HousingPartnershipMinutes2019NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes
January 7, 2019 Members Present: Chair Todd Weir, Vice-Chair Patrick Boughan, Kyla Prior, Becky
Lockwood, Gordon Shaw, Mark Goggins, Richard Abuza, Edgar Cancel. Also present,
Wayne Feiden, Director of the Office of Planning and Sustainability, Carolyn Misch,
Permits Planner, Office of Planning and Sustainability and Peg Keller, staff. Call To Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. All present
introduced themselves. Guests/ Office of Planning and Sustainability Director Feiden presented a Power Point slide show that described efforts his office has
pursued to facilitate the creation of affordable housing. Chair Weir framed the
discussion that followed by asking how the Partnership can better partner with their
department to advocate for those common goals. Wayne said physical presence at the
public hearings with formal endorsements from the Housing Partnership is valuable.
Any proposals for actual zoning changes come to the Partnership as part of the current
City Council mandated vetting process already.
Ms. Misch said OPS staff can only do so much with their own advocacy. It would be
helpful if the NHP could weigh in on all housing projects, not just affordable ones. She
gave the Hinckley Street project as an example of small scale, scattered site housing that
got push back from the neighborhood. Residents typically fear change, but often
projects gain acceptance later. Although not affordable, it was a smart growth, energy
efficient design. There is also an aspect of forward thinking developers being
discouraged to pursue projects when social media can turn out large numbers of people
(only) in opposition.
Mr. Abuza said the NHP recognized early on, the interconnectedness between housing
and other community development sectors. He felt that when the City Codes were
redone, the mandate for utilizing the NHP for recommendations on housing activities
in general, was stripped and he finds that unfortunate. Mr. Reis asked that the NHP be
included in this communication loop, even if it is not mandated. Participation at the
Tech Review meetings was discussed. Peg receives the notices, but having an actual
Partnership member attend regularly was determined to be preferable.
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In summary, the following items were noted as possible next steps: •Assign an NHP member to attend tech review meetings•Zoning Sub-Committee (Patrick and Jim) meet with OPS as needed, or on aregularly scheduled basis, such as twice annually, to check in & be alerted foradvocacy opportunities well ahead of time•NHP show support for all appropriate housing projects, not just affordable ones•Sign up for City Council agendas to see proposals coming forward as well asPlanning Department listserv•Utilize YIMBY social media network for advocacyMs. Misch noted that in reality, the likelihood of smaller housing projects including affordable units is slim. Mr. Boughan said the NHP is interested in market rate affordable (small "a") as well. The Planning staff was thanked for their attendance, and all agreed that the NHP can be helpful to the department's efforts if they/we are aware of what is moving forward and the timelines associated with the public process. Minutes were approved as submitted from the December meeting. The vote was unanimous in favor, with Mr. Shaw abstaining, due to his absence. Election of Officers Mr. Abuza made a motion to elect the slate of officers proposed: Rev. Todd Weir to serve as Chair, Mr. Boughan to serve as Vice-Chair and Ms. Prior to serve as Clerk. The motion was seconded by Mr. Reis; the vote in favor unanimous. Mission Statement Although the bulk of the discussion occurred at the last meeting, there was no quorum present for a vote. Therefore, with a quorum present this evening, a vote was taken. The vote to adopt the Mission Statement was unanimous. Membership This item will be moved to the February agenda, to more fully discuss recruitment efforts needed to achieve diversity goals. Fair Housing Peg provided an update on the stakeholder group sessions scheduled for January 23rd and January 30th• The invites will go out tomorrow. Members asked aboutthe survey distribution, which Peg will discuss with PVPC, as the survey monkey has now been completed. Policy Committee Vice-Chair Boughan reported that an invitation has been issued to dialogue with the Chair of the Planning Board Tess Poe. She is unable to attend meetings on Monday nights, so they may schedule a meeting with her and the Policy 2
Sub-Committee separately on another evening. Ms. Prior noted that the New Member
Guide has been revised and will be re-distributed to members for final comment. OP-Ed's will be discussed at the February meeting. CPC/NHP Members solidified the attendance and presentation plan for the Community
Preservation Committee meeting scheduled for January 16th • This invite is a result of
Chair Weir's request to discuss the process for addressing applications for housing
projects in the future. Chair Weir, Vice-Chair Boughan, Ms. Lockwood and Mr. Alves
will attend. Major points to convey will be:
•Acknowledging and understanding the dynamics behind the affordable housing
funding percentage being lower than the other categories
•Addressing the challenge for developers to have to submit to multiple funding
rounds to secure the funding they need for the larger affordable housing projects
•Addressing the myth that these larger projects can make up the local funding
gaps with State funds
•Is there a possibility of bonding for the housing projects, as has been done for the
other project categories?
Chair Weir said the Committee seemed very receptive to engaging in this dialogue. He
has received input from Valley Community Development Corporation and The
Community Builders that will inform his remarks. Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 7:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller
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CITY OF NORTHAMPTON Office of the Mayor
City Hall, 210 Main Street
Northampton, MA 01060-3199 (413) 587-1288 Fax: (413) 587-1275
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP
Meeting Notice
DATE: February 4, 2019
TIME: 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
PLACE: Northampton City Hall 210 Main Street
2nd Floor Room 18
AGENDA
1.) Public Comment Period
2.) Approval of Minutes (3 minutes)
3.) Appoint a Timekeeper for the Meeting
4.) Fair Housing Sub-Committee Update (15 minutes)
Analysis of Impediments
5.) Policy Sub-Committee Update (15 minutes)
6.) Action Plan Updates
•CHSSP Update (10 minutes)
•Zoning Sub-Committee Update (15 minutes)
o Community Preservation Committee Meeting De-Brief•Next Op Ed Submission (20 minutes)
•Membership Drive (10 minutes)
8.) Adjourn
Peg Keller
Housing and Community Development Planner
413 -587-1288 pkeller@northamptonma.gov
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes February 4, 2019 Members Present: Chair Todd Weir, Kyla Prior, Becky Lockwood, Gordon Shaw, Edgar Cancel, Jim Reis, Julio Alves, Alex Jarrett. Also present, Dan Krassner, potential member and Peg Keller, staff. Call To Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. All present introduced themselves to Mr. Krassner, a potential new member. The minutes were approved as submitted. The vote in favor was unanimous, with Mr. Alves abstaining. Fair Housing Sub-Committee Update Peg reviewed the list of stakeholders that attended the two sessions held to date (10 sessions held on January 23rd and January 30th). Groups included social service providers, housing search workers, property managers, housing authority representatives, disabled community advocates, local officials from surrounding towns, housing developers, realtors and local government officials including the Mayor, the Planning Director, the Human Rights Commission, the Senior Center and the public school system. A great deal of valuable material was gathered. This process will be followed up by 6 focus group sessions, scheduled for late February, early March. The Mayor issued a Press Release on the project last week, the survey is being finalized and the public session to present the draft plan is May 22nd at 7:00 p.m. at the Senior Center. Allison Curtis, the PVPC Planner sent Peg a draft of the data collection phase of the project and it is extensive. Peg is excited about how the project is progressing and thanked Jim, Gordon and Todd for attending some of the sessions. Policy Sub-Committee Update Kyla reminded members of the 2/21 meeting scheduled with Tess Poe, Planning Board Chair. This is a follow up to last month's meeting with the Planning Director and Permits Planner to discuss goals and how the Partnership can be helpful. She then distributed the latest draft of the Partnership Member guide. It was reviewed and members agreed that with some final edits, was ready to be posted on the City's Website. Kyla was thanked for her work! Community Housing Support Services Project Peg met with the CHSSP Coordinator, Jose Cruz, his supervisor Luis Martinez from the Center for Human Development and Jen Dieringer and Mandy Winalski of Community Legal Aid earlier today. Peg wanted to insure Mr. Cruz was getting sufficiently oriented
to the resources of the community. The session went well and the goals of the program
were reiterated and clarified. There was no discussion of continued funding efforts at
this meeting. NHP members agreed that a small sub-committee would work on
developing a fact sheet on the program, describing its successes and a formal funding
request package would be prepared. Local requests for funding would be made to
Meadowbrook Apartments and the Northampton Housing Authority. The Committee
will assemble, identify tasks and a timeline, as March will begin the final year of
funding. Mr. Shaw and Mr. Cancel agreed to work on this. CHD Program reps will be
invited to attend a Partnership meeting in the near future as well. Community Preservation Committee/NHP Joint Meeting Update Chair Weir reported that Patrick had presented the bulk of the information to the CPC
on January 16th• One of the issues discussed was the ability to bond for housing projects.
