ACTION REQUESTED:
Title
Communication from the City Manager and Community Development Director with a Request to RECEIVE AND FILE a Clarification Related to the SOUTH VILLAGE AND EAST VILLAGE HOUSING REHABILITATION PROGRAM. (Council Districts 1 & 3)
Body
BACKGROUND: Rehabilitation services for owner-occupied properties within the boundaries of the East Village and South Village TIF Districts will be offered during 2017. Council has already approved the funding and general outline of these programs. Applications for the East Village program opened in March. Applications for the South Village program will open on April 3.
The purpose of this communication is to provide additional clarification as to specific aspects of both programs. The clarifications are as follows:
1. The application for both programs states that at the end of the assistance, “no code violations will be present.” While this would be an ideal situation, the capacity to resolve all code violations with the limited funds available per property is perhaps too optimistic. As such, the approach for both programs will be to address code violations first, and in order of severity.
2. The funding source for both programs is TIF revenue. The TIF Statute is quite broad in defining the type of work that can be carried out on private properties; “Costs of rehabilitation, reconstruction or repair or remodeling of existing public or private buildings…”
However, the establishment of a TIF District is reliant on certain qualifying criteria related to properties, as listed below:
(A) Dilapidation. An advanced state of disrepair or neglect of necessary repairs to the primary structural components of buildings or improvements in such a combination that a documented building condition analysis determines that major repair is required or the defects are so serious and so extensive that the buildings must be removed.
(B) Obsolescence. The condition or process of falling into disuse. Structures have become ill-suited for the original use.
(C) Deterioration. With respect to buildings, defects including, but not limited to, major defects in the secondary building components such as doors, windows, porches, gutters and downspouts, and fascia. With respect to surface improvements, that the condition of roadways, alleys, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, off-street parking, and surface storage areas evidence deterioration, including, but not limited to, surface cracking, crumbling, potholes, depressions, loose paving material, and weeds protruding through paved surfaces.
(D) Presence of structures below minimum code standards. All structures that do not meet the standards of zoning, subdivision, building, fire, and other governmental codes applicable to property, but not including housing and property maintenance codes.
(E) Illegal use of individual structures. The use of structures in violation of applicable federal, State, or local laws, exclusive of those applicable to the presence of structures below minimum code standards.
(F) Excessive vacancies. The presence of buildings that are unoccupied or under-utilized and that represent an adverse influence on the area because of the frequency, extent, or duration of the vacancies.
(G) Lack of ventilation, light, or sanitary facilities. The absence of adequate ventilation for light or air circulation in spaces or rooms without windows, or that require the removal of dust, odor, gas, smoke, or other noxious airborne materials. Inadequate natural light and ventilation means the absence of skylights or windows for interior spaces or rooms and improper window sizes and amounts by room area to window area ratios. Inadequate sanitary facilities refers to the absence or inadequacy of garbage storage and enclosure, bathroom facilities, hot water and kitchens, and structural inadequacies preventing ingress and egress to and from all rooms and units within a building.
In order to clarify the program guidelines, and to comply with State law, the primary focus of rehabilitation work at each property will be to resolve issues directly related to the qualifying criteria found in the TIF Statute (dilapidation, obsolescence, deterioration, etc.). Remodeling, if it involves the replacement of otherwise code compliant materials that are free of major defects will not be permitted.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: NA - funding already approved
NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERNS: These guidelines will assist the public in determining the scope of services available through these programs.
IMPACT IF APPROVED: This clarification will become part of the program.
IMPACT IF DENIED: The programs will be offered without further clarification, which may lead to confusion.
ALTERNATIVES: NA
EEO CERTIFICATION NUMBER: NA
WHICH OF THE GOALS IDENTIFIED IN THE COUNCIL’S 2014 - 2029 STRATEGIC PLAN DOES THIS RECOMMENDATION ADVANCE?
1. Financially Sound City Government, Effective City Organization
2. Attractive Neighborhoods with Character: Safe and Livable
3. Grow Peoria: Businesses, Jobs, and Population
WHICH CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR(S) FROM THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN DOES THIS RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENT?
1. Support sustainability.
2. Reinvest in neighborhoods.
3. Have an efficient government.
DEPARTMENT: Community Development