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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_SKHHP_ExecutiveBoard_January_17_2025 SKHHP Executive Meeting January 17, 2025 MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER Nancy Backus called the meeting to order at 1:00 PM. ROLL CALL/ESTABLISHMENT OF QUORUM Executive Board members present: Nancy Backus, City of Auburn; Merina Hanson, City of Kent; Liz Stead, City of Burien; Kristina Soltys, City of Covington; Traci Buxton, City of Des Moines; Brian Davis, City of Federal Way; Victoria Schroff, City of Maple Valley; Carmen Rivera, City of Renton; Dennis Martinez, City of Tukwila; Sunaree Marshall, King County. Others present: Claire Goodwin, SKHHP Executive Manager; Jason Krum, City of Auburn; Sharon Lee, LIHI; Victoria Chow, LIHI. II. PUBLIC COMMENT No public comment was provided. III. APPROVAL OF NOVEMBER 15, 2024 MINUTES Motion to approve the November 15, 2024 minutes as presented. Motion passed (10-0) IV. AGENDA MODIFICATIONS No modifications to the agenda were made. V. BOARD BRIEFING a. MEET THE DEVELOPER: LOW INCOME HOUSING INSTITUTE (LIHI) Sharon Lee provided an overview of the current projects LIHI operates in South King County. LIHI is working with the City of Tukwila on setting up a new tiny house village, and there are some rehabilitation needs at White River Gardens. LIHI is actively researching new projects to develop or rehabilitate in South King County. Some of the challenges LIHI has faced in South King County are the high parking requirements some jurisdictions have. Especially for infill housing projects, it can be highly difficult to meet the parking requirements, and the household car ownership ratio is different. Sometimes, it can also be challenging to understand the timing around permits; while some jurisdictions have worked to establish a clear understanding of the timing, other areas, like unincorporated King County, have uncertain timeframes. The amount of design review for projects can be another challenge. King County AMI is very high, and when working in South King County, it can be difficult to match households with appropriate income requirements. Lastly, even though land costs in South King County are low compared to the rest of the region, the construction costs are still the same, and they are very high right now. Victoria Chow reviewed the history of the Skyway Mixed Use project, which began when Childhaven invited LIHI in 2023 to view their property in unincorporated King County. Unfortunately, an incline on the initial property prevented further development, but Sharon Lee noticed the adjacent property, which became the project's future site. Skyway Mixed Use will provide 54 units of affordable housing, serving households with 30-50% AMI, including households exiting from homelessness. The site will include four early learning center classrooms serving eighty local students. The project is intended to have many larger units to serve larger family sizes, and 50% of the units will be 2- or 3-bed units. Parking requirements were a particular challenge for this project, and to accommodate the required amount of parking, an additional parcel had to be purchased. Victoria Chow noted that King County has made some changes in its recent Comprehensive Plan updates to make the parking requirements easier for affordable housing. Sharon Lee reviewed the design plans for the Skyway Mixed Use project. Sharon Lee reviewed the project's development budget, totaling $41 million for the residential development and $5.5 million for the early learning center. The project included several public funders, including SKHHP. King County had awarded additional funding the day before the presentation. Rep. Adam Smith helped secure federal funding for the project as well. Victoria Chow explained that LIHI is in the process of coming up with a name for the project and will work with the community to include its deep history. The project is in the process of being permitted and is waiting to receive an update on the LIHTC credits, which should fully fund it. LIHI is creating an RFP for general contractors for the project. Dennis Martinez asked where the five hotels LIHI had purchased were located. Sharon Lee said two were in Tacoma, alongside hotels in Lacey, Lakewood, and Whidby Island. Dennis Martinez asked if the house located in Tukwila was for single-family use. Sharon Lee confirmed it was. Dennis Martinez asked how the siting of the new tiny house village in Tukwila was going. Sharon Lee said LIHI recently met with the Mayor and the Human Services Planner and is still in early discussions. The pastor of the church was very interested in hosting the village. Sharon Lee said that they are waiting for the mayor to approve the operations budget. Dennis Martinez asked if there was a community work agreement for the general contractor at the Skyway Mixed Use site. Sharon Lee said LIHI follows the county and state requirements for wage rates and apprenticeship participation. Victoria Schroff asked if the green roof component of the Skyway Mixed Use project helps reduce cooling costs or provides other benefits beyond beautification. Sharon Lee said the project has been following the Evergreen Sustainable Development Standards, which helps reduce utility costs. LIHI uses solar panels to help reduce costs on other projects. VI. BOARD BUSINESS a. 2022 STATE LEGISLATIVE UPDATE Claire Goodwin informed the Executive Board that the 2025 state legislative session had begun on January 13, 2025 and reminded the Board that SKHHP staff had been directed not to lobby on behalf of SKHHP for any bill or our legislative priority. In previous years, SKHHP staff have served as a resource for state lawmakers to ensure awareness around SKHHP's work, primarily related to the Housing Capital Fund. The Board has provided feedback that SKHHP staff updating the Board on some of the bills during sessions pertaining to housing and land use is helpful so that information can be taken back to the Board members’ jurisdiction. SKHHP staff will provide legislative updates at the monthly Executive Board meeting throughout