CPC staff and members have said in the past that it is not possible to do that for projects
that are not City sponsored projects. The CPC lobbying advocate for the statewide
network was in the audience and said that was not the case. Patrick has since done
some research that he will present at the next monthly meeting to that effect. CPC
members addressed the disparity in percentages of housing awards compared to the
other categories. They said the discrepancy was created in earlier rounds and that will
be difficult to remedy now that the dollars available to award are so much less. With
regard to the added time and costs required when housing developers have to come in
for multiple funding rounds to achieve the local match they seek, CPC members said
they are not comfortable with approving phased requests into the future. They did
agree, however, to see if subsequent application requirements could be streamlined.
The myth that larger housing projects can just get increased dollars from State funding
sources if they don't get them at the local level was also discussed. Laura Baker was in
the audience for another reason, and was able to speak to this. There is also the
"practice" that CPC members look for the biggest bang for their CPA buck, and if they
can (more) fully fund a smaller project, as opposed to being a small piece on a much
larger project, those smaller projects are prioritized. This is not helpful for affordable
housing projects, so more discussion will need to be held around this aspect. Chair Weir
said the dialogue was collaborative and CPC members understand the issues and do
want to fund housing projects whenever possible and to the extent possible. It was
noted that they have funded every housing project that has come before them, just not
for the amount requested in all cases.
Chair Weir noted that the Mayor had said at the stakeholder sessions that he will
devote the Air B and B tax yield to affordable housing. Vice-Chair Boughan will present
his research on the bonding issue and discussion will continue. The Chair and ViceChair were thanked for their attendance and presentation at the CPC meeting. Landlord Workshop Mr. Shaw asked if there were plans this year to do the Landlord Workshop. Peg said she was too busy to take that on right now, but thought it would be possible at another time. He noted that there had been a request at last year's session to hear information about building and sanitary codes so perhaps we could have those City personnel present. Mr. Cancel asked about a tenant rights workshop and Mr. Shaw noted the difficulty in getting people to attend until they themselves are confronting a housing emergency. It was noted and Mr. Cancel agreed that there are gatherings of tenants at other events (i.e. Healthy Hampshire food distribution, Community Garden meetings) where people could be present to answer questions about tenant rights. All present agreed that this was a great idea to be pursued (piggyback on other events). Past sessions of landlord workshops have yielded 20-35 participants, so it would be good to continue having an annual event and not lose that momentum. A tenant workshop could also be tried, as it hasn't been in many years. Food and child care should be provided. Peg suggested perhaps a sub-committee could form to plan and hold both a landlord and a tenant workshop later this year. Membership Drive/ Op Ed Submission These items will be held until the next meeting. Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 7:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller Follow Up Tasks Person Responsible Deadline Attend Meeting with Tess Poe Policy Committee/ all welcome. 2/21 2/21 @ 7 at the Police Station Alex, Patrick, Peg Review Member Guide & add Kyla, Peg 2/22 NHP goal & accomplishment info. Post on City web-site Schedule AI Focus Groups & FH Committee members and 2/8 finalize Survey Peg Gather info. on CPC bonding Patrick, Policy Committee March 29, 2019 ability for housing projects Present to CPC
Form CHSSP Committee & Gordon, Edgar, Peg March 29, 2019
Create Program info./ develop
fundraising goals/timeline
Invite CHD to a NHP meeting Todd, Patrick April?
Ad hoc Committee to Plan Fall ? July 31, 2019
Workshops/Tenant and
Landlord Rights
Apply for funding for Patrick, Edgar, Peg, NHA Next CPC round/
Hampshire Heights Playground CDBG funding?
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes March 4, 2019 Members Present: Chair Todd Weir, Vice-Chair Patrick Boughan, Kyla Prior, Becky Lockwood, Gordon Shaw, Alex Jarret, Julio Alves, Jim Reis and Peg Keller, staff. Call To Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. Minutes from the February meeting were approved as submitted. Mr. Reis asked a question about CHD's commitment to assisting with finding funding for the CHSSP. Update to be provided later in the meeting. Fair Housing Sub-Committee Update Peg reported on the progress of the Analysis of Impediments. She and PVPC staff will meet with Safe Passage staff on March 19th• PVPC did meet with a group at theNorthampton Recovery Center. Pioneer Valley Workers Center has agreed to get surveys but can't assemble a focus group. Members suggested these locations as well for survey distribution: the people on the Housing Authority waiting lists, paper copies at the Library, ARISE for Social Justice in Springfield, Wayfinders, Northampton Survival Center, Craig's Door in Amherst. Additional outreach is needed to hear from more people of color; majority of responses to date have been from White people. Peg will forward these ideas to PVPC. Policy Sub-Committee Update Patrick, Alex, Jim and Edgar attended the meeting with Planning Board Chair Tess Poe. Highlights of the exchange included: Planning Board is more reactive (responds to permit applications, vs. pro-active). The NHP can be helpful at Tech Review sessions to communicate the City's desire for affordable new unit production; people expressing NIMBY comments at public hearings tend to focus on "neighborhood character" criteria which are subjective -having the NHP weighing in at those times to balance the comments is critical, and having a policy description addressing that point on our website, would help them even if no one was physically present to make the case. Having a Planning Board member sit on the E0using Partnership was discussed. We have had that in the past, but it is difficult for someone to attend that many monthly meetings. (PB meets twice a month to balance project review vs. other tasks, such as zoning revisions). Working with VCDC on an affordable condo model was discussed. In summary, Ms. Poe was very open to collaboration. Patrick will write up the minutes. Peg thanked them all for pursuing that discussion. 1
CPC Bonding Capacity Research Patrick reported that during the meeting he and Chair Weir attended with the CPC, the
State CPC Coalition Executive Director, Stuart Saginor was present. When the issue of
not being able to bond for housing projects was raised, he noted that it is in fact
possible, and other communities have done it. Local staff had thought it could only be
done for City owned projects, but evidently it has been done, and close by, such as in
Amherst. Patrick said he has done additional research and if this is indeed possible, it
could preclude the need for housing developers having to come to the CPC for multiple
funding round requests. Patrick will draft a memo summarizing his findings.
