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HomeMy WebLinkAboutweekly Notes- September 27th 2019_ CITY OF OAK PARK HOIGHTS—WEE E r: September 27"',2019 s"y ° TO: City Council Memb Sta FROM: Eric Johnson,City mi r r Zoning&Development Items: 1. No new applications have been received; 2. Enclosed is a copy of a map showing the revised NO PARKING area for the Minnehaha trucking facility. This will be forwarded to Washington County along with the revised resolution. 3. The site 6165 Beach Road was given some approvals to revise their drainage plan and should save some trees on the site;see the enclosed letter. 4. St.Croix Crossing Apartments was asked to correct their damaged fence;see enclosed. 5. 1 did attend the MN —American Planning Association conference this past week n Breezy Point. Many of the sessions focused on housing affordability and how cities,developers and others are looking at this topic. It is a large matter there will not be a magic bullet and each city's circumstances are unique—especially across urban, suburban and rural communities. Other Items: • The listing agreement for the City's property on stagecoach Ave.has been competed and is in effect for 6 months. • MCF-Oak Park Heights Holiday Luncheon-Set for 12/12/19—See Enclosed Invitation Mayor McComber provided: 1. Two updates from Shelly Christensen—9/25 and 9/27—Including a planned Town Hall meeting with Rep. Betty McCollum on 1012119 at the Stillwater Area High School. 2. National League of Cities"the weekly"publication for 9121119&Federal Advocacy for 9/24/19 3. Metro Cities news for 9/27/19. 4. Copy of the Star Tribune Article for 9/23/19 where a number of cities advocacy groups (such as the LMC & METRO CITIES)offered responses to the Builder's Lobby report on City Building Permit costs. Please let me know if you have any questions-651-253-7837 Call Anytime. 1 of 24 a. " k mom GY.1:F 70 3 f(+t7 02 ■ i 1010 �[I .I' "Ow =20. mww r 'if tit, �(�►1 iii f w s Ga, 030'If IV 31 LV 05 •"�y�" rid YF 4e 4 ) C _ ow City of Oak Park Heights Page Iof1 14168 Oak Park Blvd N•Oak Park Heights,MN 55082•Phone(651)439-4439•Fax(651)439-0574 9/23/19 Carol Johnson 6165 Beach Road Oak Park Heights,MN 55082 RE: Revised Storm Line Dear Carol, Pursuant to our meeting on Friday,September 20 the relocation of a storm line around the northerly limits of your new garage and then to the east terminating in your rear yard just east and north of your patio would seem to be an acceptable plan if you and your contractors can assure it shall work. It is important that you do not drain any water onto your neighbors to the north or east from CONCEPT-RE24��T FRbkt this proposed line or from any new roofs or surfaces.Based on the lay of the land that should �. � be possible with the concept you proposed. a�,� 6knmgccar Ry-i 4rr.rwuyrA � bWLq WyYMq. w aye Please be sure the drainage from the north side of the new garage does not drain to the north, gutters will need to be installed and possibly tied into this system. Yl N We will need to site verify things upon completion to verify functionality. If there is a �'� y ,fi problem you would be required to address it. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank You 401�1— Eric Johnson City Administrator CC: Julie Hultman Weekly Notes 3 of 24 r City of Oak Park Heights Page 1 oft 14168 Oak Park Blvd. N•Oak Park Heights,MN 55082•Phone(651)439-4439•Fax(651)439-0574 9/24/19 ST CROIX CROSSINGS LP 6409 CITY WEST PKWY S# 102 EDEN PRAIRIE MN 55344 RE: Fence Condition Dear St. Croix Crossings Ownership: There is a chain-link fence on the west side of your property to the west side of your garages and that generally abuts the County frontage road that wraps between your property and the Holiday Gas Station. That chain-link fence is in a state of disrepair,we are unsure if it is needed to be there to protect from the elevation change or the top of those garages.Nevertheless,the fence needs to either be replaced or repaired prior to the end of October. If you have any questions on this requirement please give me a call 651439-4439 Thank You for your attention to this matter. iV Eric Johnson City Administrator Cc: Weekly Notes -- — _ - .r b6T,1 4 of 24 7 MCF-Oak Park Heights Cordially Invites You to Our ANNUAL HOLIDAY LUNCHEON December 12, 2019 10:30 a.m. t0 12:30 p.m. .Held in the Employee Dining Room 5329 Osgood Avenue North Stillwater,Minnesota Lunch for$9.00 from St. Croix Boat&Packet Turkey, mashed potatoes,gravy,stuffing,vegetables,salad, rolls and cookies. Please R.S.V.P.with your payment by November 29 to Sherry Bohn at Sherry.Bohn@state.mn.us r ,a r 5 of 24 Eric Johnson From: Mary Mccomber <marymccomber@aol.com> Sent Wednesday,September 25,2019 4:51 PM To: Eric Johnson Subject: Fwd: Legislative Update September 25,2019 For weekly notes -----Original Message---- From: Rep. Shelly Christensen <rep.shelly.christensen@public.govdelivery.com> To: marymccomber<marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Wed, Sep 25, 2019 4:32 pm Subject: Legislative Update-September 25, 2019 Havma trou6lp wg%wna#him ema�l9 1/1 -it as a Web Daae. Representative Shelly Christensen M1�16��H01[$E�1!E•FRE�ENri�T1918Si ID ��s Dear Neighbors, This week marks the start of fall, and as hard as it is to say goodbye to warm weather, I want to say thank you to all of the organizations, local officials, and community members that invited me to tour their facilities, learn more about their work, and talk about their ideas, priorities, and concerns over this past summer. I have lived in the St. Croix Valley my entire life, but have never had a summer quite like this! The people and places I visited are too many to list here, but some highlights from the summer include visiting the St. Croix Family Resource Center, Valley Outreach, the Lake Elmo Airport, and the Stillwater Rotary Club. i 1 1 6 of 24 CIK�Pc'kfa I also had some enlightening meetings and tours outside of the district, including an Explore MN Tourism Council meeting in Ottertail, and a tour of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension in St. Paul. I view each of these opportunities as a chance to listen to and learn from Minnesotans about how state policies and programs impact them, and I look forward to taking their ideas back with me to the Capitol when we reconvene in February. Oak Park Heights Work Session In August, I attended a work session with the Oak Park Heights City Council to discuss plans for two of my bills that impact our district. The first, House File 2496, requests state funding to help with safety and traffic improvements to the intersection of 60th Street�and Norell Avenue. The second,-Ions �. °i 1 91 9, would establish a Community � � � P Ener Transition Grant Program to support cities like Oak Park Heights. As many are aware, Xcel Energy has announced it will close the King Plant in Oak Park Heights within the next decade. Transitioning Minnesota to a clean energy economy is critical, but it is also essential that we support communities like Oak Park Heights, for which coal plants are a significant part of the local economy. My bill would provide grants to cities like Oak Park Heights to support economic development projects, efforts to support displaced plant workers, and community and land use planning, I am working hard to make sure that the House Capital Investment Committee makes a visit to our community later this fall as part of a tour to evaluate projects throughout the state that are asking for bonding funds. These two bills are among my biggest priorities for the 2020 legislative session and I will continue to keep you updated. Climate Action Caucus Climate change is one of the top issues that I hear about from fellow community members. People from across the state are organizing in their communities and urging legislators to take action, and young people are particularly dedicated to fighting climate change. Last Friday, hundreds of Minnesota students kicked off Climate Action Week by participating in the worldwide Youth Climate Strike. 2 7 of 24 i rt r �r e7 Ful F �II � J My colleagues and I are standing in solidarity with the students as they strike. To show our support, we've formed a new Climate Action Caucus. This dedicated group of legislators, which I'm proud to be a part of, will work with Minnesotans on a bold, comprehensive plan to fight climate change and create a future in which we all thrive. Please stay tuned for updates. Lily Lake Elementary Shout out to the students of Lily Lake Elementary who visited the State Capitol last week. It was great speaking with you, and I hope you enjoyed your newly renovated Capitol building! Quick reminder that Capitol tours aren't just for students. You can also come and take in the beauty of this historical building. You can find more information on the free tours here, and be sure to let me know if you're planning on stopping by! 3 8 of 24 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women It was an emotional ceremony last week as the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Task Force was launched. As a co-author of the bill that created this task force, I stand with my colleague Rep. Mary Kunesh-Podein, who courageously championed this effort to address the unconscionable fact that American Indian women face murder rates that are more than 10 times the national average. Minnesota has the 9th highest rate of missing and murdered Indigenous women in the U.S., and almost none of them are logged in a Department of Justice database. You can watch a video from the task force launch here. We can and must do better by these women, their families, and their communities. Insulin & Prescription Drugs This month, DFL lawmakers in the Minnesota House