the inspections. 1 have been complaining since June, and they agreed to fix everything that needed repair and they haven't done anything." "We need better and more honest landlords and City government." "1 can only live in public housing because Sect. 8 voucher did not transfer." E. Condition of housing issues (-v=s) "Need clean housing, no roaches, no rats, no slum landlord." "Adequate housing is not available here." "1 am seeking disinterested, unbiased advice to obtain affordable repairs to my home." "I need new drapes, and landlord won't do it." F. Housing is too small (N=5) "1 need more storage space and larger rooms but that is too expensive in Iowa City." "1 had two more children but can't move to a larger place." "We need three to four bedroom units for families with kids." G. Homelessness issues (N=4) "1 have been homeless for ten years and do not foresee EVER being able to own a home." "1 need a 2 bedroom around $400 per month."(Respondent is homeless) 20 "Until 1 turned 64/65 and got my Social Security, l lived in a tent under a tree and under a bridge. " "1 am a convicted felon who has been homeless for three years. 1 need help to be able to change my housing arrangements." H. Financial Management Counseling needed (-v=4) I. More smaller houses needed (N=3) "More ranch style single or two bedroom housing that is affordable. "Smaller, affordable, single-family houses."(Respondent currently rents a room in a house with 12 other people.) "It was VERY difficult to find a small affordable house in Iowa City." J. Deposits/Utilities costs (N=3) "1 need the damage deposit waived or be able to pay it in installments." "Water deposit fees too high in Coralville ($200)" "Utilities costs are too high." K. Rents are too high (N=3) "Not everybody as Mommy or Daddy helping to pay rent. Some of us have to work for a living year-round. 1 lived in Florida for 13 years. It was cheaper there." (Respondent rents a room in another's house.) "I cannot afford rent." L. I want my own home (N=2) "1 want to instill in my children to reach for a better way of life. " M. Medical attention needed (N=2) "1 need a diagnosis by a specialist to see if 1 can live without a wheelchair." N. Wages are too low (N=2) O. There are always waiting lists for affordable housing apartments for the elderly (N=2) P. Purchase costs are too high (N=1) 21 Q. More help is needed for middle class two-parent family. (N=~: Respondent now rents house, is extremely low income, and has two children.) R. I need a unit with my own bathroom (N=1: Respondent is a survivor of sexual abuse now renting a room with shared bath and kitchen and feels it is not helping her recovery.) III. The final group of comments were clearly made in response to Section V entitled Tell Us How Housing In The Johnson County Area Could Be Changed To Better Meet Your Needs: A. More and Lower Cost Housing (N=1s) "Put affordable housing in various areas of town." "More subsidized housing spread throughout the community." "My son is 24, no benefits in bike shop. He now pays $600/month rent and needs help with a down payment to get his own place." "I owned and had to live in a duplex 10 years to build equity to buy a home. I have a degree and had a tough time finding something under $200,000." B. Lower Rents (N=9) "Shorter wait list for Section 8." C. Location issues (N=~) "Stop saturating one area of town with affordable housing." "Takes value away and major increase in crime." "Better areas to live in." "Better noise control" "Cheap housing is always in the bad neighborhoods." "Living outside Iowa City is the only financial way to afford housing, but transportation may be a problem." "Fill existing houses and apartments; stop building sprawl." "Get rid of Broadway complex." 22 D. Legal assistance/law improvement/education for Landlord/Tenant problems (N=s) "Change Housing Code; Coralville needs tenant protection laws; regulate ALL property management businesses; protect the poor, sick, disabled, and elderly." "Eliminate minimum income level for low income housing." "Open up more zoning for residential." "Screen tenants for criminal records and drug use." "Quit swindling homeowners." E. More single-family housing (N=6) "Costs are so geared to college students splitting rent that it is unaffordable for single family units unless they qualify for assistance." "Larger houses for families with convenient location." "More private developers building affordable housing for families (not condos)." "More affordable housing closer to downtown and more new condos." F. Emergency housing/homeless (IV=s) "Should be available for ALL, not just those with children."