Peg mentioned that the Mayor intends to use the tax revenue from Air B and B's ( over a
certain size and use threshold) recently approved by the Commonwealth, for affordable
housing. Peg is not sure where those funds will be directed, but she will find out more.
Members suggested the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, the CPC and the Community
Housing Support Services Project. Membership Drive There are two candidates in the appointment process pipeline now, which leaves two
remaining slots for recruitment. Members stated their priorities for inviting people of
color, women, residents of assisted public housing and tenants in private property.
Members will think about how to identify and do outreach to possible candidates and
how to get the word out about this effort. Becky noted that transportation and child
care could be barriers to membership/attendance. Kyla offered to do child care! Community Housing Support Services Update Peg reported on a meeting she had earlier in the day with CHSSP staff, Jose Cruz, and
his supervisor at CHD Luis Martinez, at the Community Legal Aid Offices. Jen
Dieringer and Mandy Winalski, CLA attorneys who work most closely with Jose agreed
to meet to insure Jose was understanding the purpose of the project and had all the
information about community resources that he needs. Future funding for the project
was not discussed, but at another meeting Peg had with the CHD Homeless Services
Program Director, Theresa Nicholson, that topic was discussed. Theresa is new to the
position but not new to the work. She offered CHD' s Grants Manager to assist with
securing additional funds. She said they could produce a brochure with a program
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description to utilize for outreach to potential funders. She agreed to focus on this
moving forward. Peg will be proactive in formulating a work plan with deadlines.
Members agreed to invite CHD to a NHP meeting in a few months to check in and
reiterate the desire to see this project continue. Op-Eds Kyla announced she may be leaving the Partnership to pursue homeownership in Holyoke!! Members congratulated her and bemoaned the fact that she could not find anything she
could afford in Northampton (ah, the irony). Her draft for an op ed was revisited.
Members agreed the current topics should be: the need for unit production, #' s of
applications to the new developments, #'s on the wait lists, the Fair Housing project and
public session and the need for people to engage and attend public hearings for new
projects (and to speak in favor f). The other topic considered earlier was housing
stabilization, featuring the CHSSP, The Tenancy Preservation Project, Community Legal
Aid's Homelessness Prevention Project, and the SRO Outreach Project. Jim, Julio and
Gordon agreed to work on getting the next one out, using Kyla's draft as a base. She
was thanked for her efforts and thinks April may be her last meeting.
Members agreed that doing a public outreach blast for the May 22nd "Analysis of
Impediments to Fair Housing" Public session, should be done closer to the date. Office of Planning and Sustainability Tech Review Patrick-reported on the Tech Review meeting he attended, where various City
Departments meet with developers prior to actual permit request submissions, to
review projects and identify potential issues. There were two market rate housing
projects of 3 units each reviewed. The one project will house smaller units, less than
1,000 sq. ft. so the hope is they will be market rate affordable (Dani Kahn). Patrick will
continue to attend and represent the Partnership, as his availability allows. Thank you
Patrick! (meetings are at 7 or 7:30 a.m. f) Announcement/ Chair Weir noted he will be on sabbatical from his Church for May,
June and July, so Vice Chair Boughan will cover NHP meetings if he is out of town. Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 7:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller
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NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes April 1, 2019 Members Present: Chair Todd Weir, Vice-Chair Patrick Boughan, Kyla Prior, Becky Lockwood, Gordon Shaw, Alex Jarret, Julio Alves, Jim Reis, Richard Abuza, new member Carmen Junno and Peg Keller, staff. Call To Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. Members introduced themselves to new member Carmen Junno. She offered that she is newly retired from 13 years at the Veterans Administration campus in Leeds, working with Veterans in the areas of housing search and case management. Minutes from the March meeting were approved as submitted (Richard and Carmen abstained). Chair Weir said with 3 new members, (Carmen, Dan and Alex), plans will be made for a new member orientation. Fair Housing Committee Update Members agreed that PVPC would be invited to attend the May meeting to present their preliminary findings and strategize about the May 22nd public session. Peg reported that surveys are out to a variety of locations as a result of suggestions made by the Partnership at the last meeting. Additional outreach has been made to organizations working with people of color. A final focus group with people being released from the Hampshire County House of Corrections is scheduled for April 8th at the Northampton Recovery Center. The remainder of April will be spent with PVPC writing the draft report. CDBG Draft Action Plan Peg reviewed the components of the draft funding plan. Chair Weir described the public services process, in which he represents the Partnership. Members asked to see the plan earlier in the cycle next year. Vice-Chair Boughan made a motion to recommend Mayoral support for the funding allocations, seconded by Mr. Abuza. The vote in favor was unanimous. Op-Ed The current draft was reviewed. Jim asked for revisions by Wednesday with plans for a May submission. The draft needs to be reviewed by the Mayor. Kyla and Jim were thanked for their work on this piece. Policy Sub-Committee Updates (Members -Patrick, Julio, Jim) New Member Guide 1
Kyla submitted her latest draft and Jim has worked on it as well. It was agreed that no member emails would be included, only staff. Members discussed a drop box for documents relative to open meeting law compliance. Kyla was thanked for her work preparing this important communication tool for new members. Follow up from Meeting with Planning Board Chair (T.Poe) The Committee will work on policy statements to put on the web. These can be used by the Planning Board for context during controversial housing project review sessions. Tess Poe has offered to attend Partnership meetings as a Planning Board liaison. Zoning Sub-Committee (Jim Patrick, Alex) Vice-Chair Boughan created a memo to send to the Community Preservation Committee regarding bonding for affordable housing projects. The Mayor's offer to assign Air B and B revenue funds to support affordable housing projects was discussed. Patrick said the Dept. of Revenue will create a database over the summer to identify the universe of affected units. Members suggested that the Mayor be made aware of their desire to participate in the decision making process regarding the use of funds. Members are excited the Mayor has made this commitment, although they are aware the sums may be small. Ms. Prior made a motion, seconded by Mr. Reis, that the Mayor consider, when formulating the Ordinance for receipt of these funds, that the Partnership play a role in the decision making process regarding the use of these funds, in the form of recommendations to the Mayor. The vote in favor was unanimous. Playground Committee (Alex, Becky, Patrick) Peg reported on conversations with Jack Redman at the Housing Authority about moving ahead on playground projects for their family developments. She said going to the CPC is a simpler process than utilizing CDBG funds. She will coordinate with Sarah Bankert, at Healthy Hampshire, who is in the process of engaging residents in a Community Gardens project at the developments. Peg will check in with Edgar Cancel about moving forward. Membership Drive Alex Jarrett noted that people often cannot secure or afford child care or transportation to allow for participation on Boards and Committees that could benefit from their involvement. He wondered if a local non-profit could be a repository for donations from the general public to cover such costs for interested citizens. Perhaps there could 2
be an income threshold to insure participation of those with lower incomes. Peg
suggested Leadership Pioneer Valley might be an option. Chair Weir will follow up
with them. Members loved this suggestion. Churches might be another option. If the
City held it, it could support such membership for all City Boards and Committees. Peg
will talk to the Mayor. Miscellaneous ' fl
•A farewell party : ·· was held for Kyla Prior, as she is moving out of town and
can no longer serve on the Partnership. She was thanked for her many
contributions.