of Representatives are holding a series of Community Conversations outside of the Capitol to address the soaring cost of insulin and prescription drugs. The meetings and conversations taking place across the state are an opportunity for Minnesotans to share personal stories, learn about solutions under discussion at the Legislature, and put pressure on Big Pharma to end price gouging. If you or a loved one have been impacted by the rising cost or inaccessibility of medication, I want to hear from you. The House will be holding a formal hearing around this issue on Thursday, because we can't afford to wait until February to solve this crisis. You'll be able to watch the hearing live on our House of Representatives webpage at fpm on the 26th. 4 9 of 24 M m=l W e f1011M N11418 Fhwis- PWWID 111mli!m 1041115; Alec Smith Emergency Insulin Act PA X24,, YhU411{ pm State Office Building Room 200 loo Rev.Dr.Martin Luther King Jr,Boulevard Saint Raul,MN 55155 Stay in Touch If you have any questions, especially on the topics covered in today's legislative update, please feel free to contact me. During the interim I'll be back home working with neighbors to find solutions to the issues facing our community and state, and I always appreciate your input! You can reach me at (651) 2964244 or rep.sheliv.christensenAhouse.mn. I look forward to hearing from you! Sincerely, Representative Shelly Christensen Update your subscriptions, modify your password or email address, or stop subscriptions at any time on your Subscriber" Preferences Pape. You will need to use your email address to log in. If you have questions or problems with the subscription service, please visit subscriberhelD.govdelivery com,. This service is provided to you at no charge by Minnesota House DFL. This email was sent to marymccomber@aol.com using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of.Minnesota House DFL•100 Rev.Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.Blvd.-Saint Paul,MN 55155 FMAMP 5 10 of 24 Eric Johnson From: Mary Mccomber <marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Friday, September 27,2019 11:40 AM To: Eric Johnson Subject: Fwd:Just announced: October 2 town hall meeting with Congresswoman Betty McCollum For weekly notes and post --Original Message--- From: Rep. Shelly Christensen <rep.shelly.christensen@public.govdelivery.com> To: marymccomber<marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Fri, Sep 27, 2019 11:26 am Subject: Just announced: October 2 town hall meeting with Congresswoman Betty McCollum Havinq trouble viewina this email?View it as a Web page Shelly Christensen IIIB1I811W=HOIISB DIBFMMNB Dear Neighbors, Please join me and U.S. Congresswoman Betty McCollum for a town hall meeting next Wednesday, October 2. We hope you can participate to ask questions and share your concerns and ideas about issues that are important to you and our community. I hope to see you there! It is important for me to hear directly from you, and it helps guide the decisions I make at the State Capitol. The town hall details are below. What: Town Hall Meeting with Congresswoman Betty McCollum and State Rep. Shelly Christensen Where: Stillwater Area High School—5701 Stillwater Blvd N, Stillwater, MN 55082 When: Wednesday, October 2 from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm The town hall meeting is free and open to the public. No RSVP is required. Stay in Touch During the interim I'll be back home working with neighbors to find solutions to the issues facing our community and state, and I always appreciate your input! You can reach me at (651) 296-4244 or rep.shelly.chdstensenCc�house.mn. I look forward to hearing from you! Sincerely, i 11 of 24 Representative Shelly Christensen Update your subscriptions, modify your password or email address, or stop subscriptions at any time on your Subscriber Preferences Page. You will need to use your email address to log in. If you have questions or problems with the subscription service, please visit subscriberhelp. ovdeliverv.com. This service is provided to you at no charge by Minnesota House QFL. This email was sent to marymccomber@aol.com using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of:Minnesota House DFL•100 Rev.Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.Blvd.