(Respondent is a single female living in a rented room.) "Places for able-bodied homeless men and women to live and help with employment and financial counseling," "Bigger shelter house." "Iowa City is fair game for the homeless from other areas. Stop providing for them! They are taking advantage of us". (Respondent is extra-low income and living in a rented room.) G. Out of state newcomers (N=5) "Stop bringing Chicago people and their gang activities to Iowa City. I live around this element and I am scared for my life." "Less blacks moving in from Chicago and getting free facilities and medical care and tearing up our property such as breaking glass and destroying bus cubicles such as Lakeside and Nevada." "People from out of state should not apply for Sect. 8 and then come HERE and take housing from people who live here." "Stop importing criminals." "Rent to people of the USA only." 23 H. Discrimination/ethnicity issues (N=4) "Don't decide tenants based on skin color." "Allow people a chance and stop judging people." "Build more neighborhoods for people who want to live and manage their lives with others of their same culture." "Affordable housing for everyone-not just some." I. Accessibility for the disabled (-v=4) "Need units with bath, kitchen, and bedrooms accessible for wheelchairs." "Flexibility for those with special needs. " "More housing that accepts service animals." "More housing for disabled on fixed incomes." J. Happy with present situation (N=3) "1 currently have housing assistance but do not want this experience again." "1 will graduate and make better money." K. Help finding housing (N=4) "Show us everything we qualify for and stop trying to push off old rundown places." "Work with people with evictions." "Provide online listing of available affordable housing." "Help me buy something and then 1 could learn to once by on my own without help." "There are so many families that double up or even triple up in housing here in town. Unless something goes terribly wrong, you do not hear about this." L. Medical services needed (-v=3) "Lower cost medical services needed." "More responsive to people in medical emergencies." "A therapist/doctor for physical disability to diagnose immediately." M. More places that accept pets (N=3) 24 N. Transit (N=3) "Better public transit to Broadway Street neighborhood." "Longer hours." "More public transit to outside city limits." O. More Sect. 8 vouchers accepted by landlords (N=3) P. Smaller houses (N=3) Q. More places for elders like Ecumenical Towers (N=2) R. Services for kids (N=2) "Need more things in Johnson County for kids of all ages." "Make it better for kids to come outside without problems or drug traffic." S. Deposits (N=2) "Flexibility re: deposits." "Strengthen laws for deposit refunds." T. More remodeling of older houses (N=1) 25 5b 2 MINUTES Youth Advisory Commission September 15, 2008 Harvat Hall, City Hall, 7:30PM Members Present: Diamitani, Green, Han, Nelson Members Absent: Malatek Others Present: City Council Liaison Wilburn, City Clerk Karr Recommendations to Council: Adopt revised By-Laws. Call to Order: Motioned by Nelson, seconded by Han. Approved 4-0.7:35PM FINAL Approve minutes: Green moved to approve the minutes. Han seconded. The minutes were approved 4-0. Introduction of new Member: Patrick Diamitani introduced himself to all present and begins his term as a member. Election of new Secretary: In resignation of Weeks, there was an election for a new secretary. Green nominated Han for the position, and the motion was seconded by Nelson. Han was elected 4-0. Review and approve annual report: Nelson moved to approve the report. Han seconded. The annual report was approved 4-0. Update on website: Karr asked that members submit updates for the website as needed. Nelson then discussed the face book advertisements and pointed out the upward trends in the total number of clicks and impressions made and asked if the traffic in the Youth Advisory Commission website could be checked as well. He added that because of a drastic jump in the cost of the advertisements, however, it would be advisable to cut spending in face book. Youth Empowerment Grant: Members suggested new ways for the Youth Empowerment Grant to be used that would increase participation of local youth including: holding a public discussion meeting where there would be active participation from interested youth in the area; a political event where students could discuss current politics. Karr and Wilburn reminded the commission that the above mentioned items were not included in the agenda and should be added to the next meeting agenda for further discussion. Diamitani suggested that he would ask the West High Student Senate members if any students would be interested. He also mentioned that he would encourage members to apply for the Youth Empowerment Grant, adding that ongoing projects with a sponsor could also apply for aid. Karr will provide information on the grant to Diamitani. Make up of 2008-09 Subcommittees: With Segar's resignation and with the addition of a new member, there were changes made to the make up of the subcommittees. Diamitani and Green volunteered to join the Summer of the Arts committee. Green also said she would be able to help with the Recruitment Committee. No other changes were made. Public Discussion: none Youth Advisory Commission September 15, 2008 Page 2 Continued Review of present By-Laws: Members agreed that the changes made to Article III, Membership that clarified the eligibility of future commission members were satisfactory. Han noted that Article V, Section A, outlining the election of officers should also be modified to fit the new schedule as well Karr voiced that the two most logical choices for the changed date for the elections of new officers would be either the end of the calendar year or late in the school year. Han suggested the month of March, and majority agreed. No other suggestions concerning further review of the By-laws were made. The