•Chair Weir reminded members he will be unable to attend the May, June and
July meetings.Adjourn The meeting concluded at 7:05 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller Task Responsible Party Deadline Completed Op Ed / Review and Peg and Jim April 24, 2019 ✓
submit
Finish New Member Peg and Jim April 30, 2019
Guide
Schedule New Peg and Patrick May 17, 2019
Member Orientation
Communicate to the Peg to Mayor April, for ✓
Mayor re: implementation
Partnership role in January-March 2020
reviewing CDBG
Action Plan earlier
next year
Communicate to the Peg to Mayor April 2019 ✓
Mayor re: NHP role
inAirB&B $
expenditures
Playground Peg to Schedule May 2019 ✓
Committee Meeting
Fund for Board Peg-Mayor April 2019
Involvement Todd-LPV ?
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NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes May 6, 2019 Members Present: Vice-Chair Patrick Boughan, Becky Lockwood, Gordon Shaw, Alex Jarret, Julio Alves, Carmen Junno, Richard Abuza, Edgar Cancel, Mark Goggins and Peg Keller, staff. Also present, Tess Poe, membership pending, Allison Curtis and Catherine Ratte of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. (Chair Rev. Weir is on sabbatical and will be absent for 3 months). Call to Order: Vice Chair Boughan called the meeting to order with the presence of a quorum at 5:35 p.m. All present introduced themselves. Ms. Poe is the Chair of the Planning Board and will be serving as a liaison to the Partnership in that capacity. All were welcomed. Approval of the minutes was postponed until next month. Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing/ PVPC Presentation Ms. Curtis provided background on the draft report submitted to the Partnership last week. She reviewed some of the relevant findings and asked the members for feedback. PVPC' s notes after the meeting included the following: Data additions •RFP asked for Future Housing Needs projections -how many additionalaffordable housing units does the city need for different income groups•Add home sales prices more current than the ACSurvey data of 2017-to capturethe recent increases•City census data / examine for relevance to demographic/household data•Percentage of workers who live in Northampton and those who work inNorthampton but don't live there•Household size by income•Comparisons to other similar communities in Hampshire CountyOther additions •Map with census tracts and neighborhoods and possibly place Northampton ona map in the regional context to show that there are people of color in the region,just not in Northampton•Add footnotes to make technical language more accessible•Add context to show impact of housing on well-being•Add quotes from community engagement to humanize issues•Fact sheet with big takeaways from data collection•Re-write sentence "It is clear that barriers in the form of policies, programs, andgeneral attitude stop certain populations from living in Northampton: in second
paragraph in Executive Summary to clarify where city has authority/power to
make changes and where the policies and programs and general attitude are out
of the city's control Presentation •Use post-it notes for the activity instead of stickers so people can write
comments
•Have a comment drop box for those who don't want to speak in public or use
the internet
•Look into using Facebook Live to broadcast the event
•Print images of some of the data on posters and spread throughout the room.
Carmen noted the need for landlords to be offered information about how their rates,
tenant selection practices are hindering access for people. Her past attempts in her work
to address this with RentNoho were unsuccessful. Patrick asked for more graphs and
charts vs. reading of text for the presentation. Richard said there are many abstract
concepts related to fair housing, so, what would be helpful in the presentation and the
report, is the contextual impact housing has on wellbeing. Our efforts vs. the regional
context is critical. Dan said testimonials for the media outreach and during the
presentation (similar to the recent situation with Stop and Shop employees) relate the
abstract concepts to people's personal experiences. Patrick said teacher salary .
information is public and available for comparisons to housing accessibility and
affordability. Allison said some of that information did come out during the public
input session.
Julio also expressed concern about the lack of evidence in the draft of "people's voices".
He pointed out a discrepancy in numbers on pages 35 vs. 66. Patrick also had other data
requests reflected in the bulleted items on page 1 of these minutes. Allison said PVPC is
writing the Press Release now and the transportation reimbursement logistics as well as
childcare will be finalized and put in the outreach materials. The challenge of reaching
people who don't live here now but would like to was noted. Reaching back out to the
stakeholder participants (i.e. Holyoke Housing Authority) to encourage attendance was
mentioned. Peg will distribute the flier or Eventbrite invite to that list. New Member Guide-the current draft was distributed for review. Jim and Peg
worked on the revisions. Comments will be taken for another week, before it is
finalized. Peg needs to work on the Glossary. Patrick will schedule the New Member
orientation with Carmen, Dan, Tess and Alex. Policy Sub-Committee -Julio, Jim and Patrick will meet to discuss developing a
protocol for use of the revenue generated by the Air B and B unit tax. The Mayor has
asked the Partnership to suggest a process by which to utilize those funds for affordable housing purposes. Community Housing Support Services Project-Peg reported that she is still working to schedule a meeting with CHD to discuss future funding. The final year of CPC funding began April 1, 2019. Program personnel will be invited to a Partnership meeting to report on program accomplishments and funding updates. Hampshire Heights/Florence Heights -Edgar reported that the Community Gardens project is going full speed ahead. A community work day is scheduled for Saturday May 18th• Raised beds will be constructed in which to grow plants. Residents andcommunity volunteers will be coordinating with Healthy Hampshire. A meeting on site at Hampshire Heights is scheduled for May 9th to discuss the playground component with Housing Authority Staff. Edgar will participate. Alex, Becky and Peg will attend. Membership-Tess relayed her knowledge about a person potentially interested in joining. Patrick can follow up and Peg said she is available to meet with the person. Alex put forward two names; one from Meadowbrook and one from Hampshire Heights. Transportation could be an issue. Carmen offered to transport anyone coming from Meadowbrook, as she lives close by. Op-Ed -the latest piece on Housing Stability TvV•as submitted but has not run yet. Peg has asked the Gazette when it will run, but hcts not received a reply. She will follow up, as the next request to them will be to publicize the May 22nd event. Zoning Sub-Committee -Patrick sent a memo to the CPC Chair and staff about his research regarding the ability to bond for housing projects. The Planning Director said he was aware of this, so Patrick considers our work on this completed. He spoke to the Planning Board staff regarding allowing two family dwellings by right. Tess said it was early in the process but yes, it is being examined. She said that detached accessory apartments are being looked at as well. Patrick reiterated the Part,nership' s willingness to advocate for these changes during the public hearing process. Patrick noted that a session sponsored by the Grow Smart Alliance is being held in Easthampton this week and Gordon said he would still like the Partnership to hold a landlord workshop in the fall. Plans for that will take priority after the Analysis of Impediments process concludes. Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 7:05 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP ZONING SUB COMMITEE Minutes May 30, 2019 Members Present: Patrick Boughan, Alex Jarret, and Jim Reis. Call to Order: Mr. Boughan called the meeting to order with the presence of a quorum atS:00 p.m. General Updates: Mr. Boughan overviewed zorung history in Northampton and specifically talked about recent initiatives by the Planning Department, particularly a recent effort to allow duplexes by right in URA. Standing Positions: Following a meeting with Planning Board Chair Tess Poe, the Housing Partnership expressed interest in having standing policy positions on its website that other city bodies and staff can refer to support housing initiatives in the city. The zoning group will work on developing an initial round of policy positions for review and discussion by the Partnership as a whole. The group brainstormed areas to do research on and assigned specific tasks to each member. The individuals will work on developing each of these solo and discuss them at our next meeting (see list below). When the sub group is satisfied they will bring them to the Housing Partnership for review. All of these ideas being worked on originated with Planning Department staff. •Jim -Accessory Dwelling units (attached and detached), tiny houses. Send JimBrattleboro, and other ideas. Willamstown, MA. Katie Jackson.0 Can we get data from the assessor or GIS about the universe of this? 0 Brattleboro $3,000 incentive program 0 Habitat designs? •Patrick -3-4 family by-right zoning for the whole city, elimination of SFH onlyzoning•Projection of need from AI report•Patrick -Changing rules to have less projects go to special permit, possiblycreating a 4th review option that's staff based•Patrick -Change special permit trigger to square footage instead of number ofunits