the session. Claire Goodwin reviewed SKHHP’s adopted legislative priority and the legislative timeline, noting that Sine Die is scheduled for April 27. Washington State is facing a budget shortfall of around $13 billion over the four-year forecast. Governor Ferguson has indicated his interest in budget reductions, so it will be a tough year for budget writers and decision-makers. Nancy Backus shared that HB 1380 had been introduced the day before and was related to unhoused encampments and litigation. The bill could be of significant interest to cities as it puts liability on the jurisdiction to prove the presence of open shelter beds before moving encampments. The first hearing is on January 21, 2025, at 4:00 PM. Nancy Backus, Eric Zimmerman, and others have signed up to testify about the bill. Claire Goodwin confirmed that SKHHP staff would add HB 1380 to the legislative tracker. b. 2025 EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING DATES Nancy Backus informed the Board that the dates of the 2025 SKHHP Executive Board meetings were provided in the Agenda Packet. The SKHHP Executive Board meeting is held on the third Friday of every month from 1:00 to 3:00 PM. Four meetings will be held in person on March 21, June 20, September 19, and December 19. In-person meetings are typically held at Auburn City Council Chambers. Claire Goodwin highlighted a potential conflict since the June 20 date falls the day after Juneteenth but is a scheduled workday. Nancy Backus added that the US Conference of Mayors also occurs that week. Claire Goodwin stated she would send around a survey to see if June 13 would work to reschedule the June Executive Board meeting. c. 2026 WORK PLAN AND FIVE-YEAR PLAN SURVEY Claire Goodwin introduced the 2026 work plan survey, a key method for SKHHP staff to receive feedback and inform her of the Executive Board's thoughts as staff begin to develop the draft 2026 work plan. Claire Goodwin hopes to work with the Board on developing a five-year plan with strategic objectives. The plan is to work on this at the three in-person Executive Board meetings. SKHHP staff developed the survey to prepare for the in-person workshop at the March Executive Board meeting and to start the five-year visioning process. Claire Goodwin noted that some Board members had already begun working on the survey. She would provide fifteen minutes during the meeting for the remaining Board members to complete the survey. The Executive Board was provided fifteen minutes to complete the survey. For Board members needing more time, the survey will remain available until Friday, January 24. d. GENERAL UPDATES Claire Goodwin acknowledged Traci Buxton and Sean Kelly for their longtime service on the SKHHP Executive Board; both will be stepping away from their roles with SKHHP. Katherine Caffrey, Des Moines City Manager, will be serving in an interim role on the Board until the permanent member is selected. Victoria Schroff, formerly Maple Valley's alternate, will become Maple Valley's official representative, and Syd Dawson will serve as the alternate for Maple Valley. Anyah Zupancic will serve as Burien's alternate, taking over for Colleen Bradt-Schluter who recently went not into retirement, but refirement. Claire Goodwin reminded the Board that the SKHHP Chair and Vice-Chair elections will be held next month. So far, only Nancy Backus and Dana Ralph have submitted their names for nomination. Additional nominations are still being accepted, and SKHHP staff can receive them by email before the end of next week. Claire Goodwin is still working to schedule 1-on-1 meetings with Executive Board members and will reach out by email after the meeting. Claire Goodwin used the discussion at the November meeting to develop a written policy related to communicating changes to SKHHP-funded Housing Capital Fund projects. SKHHP staff will also present the 2024 Housing Capital Fund recommendation adopted in November to SKHHP member city councils for concurrence. Claire Goodwin reviewed changes to the Pandion at Star Lake that TWG is developing in the City of Kent. The Executive Board had recommended funding for the project in the 2023 and 2024 funding rounds. Pandion at Star Lake did not secure the needed public and private funds this funding round to begin construction. The construction timeline has been moved until funds can be secured to fill the $30 million gap. SKHHP's awards will assist the project in future applications to funders. The SKHHP award is valid until March 2027, which provides time to secure additional funding. TWG is working on a plan with their financial counsel on how to proceed. The City of Kent is supportive of proceeding with awarding the Pandion of Star Lake, providing the project continues to provide 30% AMI units for larger households near light rail. TWG has been a good partner with the city. At the next Executive Board meeting, SKHHP will host a representative from the Washington State Housing Finance Commission to introduce the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program (LIHTC). Claire Goodwin informed the Executive Board that the Department of Commerce released a rental registry study mandated by the 2023-25 state legislature this week. Claire Goodwin informed the Executive Board that the King County Affordable Housing Committee is recruiting to fill vacancies and would provide additional information for Board members interested in joining the committee. VII.UPDATES/ANNOUNCEMENTS Sunaree Marshall informed the Executive Board about the third annual Affordable Housing Symposium hosted by the HDC on Wednesday, January 29, at Bellevue College. Nancy Backus added that housing is perhaps the number one topic at the US Conference of Mayors. Data was shared that the need for housing throughout the generations is declining nationwide. Over the next couple of decades, the demand for housing may be reduced as the generations following the "Baby Boomers" are declining in size. Nancy Backus said she would share the information learned at the conference before the next board meeting. VIII.ADJOURN Nancy Backus adjourned the meeting at 2:24 PM.