By- laws will be forwarded to the City Council for approval. Goals and Planning for 2008: Discussion continued from the brief discussion from the Youth Empowerment Grant. It was agreed that a heading of Youth Input would be added to the agenda for the next meeting. Green also suggested that organization of a discussion session about the election or current politics in general for interested youth could also be discussed during that time. Student Citizenship Awards: Diamitani asked for clarification on exactly what the Student Citizenship Awards were. Karr gave a brief explanation on what it was and what commission members would be doing at the presentation of the awards. Karr added that it would be best to have at least two members - one primary and one back up -who would be present at the presentation of the awards to ensure that there would be a commission member present. The following 2008 schedule was agreed upon: Roosevelt Elementary -October 6 -Nelson Weber Elementary -October 21 - Diamitani/Nelson Mark Twain Elementary -November 3 -Green/Han Shimek Elementary -November 18 - Green/Han Lincoln Elementary -December 2 - Han/Nelson Horace Mann Elementary -December 16 -OPEN It was agreed to wait until further appointments are made to the Commission to discuss 2009 dates. Staff Update: Council Liaison Wilburn reported on a session at the State League of Cities meeting on Youth involvement and a booklet entitled "Building Effective Youth Councils" distributed at the session. City Clerk Karr will include copies of the publication in the next packet. Wilburn also shared an invitation from a Council Member in Davenport to have a joint meet of Iowa City and Davenport Youth Commissions. Announcements/Invitations/Events/OAportunities: None Meeting Schedule: Green suggested that a meeting before the usual one month period should be held to allow for further planning of a youth input meeting and other possible programs for further participation from youth. It was suggested that a meeting be scheduled Wednesday, September 24, at 7:30 PM or Monday, September 29, at 7:30 PM for further discussion of a youth forum. Nelson may participate via phone for the September meeting. A potential youth forum date of October 7 was mentioned. Meeting adjourned 8:50 PM. Prepared by Han z 0 ~~ ~o o~~ 0 ~Uo 5A~ az ~W H H HQ 0 A wo c ~ ~ ~ ~ o ~ N z z z z z z ~ ~ ~ ~ ' ~ O O r ~ z z z z z z z z z z z ~ o ~ o ~ ~ o o ~ ~ ~ ~ z z z z z z M ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ N O ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ i i ~ O a o 0 0 0 0 0 0 lI W Iry M M M M M M M (~ W N N N N N N N ~ ... W ~"'. c~ ~ y ~" ~ ~ ~ ~ .4 i "~i ^'" ~ ~ u z xc~ ~x ~z A~ a a~ aA b ~, ~ ~ Y4 ~ ~~ ~ r.+ '~'C~,, y ~ y y °~+ Cat n y ~ p ++ 3~., .C ~ O O a~QZz u u u u u ~coOZ i The Iowa City Youth Advisory Commission By-Laws Article I -Name The official name of the organization shall be The Iowa City Youth Advisory Commission. Article II -Purpose The mission of the Youth Advisory Commission is to promote understanding and awareness of Iowa City among Iowa City youth, allow a select group of youth to help make decisions concerning them and their peers, enable youth members to utilize and expand on their leadership abilities, to serve as a mechanism for communication between youth and adults in Iowa City and create a bridge whereon youth and adults can develop partnerships. • The Iowa City Youth Advisory Commission will empower, engage, and foster Youth participation in its local community; more specifically to provide a "sounding board" for youth issues affecting the Iowa City community youth. Article III -Membership Shall consist of seven [7] members appointed by the City Council. Members shall be initially appointed for staggered terms as outlined in Res. # 05-371. Thereafter, members shall be appointed for two year terms beainning October 1 of each school year (requires change in resolution as well), and seats shall be filled accordingly to the requirements, as set below: • Four [4] persons ^^°.. f?f+°°^-°°"°^+°°^ ~'s-~'1 currently enrolled in an Iowa City high school or high school equivalent, with consideration given to the diversity between schools (requires change in resolution as well). • Three [3] persons ages eighteen-twenty-one [18-21] All ages shall be calculated on the date of the filing of applications, and all members shall be residents of Iowa City. Article IV -Meetings Section A: Shall be run in accordance will the most current edition of Roberts Rules of Order. Youth Advisory Commission By-Laws Page 2 Section B: Quorum must be attained before business can transpire; thus, four [4] commissioner present at one time shall constitute a quorum. Section C: Notice of official Commission meetings needs to be in accordance with Iowa Open Meetings Laws. Section D: The date/location/time of meetings shall be set by the Chairperson of the Commission [subject to approval by the Commission members] in conjunction with the City Clerk. Section E: Special meetings may be called by the Chairperson, or by a consensus of two [2] of the sitting membership of the Commission. Section F: Meeting shall be held, monthly, but not limited to. Article V -Elections Section A: Elections of new officers to a term will occur at the first meeting of the Commission after the first of easy ^'lon,+~r .,oar March. Section B: Officers will be elected by a majority vote of the commission. Section C: Terms of all officer positions shall be for one [1] year, but all persons are eligible for re-elections. Article VI -Officers Officers of the Commission shall consist of, but not limited to, Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary. Article VII -Duties Section A: The Chair shall preside and convene regularly scheduled Commissions meetings; Shall direct the business of the Commission; Shall work in conjunction with the City Council liaison and City Clerk to facilitate all work of the Commission in accordance with the City of Iowa City Ordinances and State Laws; Shall appoint all committees, and appoint other posts within the Commission, except those already mandated, with subject to approval by the commission. Section B: The Vice-Chair shall chair all committees on special subjects, except as designated by the Chair; shall assist the Chair in all work of the Commission; shall oversee all work of the Commission; provide ideas, and projects, for the Commission to undertake; shall preside in the absence of the chair. Youth Advisory Commission By-Laws Page 3 Section C: The Secretary shall be responsible preparing the minutes and forwarding them to the City Clerk for distribution; shall assist the Chair and Vice-Chair in their activities; shall work hand-in-hand with the City Clerk. Article VIII -Vacancies, Resignations, Dismissal Section A: Resignations shall be submitted to the City Clerk in writing. Section B: Prior notice of absences to the City Clerk shall be sufficient for an excused absence. Sections C: Two-thirds [2/3] of the Commission may recommend dismissal to the City Council. Article IX -Committees The commission may create various committees as needed. The Chair shall appoint all committee members, subject to approval by the rest of the commission. No more than three [3] Commission members may serve at once on a committee. Article X -Amendments Section A: These by-laws may be amended when necessary by two-thirds [2/3] majority of the Commission membership. Section B: Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Commission in writing, with possible decision and action to be scheduled for the following meeting. Section C: All changes are subject to approval by the Iowa City Council. These By-Laws of the Iowa City Youth Advisory Commission were approved at the meeting of the Commission on September 15, 2008; and approved by the City Council at their meeting -----------. 5b 3 MINUTES HISTORIC PRESERVATON COMMISSION THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2008 EMMA J. HARVAT HALL APPROVED MEMBERS PRESENT: Esther Baker, Thomas Baldridge, Lindsay Bunting Eubanks, Pam Michaud, Jim Ponto, Alicia Trimble, Frank Wagner MEMBERS ABSENT: William Downing, Ginalie Swaim, Viktor Tichy STAFF PRESENT: Christina Kuecker OTHERS PRESENT: Helen Burford, Robert Kellogg, Cindy Parsons, John Rummelhart CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Bunting Eubanks called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANYTHING NOT ON THE AGENDA: There was none. CERTIFICATES OF APPROPRIATENESS: 702 East Washington Street. Kuecker said that this is an application concerning an apartment building at the corner of Dodge and Washington Streets. She said the owners want to remove the fiber board siding that has atwelve-inch reveal and replace it with six-inch reveal fiber cement board siding. Kuecker said this is anon-historic, non-contributing structure in the College Hill Conservation District. She said staff recommends approval of the project as presented in the application. Kuecker said Michaud pointed out to her that it is likely that there is an old house underneath this. She said that Sanborn maps show that the bay had been covered at some point and possibly removed at some point. Kuecker stated that staff believes there have been such significant alterations that there would be no way to recover the old house. Parsons, the owner, showed photographs of properties her company owns at 1130 and 1128 East Washington Street that have the same kind of siding, in order to give Commission members an idea of how this building would look. Michaud asked if it would be appropriate to some how distinguish the original house bay. Parsons said that corner boards would be necessary wherever the wall bends MOTION: Ponto moved to approve a certificate of appropriateness for the application for 702 East Washington Street as proposed. Baker seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. Ponto said he thinks the six-inch reveal will look nice, and Bunting Eubanks agreed 706 East Colle eg Street. Kuecker said that this property is on the corner of Dodge and College Streets. She said the house was built in 1867, was remodeled in 1906 for use as a fraternity, and was subsequently divided into apartments. Kuecker said the applicant proposes to remove the steel siding to access the original wood siding, remove a limited amount of wood siding to insulate the house from the exterior, replace the wood siding, and then restore the wood siding. She said there is a chance that there is not wood siding underneath the metal siding, and the applicant would like the option to put fiber cement board siding on the house, if wood siding is not