•Alex -Tax abatements, cherry sheet, alternate taxation. SEND ALEX
DOCUMENTS
0 5/31/19: Wrote to Clare Higgins. -aj
•Alex -lessening parking requirements. Minneapolis 2040
Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 6:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Patrick Boughan
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes June 3, 2019 Members Present: Vice-Chair Patrick Boughan, Gordon Shaw, Alex Jarret, Julio Alves, Carmen Junno, Richard Abuza, Edgar Cancel, Tess Poe, Dan Krassner, and Jim Reis. Also present, Megan McDonough, Executive Director of Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity (PV Habitat). (Chair Rev. Weir is on sabbatical and will be absent for 3 months). Call to Order: Vice Chair Boughan called the meeting to order with the presence of a quorum at 5:35 p.m. Approval of the minutes was delayed until after the Habitat presentation by Ms. McDonough. Habitat for Humanity Ms. McDonough began by overviewing current construction projects in Northampton: Current Project Updates -Garfield Avenue •There are 3-4 houses under construction in Northampton right now•One house is at the Garfield Avenue site. This is the last lot of a minineighborhood of PV Habitat homes. This land came to the city as brownfield (aformer munition dump); after the land was remediated, an RFP was issued forthe development of affordable housing and PV Habitat was selected. This finalhome completes the build out of the neighborhood.•The design of this last home was the result of PV Habitat's "Small lots, Big ideas"initiative and sought to reduce the cost of the home lower than previous projects.As a re-sult�they were able to lower the income requirement to 22k (previouslycloser to 50k) which is the yearly wage of a minimum hourly wage worker. Thehomeowner of this property is a machine operator who otherwise would havelittle to no chance to own a home.•This project was PV Habitat's first partnering with a local bank to finance theproject. Previously, PV Habitat provided the loan to the homeowner at 0%. Onthis project Easthampton Savings Bank in partnership withNorthampton/Greenfield Co-operative bank is providing one of the loans. Thehomeowner will have two loans, one from the partner bank and one from PVHabitat. The loans will cost of the homeowner the same as the previous methodbut allows PV Habitat to improve its cash flow to continue building new homes.•The neighborhood at Garfield Ave has an HOA to address joint ownershipresponsibilities for a storm-water pipe and ditch.1
•PV Habitat properties are affordable and deed restricted. When a homeowner
wishes to sell they must notify PV Habitat and then PV Habitat will set the
selling price such that someone at 80% of AMI will be able to purchase the home.
PV Habitat generally does not provide a loan for subsequent sales of the home.
•This Friday, 6/7/19, at 2-4PM PV Habitat is hosting an award ceremony and block
party at the home at Garfield A venue. PV Habitat will be awarding �mall HomeHero Awards. Recipients include the City of Northampton (will be received by the
Mayor) for its policy stances (ADUs), zoning, design competitions to increase
awareness, etc. and a woman from Greenfield who built her own small home
(450 sq ft). Please attend if you are able! https://www.pvhabitat.org/event/small
home-hero-award-ceremony/Current Project Updates -Glendale Road •This was originally going to be a 25-30-unit subdivision off of Glendale Road, but
the city ended up purchasing it as conservation land with four building lots set
aside. PV Habitat was selected via an RFP to develop these lots. They have three
homes under construction now.
•This type of modular home construction is new for PV Habitat. They are working
with a company in Vermont that formed after Hurricane Irene destroyed
hundreds of mobile homes. The goal was to replace those mobile homes with
higher quality, well-insulated modular homes. PV Habitat helped get state
approval to allow this company's modular homes to be built in Massachusetts.
These are two-story, 1200 square feet modular homes. They are very energy
efficient, as PV Habitat wants to make sure that home owners can afford to heat
their homes. Schematics of the homes were viewed at the meeting and can be
seen here https://www.pvhabitat.org/about/homes/northampton/. PV Habitat
worked with the factory to have-these modulars arrive less finished than is
typical for the factory to allow homeowners to participate in the construction.
•Construction has been somewhat delayed because of some project management
challenges about getting an electrical line run to the site (didn't get done before
winter, which meant there was no heat to work in the winter). PV Habitat is now
working to meet a deadline with DPW to have a certain amount of work done in
order to connect to the city water during a road construction project. If PV
Habitat missed this window they will need to wait a few years for another
opportunity. These are some of the challenges of being a smaller developer.
•While PV Habitat was granted some exemptions from a recently passed City tree
replacement ordinance (trees greater than 20" in diameter must be replaced), but
since they are building in a pine forest PV Habitat has needed to pay into the
City's tree fund which has increased the cost of the project over original
estimates. The ordinance was revised to exempt afford zero-net energy homes,
but since this project has a long driveway PV Habitat still faced some impacts
2
from it. Jim asked what role the Partnership can play in these kind of issues. Ms.
McDonough suggested that having a housing voice at Planning Board meetings
would be helpful so that concerns about trees and other items are put in the
context of the need for housing. Mr. Boughan, Mr. Reis, and others expressed
interest in attending future meetings. Ms. McDonough said she will notify us in
the future when PV Habitat is going before a city board such as Planning Board. General updates and possible roles for the Partnership •Mr. Boughan asked Ms. McDonough to recap the Big Enough project for
members. Ms. McDonough discussed their yearlong project to look at all the
impediments to construction of inexpensive homes. They categorized the barriers
into· four major areas: zoning and regulations, ownership and finances, design
and construction, and cultural expectations and social acceptability. The full
report is available here: https://www.pvhabitat.org/wp-
content/uploads/2017 /12/Big-Enough-Final-Report-12-15-17.pdf
A general information page and links to the Big Enough Facebook group and can
be found here: https://www.pvhabitat.org/big-enough/
Findings included that banks don't want to give loans for homes costing less
than $100,000; that small lots may not be permitted in many towns, ADUs may
not be permitted; that simple shapes keeps costs down, and much more.
•The Garfield and Glendale projects are "test cases" for some of the findings of the
Big Enough report. PV Habitat will be writing a "lessons learned" from these
projects that will be publically available.
•Mr. Boughan asked what the Partners.i up can do going forward to assist PV
Habitat with affordable home development.
•Ms. McDonough noted how the Partnership and City had previously provided
CDBG money to help with soft costs and that has helped make vrojects happen.
She thanked the Partnership.
•PV Habitat's time is generally occupied with production of current projects and
needs help with identifying parcels for future projects. Wayne Feiden, the
Planning Department, and the City have been a help in this area for many years.