•Saint Paul,MN 55155 Flymullso 2 12 of 24 Eric Johnson From: Mary Mccomber <marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Saturday, September 21,2019 6:50 AM To: Eric Johnson Subject: Fwd:This Week in Photos: Local Leaders on Capitol Hill For weekly notes ----Original Message----- From: National League of Cities<news@nic.org> To: marymccomber<marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Sat, Sep 21, 2019 6:01 am Subject: This Week in Photos: Local Leaders on Capitol Hill View in browser The Weekly r oho i This Week in Photos: Local Leaders on Capitol Hill 1 13 of 24 Local and federal leaders are in agreement about a number of issues, including the breadth of the challenges surrounding housing and homelessness — Senator Diane Feinstein called homelessness one of the biggest, if not the biggest, problem facing cities today. Register PRICES INCREASE SEPTEMBER 30 NLC SUMMIT To Columbus, With Love • "For my whole life you have been a place that inspires, challenges, and fights. You are a city that is rich in „ = history and poised for a continued vibrant future." - Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther writes a love letter to his hometown. r FCC Cable Order Effective Date Set This order represents the most substantial change to cable franchising in the past 35 years, since the 1984 Cable Act was signed into law. -X-} What Congress Learned from Miami Gardens Roads are not just road, they are pathways to something greater. And it's time for Congress to understand this the way that local leaders do. News EDITORIAL: Huntington's progress with opioid epidemic The Parthenon - September 17, 2019 2 14 of 24 To Rein in Cities, Texas Tries to Ban Their Lobbying RouteFifty September 16, 2019 Atlanta is classified as `rent-burdened.' Here's what that means. Atlanta Agent- September 12, 2019 Events November 20 - 23 NLC 2019 City Summit (San Antonio, Texas) Job Postings City Manager -- City of Mount Clemens, Michigan Recreation Coordinator-- City of Las Vegas, Nevada City Engineer -- City of Nashua, New Hampshire LZANZ N" You may opt out of email communications from NLC at any time. Update your communication preferences. This message was intended for: marymccomber@aol.com 660 North Capitol Street, NW, Suite 450 Washington, DC 20001 Privacy Policy ©2018 NLC, All Rights Reserved Powered by Higher Logic 3 15 of 24 Eric Johnson From: Mary Mccomber <marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Tuesday,September 24,2019 4:03 PM To: Eric Johnson Subject: Fwd: Local Leaders on Capitol Hill Federal Advocacy Newsletter-Week of September 24 For weekly notes ----Original Message-- From: National League of Cities<advocacy@nlc.org> To: marymccomber<marymccomber@aol.com> Sent: Tue, Sep 24, 2019 3:58 pm Subject: Local Leaders on Capitol Hill-Federal Advocacy Newsletter-Week of September 24 If this message is not displaying property,please view the ual!n6 a ar irsi� Y , a NATIONAL L FAG UE NLCOZ FEDERAL ■ ■ + , NEWSLETTER Local Leaders on Capitol Hill In meetings with Members of Congress and at Congressional briefings, local officials urged the federal government to take action on issues that matter most to our nation's residents.We're proud of and thankful for the local leaders who demonstrated what partnership and progress on behalf of the American public looks like. Key Takeaways and Next Steps New Autonomous Vehicle Grants Announced, Congress Contemplates Legislation 16 of 24 On September 18th, the USDOT announced nearly$60 million in federal grants to eight projects in seven states to test the safe integration of automated driving systems on American roads. What is Your City's Perspective on Autonomous Vehicles? Proposed Changes to SNAP Will Have A Direct Effect on Cities' Economic Development While this rule is an effort ensure only those who truly need SNAP resources receive them, across-the-board elimination of categorical eligibility would pose significant challenges to cities,towns and villages across the country. How This Proposed Rule Affects Local Communities SNAPSHOTYOUR TEAM IN ACTION • Last week, NLC hosted our 2019 Local Leaders Fly-In, during which over 20 local officials met with staffers and Members of Congress in over 40 meetings on Capitol Hill Over the three-day period, NLC was featured in two Capitol Hill briefings focused on workforce development and housing. • The next Federal Advocacy Newsletter is scheduled for October 8. • On November 20-23, city leaders will gather in San Antonio, Texas for City Summit to continue to craft policy, share ideas and speak up for the priorities of cities, towns and villages. Register now! Congress to Move on Marijuana Banking The House plans to hold a vote tomorrow on the SAFE Banking Act, a bill that would better allow financial institutions to provide banking and insurance services to cannabis related businesses. 