present or is severely deteriorated. Historic Preservation Commission September 11, 2008 Page 2 Kuecker said staff recommends approval of this application as presented, with the condition that if the applicant finds that the wood siding is not present or is unable to be used, fiber cement board will need to have staff approval. Rummelhart, the future owner of the house, said that one corner appears to have some pretty good original siding. He said he would like to get insulation in there yet this fall. Rummelhart said he wants to be able to go around and get the openings needed to foam from the exterior. He said if there is good wood, he would want to strip all of the steel off the house yet this fall. Rummelhart said that if there is not wood siding under the steel, then he'll be in a pinch on protecting the exterior so that he'll probably just open up what he needs and then temporarily cover those areas until spring. Rummelhart said that when he insulated the house next door, the house then used 60% less fuel, so it is paramount to this house and the whole program to insulate. Wagner said that either way, Rummelhart plans to take the steel siding off. Rummelhart confirmed this. Wagner said this will look better whether it is wood or fiber cement board. Rummelhart said he hopes the wood is underneath, because he would rather try to work with that. MOTION: Baker moved to approve a certificate of appropriateness for the application for 706 East College Street, as proposed, with the condition that if the applicant finds that the wood siding is not present or unable to be restored, the use of fiber cement board must be approved by staff. Baldridge seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. 503 Grant Street. Kuecker said this is a contributing property in the Longfellow Historic District and is located at the corner of Grant Court and Grant Street. She showed an image of the front of the house. Kuecker said there are several projects proposed, including the addition of two shed dormers, alterations to the front porch, extension of the rear roof line, alteration to the rear porch stairs and landing, and alteration of the window pattern in the gable end. Regarding the alteration to the front porch, Kuecker said the proposal is to remove the curved awning and wrought iron posts, remove the stairs, and relocate the door to be more centered on the front, raise the awning to the roofline, add wood columns, and reconstruct the concrete stairs with stone sides. Kuecker stated that the alteration to the rear porch is to remove the roof overhang that seems incongruent with the lines of the house and extend the actual roof line straight down to become the new overhang. She said that instead of the post, it would be held up by brackets similar to what already exist on the house. Kuecker said there would no longer be columns there. She said the rear stair would be reconstructed to have a platform outside of the door, and then the stairs would come down. Kuecker said the alteration to the gable end windows is to remove the single window and replace it with two smaller windows to allow more light into the upper area that the owner is trying to make more livable. Kuecker said the last alteration would be the addition of the shed dormers, one on the front and one on the back. She stated that the roof would have the same overhang and rafter ends as the existing roof. Kuecker added that the windows would be the same style, double hung, with the middle window being slightly bigger for egress. She said they would be metal-clad wood windows, and the siding would match the siding on the rest of the house. Kuecker said the guidelines allow the addition of dormers as long as the proportion, size, and scale are compatible with the existing architectural style of the house. She said staff was concerned that perhaps a clipped gable end dormer would be more appropriate in this situation, but the applicant indicated that with that sort of dormer, the living space he is trying to create would not be achievable. Kuecker said staff does not feel that the shed dormer is incompatible but felt a clipped dormer would be more compatible. Kuecker said that overall, staff believes these changes are not incongruent with the architectural style of this house. She said staff recommends approval of the certificate as presented in the application with the Historic Preservation Commission September 11, 2008 Page 3 conditions that the dormer roofs have the same overhang and rafter tails as the existing roof; the dormer siding and trim match the existing siding and trim in dimension and profile; that the divided light pattern in the windows is created by using true divided lights or muntin bars adhered to both sides of the glass but not by using snap in muntin bars; porch skirting being placed under the rear landing and stairs; and the handrails adhering to 4.10 Balustrades and Handrails of the Iowa City Historic Preservation Handbook. Bunting Eubanks said it is her understanding that the proposed design will result in the front porch looking more as it did originally. Kuecker confirmed this. She said it is likely that his house was amail-order catalogue house. Kuecker said she did not find this exact house in any of the catalogues, but a lot of the houses had the awning overhang