Ms. McDonough noted two potential sites:
o One is a parcel that the Northampton Housing Authority owns which had
been proposed as being transferred to the city. It required an act of the
legislature and former Sen. Rosenberg and late Rep. Kocot had put this
through; however, it did not include the words "at no cost" and because
of this DCAM wants the city to pay Fair Market Value to acquire the land
which exceeds the budget for a PV Habitat project (generally Habitat pays
$30k or less for land). Perhaps the Partnership can be the squeaky wheel
to get this fixed on the state level. Mr. Boughan will bring a fuller history
3
to share with the Partnership. Ms. Keller knows this site's full history and
will be at future meetings.
o Another parcel is a home on Corticelli Street (Florence) that is current
marked with a "red-x" by the building department for future demolition.
Perhaps this could be an affordable PV Habitat site? What information
gathering or advocacy could the Partnership do to for this site?
o Mr. Reis noted that there was a former Moose lodge on Cooke Ave that
may be a possible site too.
•Ms. McDonough noted a cold call she got from a homeowner in Baystate that
may be interested in selling to Habitat. It was noted that the homeowner may be
eligible for a tax credit, but Ms. McDonough responded that you need to owe
enough in taxes to benefit from a sizeable donation like that so it unclear if this
homeowner would benefit.
•Ms. Poe asked if PV Habitat receives calls for people looking for homes that
aren't standalone houses such as a multi-family or condo. She noted the burden
that yard maintenance and snow removal can be on a homeowner and that many
of these properties are farther out. Ms. McDonough said they get calls of people
looking for homes but they are not particular about many of the details, they are
looking for a home generally. In response to another member's question she
noted that the small homes seem more viable closer to transit. Once a
homeowner is car-dependent their wants for their home shift and fit the small
home less well.
Ms. McDonough was thanked for her time and asked to keep in touch with the
Partnership about their projects and where we can provide assistance. The April minutes were reviewed. The date on the April meeting minutes was
incorrect and needs to be changed from March 4, 2019 to April 1, 2019. With that
correction Mr. Reis made a motion to approve the minutes, it was seconded by Mr.
Jarrett. The motion carried with Mr. Abuza and Mr. Cancel abstains as they had not
attended the April meeting. The May minutes were reviewed and no corrections or changes were made. Mr. Abuza
made a motion to approve the minutes, Mr. Jarret seconded the motion. The motion
carried with Mr. Reis abstaining. The Fair Housing Public Forum with Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) was recapped by Mr. Boughan. The meeting was a success with over 60 people
attending which filled the seats laid out for the lecture session and the small group
4
sessions. One family took advantage of the free childcare. Attendees were active in both
sessions and this forum will be included in the final report.
Mr. Boughan asked for comments on the forum. Mr. Reis expressed that he wanted to
ensure that PVPC properly includes the forum in the report. Ms. Junno noted that
PVPC was taking notes during the presentation of solutions by the small groups.
Mr. Boughan updated the group that Ms. Keller is working closely with PVPC on the
final report and expressed her and the Partnerships' expectations for the final report.
Ms. Poe asked what our deadline is for this report. Mr. Boughan stated the HUD
deadline is farther out but that there may be a proposed deadline for completion of this
project with PVPC. Ms. Keller is more familiar with this and can speak to it at the next
meeting. There was general agreement that this should be discussed further at the July
meeting.
Policy Sub-Committee -Mr. Boughan overviewed the draft protocol for use of the
revenue generated by the Air B and B unit tax developed by the sub-committee. The
draft is as follows:
Proposed Process for Expenditure of Future Affordable Housing Funds Collected via
Short-Term Rental Community Impact Fee
June 3, 2019
Given that the amount of funds that will be collected is unknown at this time, the
Housing Partnership does not recommend expenditure of future funds to any particular
program at this time. The Housing Partnership recommends the following process be
adopted in ordinance regarding expenditure of these funds.
•Either the Mayor or the Housing Partnership can initiate a proposal for
expenditure of the funds in the account at any time. For example, if the Housing
Partnership has a proposal for expending funds it will submit that proposal to
the Mayor.
o The Mayor can either accept the proposal and submit it to city council for
approval;
o Or, the Mayor can issue a counter-proposal to the Housing Partnership for
review. The Housing Partnership will then issue a recommendation on the
counter-proposal.
5
o The Mayor can choose to submit this counter-proposal to the city council.o The process is similar if the proposal originates with the Mayor, startingby submitting the proposal to the Housing Partnership for arecommendation.•The Mayor can submit a proposal to city council even if the Housing Partnershipdoesn't recommend it ( after utilizing the process noted above), however thesubmission to council shall note the Housing Partnership's position.The City's CDBG Administrator shall keep track of the account balance give quarterly updates to the Housing Partnership. After some time has passed the Housing Partnership may revisit this process and suggest revisions. END OF DRAFT Mr. Abuza noted that City Council should be capitalized and asked to re-word the last clause to be more positive. Mr. Krassner proposed simplifying the middle bulleted section so it doesn't appear to anticipate conflict (while still providing a resolution mechanism) and instead focuses on developing solutions together. Mr. Reis emphasized that the goal of the document was to make sure the Housing Partnership is consulted on decisions involving affordable housing in the city. Mr. Krassner emphasized that his comments were focused on language changes while agreeing with Mr. Reis. Ms. Poe asked if we shguld lQQk into chan _ ing_oULpart of the City's Charter during the current Charter Review Commission work. Mr. Boughan suggested that we accept the language change and defer the charter discussion to another meeting. Mr. Abuza expressed interest in acting on the charter lan�uage. Mr. Reis spoke to concerns about the Partnership being left out of the loop and made a motion to have review of Housing Partnerships' charter language be first on the agenda for next meeting. Mr. Jarrett seconded the motion. The vote in favor was unanimous to discuss the HP' s charter language at the July Partnership meeting. Ms. Poe asked what we define as "affordable housing" expenditures that are acceptable under the policy. Mr. Boughan noted this in the document and said the sub-committee will do further work and return to the Housing Partnership with an updated draft. The final text (after the bulleted section) post editing is as follows and will be edited further by the sub-committee: 6
The City's CDBG Administrator ( currently Peg Keller) shall keep track of the account balance give quarterly updates to the Housing Partnership. We recommend after some practical experience that the Housing Partnership revisit this policy. ADD what can be spent on "Affordable Housing" -maybe do things that won't be funded by CPA/others. Soft costs? Write this such that CHSSP is eligible. Rewrite this as to not anticipate conflict, be more positive. Working together on joint projects END DRAFT Community Housing Support Services Project -Mr. Boughan stated that he does not have significant updates on this project and Ms. Keller and can provide more information at the next meeting. Mr. Reis expressed concerns about how CHD is running this program, noting issues with their voicemail, lack of information on their websites and other concerns. He suggested that CHD come to a meeting in the next two months to update the Partnership about the program and detail out how they will work to secure additional funding. This will inform how the Partnership proceeds including the need to RFP the program. There was general agreement and concern for the CHSSP program. Mr. Reis made a motion to schedule CHO to come to a meeting between now and September to report on the current status of the CHS SP project and CHO' s plan to secure future funding. Mr. Jarret seconded the motion. It passed unanimously. Hampshire Heights/Florence Heights -Mr. Cancel and Mr. Jarrett gave an update on this project. They reported that the playground group had met with Peter Wells of Berkshire Design and looked at two sites for the playground. One is near the new gardens on the idea that parents could garden while kids play on the playground, and that kids would be nearby to become involved in gardening. There were logistical questions about children's style of play, handicap access, and safety of various locations. They may build a second structure at a location where children currently play at Hampshire Heights. They will be getting some ideas from Berkshire Design soon, in 7
time for the next CPA funding round. Group members are reviewing recent CPA
playground applications to inform the Hampshire Heights playground application.