2 17 of 24 i Learn More About This NIC-Backed Legislation EPA, Army Corps Finalize Repeal of Obama WOTUS Rule r The EPA and Army Corps have finalized a rule to repeal the 2015 Clean Water Rule. The 2015 Rule aimed to clarify which waterbodies are federally regulated under the Clean Water Act and define which M waterbodies are considered "waters of the U.S." .. More Information on the Rule's Impact on Local Governments What Congress Learned from Miami Gardens Roads are not just roads,they are pathways to something greater. i And it's time for Congress to understand this the way that local leaders do. Read Excerpts of Mayor Gilbert's Congressional Testimony ANNOUNCEMENTS 2020 Leadership Application Closes Today! Serving in a leadership position as an NLC Board Member, Officer, Chair, or Member is one of the most rewarding ways for you as a municipal leader to bring your expertise to the service of cities, towns and villages at the national level. By representing your community and contributing your voice, you have the opportunity to impact the direction of the National League of Cities and even national policy. Get Your Application In Now! Grant Opportunity for Coastal Resilience The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) announced a Request for Proposals for projects that use natural infrastructure to build resilience for coastal communities. Provided through the emergency supplemental funding in 2019 in response to Hurricanes Florence and Michael, Typhoon Yutu and the 2018 wildfires, eligible projects must be in a county that was a federally declared disaster in AL, CA(southern), FL, GA, NC, SC or VA. Deadline for application is Nov. 12, 2019. Contact Suzanne Sessine for more information. 3 18 of 24 Submit Your Proposal Before November 12 NEWS Automatic cuts to transit aid, highways face Congress The Bond Buyer- September 10, 2019 Why Congestion Pricing Makes Sense US News - September 19, 2019 Why Businesses Should Pay Attention to the 2020 Census The Hour- September 23, 2019 LC LOOM I � open= l You may opt out of email communications from NLC at any time. Update your communication preferences.. 660 North Capitol Street, NW, Suite 450, Washington, DC 20001 Privacy Policy 10 2019 NLC,All Rights Reserved Powered by Higher Logic 4 19 of 24 Metro Cities News 9/27/19 Pagel of 3 METRO CITIESMember Login B Se arch oLrour ott ®4 Home Metro Cities News About Us Meetings&Events Membership Advocacy Policies&Resources MAMA Return to the blog Upcoming Events Metro Cities News 9/27/19 by:10mberly Ciarrocchi Thu Oct10,2079 category:Newsletter Metro Cities Board of Directors Me in category:Matin ch-eoard o4 W— Sep IThu Nw 14,2019 -_�_ ._._, 27 In This Issue: MAMA Luncheon Category MAMA • qty Organizations'Commentary Published in Star Tribune yThu N.14,2019 - TAB Releases Regional Solicitation Application for Public Comment Metro Replonal Meetin Ilcv Adoption Meeting • Stomtwater Management Grams Awarded by Metropolitan Council category..M-eng • Policy Committee Survey View Full Calendar Our Tweets City Organizations'Commentary Published in Star Tribune Tweets by @MetroCidesMN A commentary by several city organizations including Metro Cities,in response to recent papers Metro Cities released by the builders,was published in the Star Tribune this week.The commentary addresses the @Me#oCitiesMN various inaccuracies,cherry-picked data and timelines,and misleading conclusions contained in the 2019 Session state Fiscal Review builders'papers,and emphasizes the need for local government officials to be able to address costs released: and services associated with local development that meet the needs of the community and are not hltpsJttwider.comNk-SCRFArst dictated by the motives of private builders and developers. atusM1778MB40027373589 In last week's newsletter,Metro Cities provided updates on recent legislative activity on these issues as 38m well as copies of power point presentations by Metro Cities and several city officials from a recent Sensible Land Use Coalition meeting that discussed city roles and responsibilities related to JM Metro Cities development infrastructure and costs.Please click for that information. @Metoci iesi;N City organizations,including Metro Cities will continue to provide updates on these issues. Metro Cities,respond to builders' papers on developmenbbuilding fees in Star Tribune commentary: TAB Releases Regional Solicitation Application for Public Comment startribune.com/cotrterpoint-d The Transportation Advisory Board(TAB)approved a draft document with recommended changes to the Regional Solicitation application process at its meeting last week and released the application Embed View on Twitter document for public comment.The Regional Solicitation is the method by which federal transportation dollars from the Surface Transportation Block Grant Program and Congestion Mitigation Air Quality program are allocated within the metropolitan area.Funding is distributed among roadway,transit and travel demand management,and bicycle and pedestrian projects.A total of$199.75 million for various projects was approved in the last solicitation.For more information on the draft application,click The TAB recommended considering a decrease to the maximum award amount for Bicycle and Pedestrian projects,from$5.5 to S4 million with the rationale that by lowering the maximum award, more projects could potentially receive funding.The TAB is also recommending