higher, close to the roof, and had wood columns rather than the wrought iron columns. Baldridge asked why the door was not in the center. Kellogg, the owner, said he thought it had to do with the interior space and moving the door close to the stairs and exterior wall. MOTION: Baldridge moved to approve a certificate of appropriateness for the application for 503 Grant Street, as presented, but subject to the five stipulations recommended by staff. Trimble seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES FOR AUGUST 28, 2008. MOTION: Michaud moved to approve the minutes of the Commission's August 28, 2008 meeting, as written. Baldridge seconded the motion. The motion carried on a vote of 7-0. DISCUSSION OF PUBLIC. FORUMS: Kuecker said the Commission will need to narrow down the work plan item regarding holding district forums or meetings. She said the Commission may want to decide which district to start with, if some should be combined, if there should be a community-wide forum, potential dates to hold the forum, and what should be discussed. Kuecker said round-table discussions starting with some of the smaller districts have been suggested. She said that staff would do most of the legwork of getting a room reserved, getting invitations out, etc., but she would like to ensure that at least four to five commissioners would be available for each forum to be held. Bunting Eubanks asked if it would be possible to hold some kind of virtual forum. She said if people could tune in from their TVs to see some type of presentation, perhaps about the new guidelines or some other subject such as contractor advice, and then call in a phone number if they had questions, they might be more likely to participate than if they have to leave their homes after a full day of work. Wagner said it seems like an interesting way to present the concept to the public and get the whole City behind this. Bunting Eubanks said that if people want to attend in person, they are still able to do that. She suggested about an hour-long presentation, with half an hour to 45 minutes of Commission time and then 15 minutes or longer if necessary for questions. Bunting Eubanks said the forums could perhaps highlight a couple of properties, have statistics regarding what historic preservation has done for the City, examine typical problems for historic properties and how they were resolved, show winners of the historic preservation awards, and/or discuss the Salvage Barn and the cost effectiveness of reusing materials. Bunting Eubanks suggested February as a potential time period to hold the forum. She said that people are just starting to think about spring/summer projects, and there isn't a heavy workload for the Commission at that time. Ponto suggested having the forum be part educational, part meeting the Commission, and also include bringing in Friends of Historic Preservation, so people know that organization exists. Bunting Eubanks suggested having five-minute segments each on a different topic and then 15 minutes at the end for questions. Historic Preservation Commission September 11, 2008 Page 4 Bunting Eubanks said that if there are problems that the Commission is dealing with a lot, then some segments could exist out there and be useful even years down the road. Kuecker said she would look into the resources that the City has and see how to get going with this. Burford said her only question would be whether this would meet the State regulations for notification. Kuecker said she would also check into that. Ponto said he would not want to have this be restricted to just people in historic districts. Bunting Eubanks agreed and stated that she would like to have it be really public, just as the meetings are. She said there are a lot of topics to be addressed, as previously mentioned, and also suggested including the Wetherby House and tornado recovery. Bunting Eubanks said she had discussed with some people finding volunteers to lead walking tours but had not yet called the school. She said that the Commission will probably have to find a teacher who would want to make that part of their curriculum. Wagner said that the template for the walking tours is available. Kuecker said that the Commission was invited to the dedication of the new sorority house on Governor Street. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 6:40 p.m. Minutes submitted by Anne Schulte Historic Preservation Commission Attendance Record 2008 Name Term Expires 1110 2128 3113 4110 5/8 5122 6112 7/10 7124 8114 8128 9111 Baldrid a 3/29111 -- -- -- -- -- -- X 0/E X X X X X X X Baker 3/29/09 X X X O/E X X X X X X O/E X Brennan 3/29108 X O/E O/E -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Downin 3I29I10 X X X 0/E X X 0/E 0/E X X X 0/E Eubanks 3/29/11 O/E X X X X X X O/E X X X X Michaud 3129/09 X X X X O/E O/E X X X X X X Ponto 3/29/10 X X 0/E X X X X X O/E X 0/E X Swaim 3/29/09 X O/E X O/E X O/E O/E X X X X O/E Tich 3/29/11 -- -- -- -- -- -- O/E X O/E O/E O/E O/E 0/E O/E 0 Toome 3/29/09 X O/E X X X X X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Trimble 3/29/10 x O/E X X X X O/E X X X O/E X Wa ner 3/29/09 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- X X Weitrel 3/29/08 O/E X X -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Key: X =Present O =Absent O/E = Absent/Excused