Ms. Junno and Ms. Poe asked about possible cost and Mr. Cancel and Mr. Jarrett were
unsure. Mr. Boughan noted that Jackson Streets playground was over $200k, but that
it's a much larger collection of equipment. Landlord/Tenant Workshop Members agreed to move up this agenda item since it had
been squeezed to the end of the last few meetings. Mr. Shaw recapped previous
landlord workshops and that they were successes and had over 30 attendees. The last
meeting was promoted by bulk mailing owners of two plus family structures about the
meeting as well press releases and other prom�tions. Mr. Shaw said that based on
previous meetings there was in interest in building code and code enforcements so he
was looking to work with the building department to answer questions about
enforcements instead.
Mr. Abuza expressed concern that landlords may not be willing to ask questions of code
enforcement officials and maybe it would be best to have another municipalities code
inspectors there. Mr. Shaw contended that the goal was to have city officials be seen as
helpers rather than just enforcement. Mr. Abuza wasn't sure which approach would be
best. Mr. Boughan suggested that a FAQ list be developed and an anonymous way of
submitting written questions be used to avoid discomfort among attendees.
Mr. Shaw said that early fall would be ideal for a workshop. Mr. Boughan asked that
Mr. Shaw be prepared to propose a date(s) at the July Partnership meeting (and to the
needed leg work in the meantime). Mr._ Shaw agreed.
Mr. Shaw noted that the goal is also to have a tenant workshop or a tenant support
service providers workshop but suggested tackling that after the Landlord workshop. Zoning Sub-Committee -Mr. Boughan noted that the zoning group is working on
standing policy positions as suggested by Ms. Poe and the Partnership. There are no
updates at this time but hopefully drafts will be ready for the September meeting. Membership -Ms. Poe stated her potential new member should be in touch soon. Mr.
Boughan offered to reach out to them if desired. Op-Ed-The latest piece on Housing Stability was run on May 22nd• Mr. Reis was
thanked for his work on the op-ed.
8
For the next topic Mr. Reis suggested reporting on the findings of the PVPC report. Mr. Boughan expressed that he'd like the Partnership to present the findings at a City Council meeting since they paid for the study (and hopefully it would get news coverage as a result). All members expressed agreement with this idea. Members agreed to brainstorm on further op-eds and outreach before next meeting. Next meeting Mr. Cancel asked if the next meeting will be on July 1 or July 8 given the July 4 holiday. Mr. Boughan asked which date was best for those in attendance. July 1 was good for all members except Mr. Krassner who can attend neither. July 1 was agreed to as the next meeting date. Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 7:00 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Patrick Boughan 9
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes
September 9, 2019 Members Present: Rev. Todd Weir, Chair, Alex Jarrett, Carmen Juno, Jim Reis, Richard
Abuza, Dan Krassner, Julio Alves, Edgar Cancel. Also present, Amanda Hanley, Habitat
for Humanity, Jose Cruz and Holly Florek, Center for Human Development and Peg
Keller, staff. Call to Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. He announced that
Vice-Chair Patrick Boughan has resigned, due to family obligations. Habitat For Humanity Support Letter Request Amanda Hanley, Construction Manager for Habitat, described the Community
Preservation Committee funding request. They are looking for $30,000 to assist with the
construction of the 4th house at the Glendale Road project. This is the lot that fronts on
Glendale Road. It will be a two bedroom single family stick built home, net zero energy
efficiency with a wheelchair ramp on the back. Clearing on the site has occurred, the
foundation is going in, then work will stop over the winter. Upon questioning, she said
the interior would be handicap accessible ready, although not fully accessible initially.
There will be a celebration of the first 2 houscJ on Sept. 22nd• The last of the four homes
will be completed next spring. Julio asked if they ever build multi-family homes, and
she said they do have a couple. Carmen made a motion to write a letter of support in
favor of the project, for submission with their CPC application. The motion was
seconded by Alex. The vote was unanimous in favor, with Dan Krassner abstaining. Community Housing Support Services Program Update Jose Cruz, CHSSP Coordinator, updated the Partnership on the work being done with
families facing eviction. He has been in the position for one year. He presented a packet
with program outreach materials and support letters from Community Legal Aid and
the Housing Court Judge. It included a letter that landlords can distribute to tenants
experiencing issues with rent payment. The program can focus on assisting tenants to
be pro-active and identify resolutions prior to going to court. He said landlords are
posting fliers in their property management offices. He has offered a financial literacy
training in the Community Legal Aid office on Hampton Ave. He wants to conduct
them at apartment complexes as well and will be teaching a session at Hampshire
1
Heights and Florence Heights starting at the end of the month for one night a week for
five weeks. In the one year period, he has worked with 38 households and stayed
evictions for all 38. He estimates that was a $71,000 savings to the landlords.
Securing funding moving forward was briefly discussed. Ms. Florek said CHD was
looking at what internal funds could be utilized and various grant sources are being
examined. Rev. Weir said program outcomes and testimonials will be important to
secure additional funding. Jim asked if Way Finders staff are present in Housing Court.
Jose said yes, every Monday. He said (only) 4 or 5 families out of the 38 on his caseload
were able to secure RAFT resources. Jim asked about the brochure being available in
Spanish. Jose said he himself is bi-lingual but yes, the informational materials should be
translated. The discussion concluded with Jim emphasizing that we need to know
specific resources that are being identified for future funding, what the plan is to secure
them. Chair Weir said it would be great to get an outreach plan to review at the October
meeting.
Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Update
The report is wrapping up. Comments from Partnership members on the final report
were due August 30th and all received were forwarded to the Planning Commission.
Allison Curtis, the data analyst that did the bulk of the writing, has left her position.
Catherine Ratte, the division chief, will complete the edits. Once done, the Partnership
should strategize the release and develop a work plan based on the recommendations
made in the report. Peg developed the Action Plan, which is comprised of many areas
of work to be undertaken by the Partnership, which also serves as the City's Fair
Housing Committee.
Hampshire Heights Playground Update
Members reported that an application was submitted to the CPC for funding to create a
playspace at Hampshire Heights. Becky wrote it, Alex attended on site meetings and
Edgar conducted the outreach. The Housing Authority is in full support. The original
budget came in too high, so the Berkshire Design Group macie some adjustments.
Residents will be recruited to attend the public comment sessions. CDBG funds
originally allocated for the now delayed Village Hill affordable housing development,
will be re-directed to the Hampshire Heights project. Richard made a motion for the
Partnership to send a support letter to the CPC for this project. The motion was
seconded by Gordon. The vote was unanimous in support, with Dan Krassner
abstaining.
2
Landlord Workshop Gordon reiterated his desire to have the Health Director and the Building Inspector
attend the next session. Richard agreed to request a list of landlords for the mailing. Peg
will check in with the City staff to assess their willingness and availability. No decision
was made about whether it will be held late fa 11, or after the first of the year. Op Ed/ Next topic will be related to fall activity. Zoning and Policy Committee updates will be mc;1de in October. The committees will
need to re-orient themselves now that Patrick has resigned. Alex said the Policy
Committee work on standing policy statements is in process. Elections -Chair Weir expressed his willingness to serve an additional year, so a new
Vice-Chair needs to be elected. Members were asked to think about their willingness,
and be prepared to vote in October. Minutes -the minutes from the June meeting were approved. There were no meetings
in July ( lack of quorum) or August ( traditionally do not meet).
