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Chairman Watson and members of the County Council: County Council Bill 39, proposed by the Administration, seeks to expand the uses of Route 1 Revitalization housing allocations currently 250 units per year, effective July 2008 to multi-family, single-family attached and multi-use developments. Current law limits the use of these allocations to multi-use developments. The legislation also introduces the concept of advanced housing allocations for Rt.1 revitalization projects. An advanced housing allocation limit of 150 housing allocations is proposed for each specific development proposal. The League of Women Voters of Howard County testimony is based on the Howard County League's housing position that supports maintaining and increasing diverse housing types as well as increasing the number and percentage of affordable units in the County (adopted in 2005). The League does not support advancing housing allocations. Advancing jeopardizes two of the basic tenets of the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance. The responsibility to fund and construct adequate public facilities in a timely and coordinated manner -- schools, roads, libraries, college classrooms, police and fire facilities, and the predictable pace of residential and commercial development. (Sec. 16.11.00(b)(2). Advancing adds complexity and inserts issues of fairness and equity in the granting of tentative housing allocations and phasing of comprehensive projects. The League notes that the Department of Planning and Zoning can already grant up to 50% of the total allocations available within any region for any future year for all comprehensive projects choosing to build in phases. (16.1104(b)(2). The County's housing unit allocation chart indicates the projected number of housing unit allocations to be granted in the County for a 10 year period divided into planning regions. It also sets aside housing unit allocations for Route 1 revitalization (250 units) senior housing (250 units), affordable or moderate-income housing (100 units) and residential green neighborhood allocations (100 units). The League has urged the County Council in prior testimony on the County Council's annual adoption of the housing allocation chart to view the housing allocation chart as a policy document. The League has also urged the County Council to revisit allocation policy decisions to determine if they are indeed accomplishing what the 2000 General Plan and zoning plan intended. The League proposes a simpler policy change to the housing allocation chart and Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance: Delete the moderate income housing allocations from the housing unit allocation chart. (Section 16.1102 B(6)). Eleven Howard County Zoning Districts require a percentage of moderate-income housing development. Developers would automatically receive the moderate-income unit allocations and would not need to compete for moderate-income housing allocations. If the zoning on the property required moderate-income housing, the developers would receive the moderate-income allocations. The second, part of the policy change would retain the 100 units currently dedicated to moderate income and add the allocation units to the Route 1 Revitalization allocation. Thereby increasing the Route 1 allocations market rate units from the current 250 to 350 housing allocations per year. By taking these two actions the County Council would eliminate the need for advancement and simplify the allocation process. A benefit of the League's amendment is that financial lenders would see numbers of market rate allocations for phased development and already bankable moderate priced housing units. The League does not propose to delete or eliminate the existing language regarding the one or two bedroom requirement of square footage of the moderate-income units. The League asks the County Council to review the language proposed in Section 16.1104 (H)(3) regarding the processing of Route 1 Revitalization development proposals, if Route 1 revitalization allocations are not available. Adoption of this provision creates a Route 1 revitalization holding bin. The League suggests that this section be amended to make it clear that the project shall be placed on the bottom of the list of all other housing projects waiting for housing allocations (see section 16.1105 C (2)(i) b and c (2) ii b). The League urges the County Council to table Council Bill 39 and substantially amend the provisions of the Bill bringing it back for a public hearing in June. We thank you for your consideration of our testimony.
Carol Filipczak |
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