that applicants be required to submit a letter that they will commit to year-round use including snow and ice control on the trail. Draft changes related to Housing Performance and Equity criteria are included in the application, including lowering the value of Housing Performance scores in scoring and replacing the current equity 20 of 24 hqs://www.metrocitiesmn.org/index.php?option=cont dailyplanetblog&view—entry&yea... 9/27/2019 Metro Cities News 9/27/19 Page 2 of 3 multiplier with a bonus points system.The TAB has also proposed the creation of a regional policy group on transportation and equity. The draft application includes a new Arterial Bus Rapid Transit(ABRT)funding program that would be separate from transit scoring and has a proposed funding level of$25 million.Other BRT projects(such as dedicated busway or highway)would be funded up to a$7 million maximum.A new market transit project will also be guaranteed funding.For more information on the types of BRT and how they will be considered for funding,click . . The draft application also requires applicants to have completed their Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)plans and includes a Unique Project application category for innovative projects that do not easily qualify under current application categories.This category is proposed to be funded with 2.5%of the total available funds and those funds will be set aside until the 2022 Regional Solicitation and would be solicited for at that time.The application does not include a$10 million bridge set aside that was included in the last solicitation. The Metropolitan Council will accept comments on the draft application until 5:00 pm,November 6th. The final application will be released in February 2020.To view the recommended application changes, click .Comments can be submitted via the following: Email ilic,infoOmetc.state rnn.us Record a message at 651.602.1500,TTY:651.221.9886 • Mail comments to 390 Robert Street North,St.Paul,MN 55101-1005 Questions?Contact Steven Huser at steven metrocitiesmn.ora.or 651-215-4003. Stormwater Management Grants Awarded by Metropolitan Counr..il The Metropolitan Council Environment Committee has awarded 2019 stormwater management grants. These grants are funded with$500,000 from the Council's operating budget.The Council received 15 applications totaling over$1 million in requests.The goal of the program is to help fund practices to treat and manage stormwater for redevelopment projects,or to retrofit fully developed areas with new management practices to reduce pollution.The Council has administered previous rounds of stormwater management grants. The following projects received grant awards: Village Green Stormwater and Community Garden Improvements,Fridley-$100,000 Stormwater Reuse for Downtown Centerville Redevelopment,Centerville-$100,000 Autumn Ridge Participatory Landscape Design,Installation,Brooklyn Park-$73,787 ECO Mosque-Hennepin County Public Works Department of Environment and Energy-$75,000 St Hubert Catholic School Stormwater Retrofit-RPBCWD-$75,000 Hugo County Road 8 Trail Improvements&Stormwater Reuse,Hugo-$50,000 Brooklyn Center Workforce and Senior Affordable Apartments,Brooklyn Center-$25,000 Policy Committee Survey Thank you to all city officials who participated in Metro Cities'policy committee process this year.Your time and efforts to assist in this work are important and greatly appreciated by Metro Cities. If you served on a policy committee this year,you will receive a request to participate in a brief survey. Thank you in advance for your responses,feedback and any suggestions for the policy committee process. Recommended policies will be considered and adopted by the Metro Cities Board of Directors at their October meeting,and will then be forwarded for final adoption by Metro Cities'membership on Thursday,November 14th at the Metro Regional Meeting/Policy Adoption meeting.Click to register for this meeting,and stay tuned for additional information. Share this post: 21 of 24 hos://www.metrocitiesmn.org/index.php?option=cont dailyplanetblog&view=entry&yea... 9/27/2019 Eric Johnson From: Eric Johnson Sent: Tuesday, September 24, 2019 10:15 AM To: marymccomber@aol.com Subject: star trib Counterpoint: Developers' studies misrepresent role of fees in housing costs The Housing Affordability Institute's reports cherry pick data to accuse cities of overcharging for building permits. By David Unmacht,Patricia Nauman,James Hovland,Bradley Peterson and Mary McComber SEPTEMBER -- _ _ u AARON LAVINSKY• AARON.LAVINSKY@STARTRIBUNE.COM An almost-finished new home up for sale in northeast Minneapolis. Text size comment share tweet email Print more Share on Share on Linkedln Share on Pinterest Copy shortlink Purchase Order Reprint 1 22 of 24 Two recent reports by a builders'industry group called the Housing Affordability Institute—funded by the Builders Association-Housing First(BATC)— paint an incomplete and inaccurate picture of the role development fees,particularly building permit fees, play in housing costs. Both reports have received Star Tribune coverage("Builders say cities are overcharging for permits,"Aug. 21). While city governments and developers have historically worked hand in hand when it comes to new development,each operates with different motivations.Cities provide essential services to ensure the health,safety and welfare of residents. Developers and builders are private businesses motivated to construct housing with a goal of maximizing profit margins. Successful collaboration relies on each party's acknowledgment,respect and understanding of the other's primary objectives. Cities in our state approach these partnerships in good faith and with a consistent guiding principle—new development should pay for itself.Public infrastructure that serves the new development—safe streets,sewer service and utilities,for example—generally should not be subsidized by existing residents through their property taxes but instead should be included in the development cost. That is why cities collect development fees that are mutually negotiated by both parties,and that reflect the unique characteristics of each project.Those fees offset the city's costs to make sure that develonment functions as intended and meets safety standards. With the release of its reports, BATC has launched a campaign designed to pin complex and multi-varied housing challenges onto city government and shift the cost of new development to existing taxpayers. The first report claims that city fees are the primary driver of high housing costs,but the report's own data and narrative do not support this.The report's contents instead show that the largest variables in the cost of new construction are labor and materials followed by land costs—all three of which are dictated by market forces and not cities.The authors claim city fees account for"up to"30%of the cost of a newly constructed home when,in some cities,that number calculated with publicly available data was between 4%and 6%. Four to six percent is not what separates the market cost of new single-family construction and what the report vaguely refers to as"affordability."It does, however,secure the safety and functionality of new neighborhoods that will stand in our communities long after the builders have sold off the last lot and moved on to the next project. In its latest report released on Aug.20,the institute cherry-picks data collected by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry(DLI)to accuse cities of willfully overcharging for building permit fees. That report,though,failed to account for several facts: 2 23 of 24 •State rules dictate that building permit fees are based on valuation of the construction project,not on the fee-for- service pass-through framework claimed in the report.This is a fundamental flaw and indicates a lack of expertise or a purposeful diversion by the report's authors. • Builders and developers are involved in setting that valuation. • Building permit fees do not adequately account for city costs—to fairly analyze the data,all development fees as well as city administrative,engineering,planning and zoning expenses should also be considered. •The report only uses data from 20142018. If the snapshot were for the previous five years,it would instead show that many cities made the difficult decision to use taxpayer money to cover costs related to new development during a recessionary period. The report went on to assert that several cities in the state have failed to file yearly development fee reports to DLI. However, municipalities are not required to contact the state if they do not collect more than$5,000 in fees.The League of Minnesota Cities is working with cities who failed to meet the submission deadline to ensure they understand compliance responsibilities going forward. We respectfully reject the Housing Affordability Institute's"us vs.them"strategy. Legislative leaders who might be considering legislation that would undermine local control should reject this approach as well.Our associations believe that paying for local development across all of Minnesota's 853 cities is not a one-size-fits-all proposition.These are policies that should be set by local elected leaders—not dictated by private builders and developers whose motives might be inconsistent with the best interests of the communities. David Unmacht is executive director,League of Minnesota Cities.Patricia Nauman is executive director,Metro Cities. James Hovland is president, Municipal Legislative Commission. Bradley Peterson is executive director,Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities. Mary McComber is president,Minnesota Association of Small Cities. 3 24 of 24