It was noted that the locations of the Partnership meetings were supposed to rotate to
different places in the community. Members agreed that the location of the November
meeting will be off site. Housing Choice Legislation / information was disseminated for discussion at a later
date. This is a gubernatorial campaign launched to create more affordable housing
across the State. Dan suggested that as the City's housing board, the Partnership should
stake a position on the campaign. Adjourn/ The meeting concluded at 7:05 p.m. Peg announced the date of her retirement
in January 2020.
Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller
3
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes October 7, 2019 Members Present: Rev. Todd Weir, Chair, Becky Lockwood, Edgar Cancel, Dan Krassner, Gordon Shaw, Jim Reis, Alex J�rrett, Richard Abuza. Also present, Peg Keller, staff. Call to Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. He began by saying there is a need to revisit work plan priorities and committee tasks, as a result of Patrick Boughan's resignation, Peg's pending retirement and the completion of the Fair Housing Plan. Elections/ were held until later in the meeting, w�en quorum was achieved. Community Housing Support Services Project Peg updated that she was going to meet with Way Finders and CHD about future funding. Theresa Nicholson of CHD did submit a plan that included considering incorporating the program into regional homelessness prevention efforts funded by the State Department of Housing and Community Development. Gordon noted that the annual program budget of $80,000 would be difficult to raise locally, so additional funding sources should be pursued. The funds for the program are set to expire in April of 2020. Jim, Gordon and possibly Jen Dieringer of Community Legal Aia would be interested in working on this moving forward. Peg will schedule a meeting. Hampshire Heights CPC Application Peg reported that Becky did a great job writing the application, with support from Edgar who presented the plan to the residents, and Alex who participated .in on site visits. She described the process and the series of meetings required by the Community Preservation Committee. She also described the CDBG allocation, which was originally slated for the Village Hill affordable housing project whic_h has been delayed. The Community Builders has submitted a MassWorks application for infrastructure work, which may require the $150,000 CDBG allocation to be utilized sooner rather than later. More will be known in November. Whatever project requires the CDBG allocation first (either Hampshire Heights or Village Hill) will move ahead and the other project will get a new CDBG allocation in the next program year, beginning July 1, 2020. This is all 1
related to HUD's requirement that funds be utilized as quickly as possible. A timeliness
test conducted in May can result in findings from HUD if funds are not going out the
door. Therefore, because Village Hill did not get funded in their first application to the
State, the Hampshire Heights project was lined up to use the funds quicker. This was
done before the MassWorks application was formulated. Members expressed the desire
that creation of affordable housing at Village Hill be the funding priority, should that
decision need to be made. Policy Committee Update The current members are Alex, Jim and Julio. Jim noted that the minutes from June said
there were several charter changes that were suggested. Reducing the overall
membership number was one of the issues. Jim made a motion to reduce the number
from 15 to 12, to assist with quorum issues. Gordon seconded the motion. Peg wiJJ relay
this to the Mayor's Chief of Staff to see if this can be included in the current work of the
Charter Commission. The vote in favor was unanimous. The other pending issues were
short term rental tax revenues, the New Member Guide and housing trust research. Jim
will reach out to Patrick to identify any other issues remaining. Zoning Committee The current member is Jim. Jim will reach out to Patrick to get an update on where the
zoning revision discussions were left off with the Planning Office. Discussion followed
with regard to possibly merging these two sub-committees. This item will be added to
the November agenda. Housing Choice Legislation Dan reported that the statewide vote on this will occur in 2020. The Mayor has come out
in support, and as the City's housing body, he felt the NHP should be on record as well.
He acknowledged that there are pros and cons to the issue and Alex agreed to send
around the negatives he has heard about the legislation. Members agreed to bring it to a
vote in November. Fair Housing Plan The plan has been finalized and is being printed. Members agreed to delay the launch
until after the Mayor's Work Group on Panhandling Report is released. It might be
confusing to the public to do both at the same time. Members noted that if they can get
hard copies in November, begin to digest the information and the action plan
themselves for discussion in December, then a public launch in January could detail
2
how the work will evolve. Members agreed that the plan should be presented to the City Council, as it was funded by the City, and the action tasks should be disseminated and reported on at multiple levels of City government. Landlord Workshop Peg reported that both the Health Director and Building Commissioner agreed to participate in the Landlord Workshop. Richard has assembled the list for a mailing. It was agreed to do this after the first of the year, in January or February. Gordon said it might be good to have .an attorney there as well, to pick up legal questions that may arise, in addition to health, sanitary and building code issues. Minutes of the September meeting were approved. Elections of Officers Rev. Todd Weir offered to serve as Chair for another year. Richard made a motion to that effect, seconded by Jim. The vote was unanimous in favor and Richard commended Rev. Weir for his commitment and his skill running meetings. Gordon agreed to be the Vice-Chair for the coming year, to provide institutional memory during the staffing transition. Jim made a motion to that effect, seconded by Edgar; the vote in favor was unanimous. Becky agreed to be the Clerk, responsible for open meeting law compliance. Jim made a motion to that effect, seconded by Alex. The vote in favor was unanimous. Adjourn There being no additional business to discuss, the meeting concluded at 7:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller 3
NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes
November 4, 2019 Members Present: Rev. Todd Weir, Chair, Gordon Shaw, Vice-Chair, Edgar Cancel, Jim
Reis, Alex Jarrett, Richard Abuza, Julio Alves, Carmen Juno. Absent were Becky
Lockwood and Dan Krassner. Also present, Peg Keller, staff and Chris Lee of Back Yard
ADU's. Call to Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. He opened the Public
Comment period by recognizing Mr. Lee. Public Comment Period Chris Lee introduced himself and his company. They are working in several
communities to create accessory dwelling units. Backyard ADU' s/Tiny Homes has
several goals -creating spaces for family members, for those downsizing and to increase
scattered site affordable units. They are working on one in Easthampton and are
learning about how different communities zone for or against these types of units. Julio
asked about models from other places and he responded that the prototypes are
occurring on the West Coast. Their model typically runs $125,000 for 500 +/-sq.ft. and
$150,000 for 700 sq.ft. -modular construction built off site and energy efficient. The
ensuing discussion noted the difficulty getting small private homeowners to enter into
deed restrictions in order to use public funding and to guarantee affordability, but the
concepts are laudable, and there may be some people willing to participate. He was
thanked for his attendance and members agreed to keep in touch, with our local zoning
efforts and to stay abreast of his activities. He was encouraged to continue his quest. Minutes from the September meeting were approved with the revision that Alex is on
the Zoning Sub-Committee, not the Policy Sub-Committee. Jim and Alex are on the
Zoning Committee and Jim and Julio are on the Policy Sub-Committee. Community Housing Support Services Project Update Peg has a meeting scheduled with Gordon, Jim and Jen Dieringer on November 15th to
discuss the outreach strategy. Jose Cruz wanted the NHP to know all his program
materials have been translated into Spanish. The funding for the project runs out in
April of 2020. Edgar noted that having a program like this is critical to people he knows
who continue to face challenges navigating public housing.
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Hampshire Heights Playground CPC Application Peg said she would send an email around identifying the order of speakers for the Public Comment Session. Todd and or Becky will do the introduction, then Emily Laufer, tenant rep on the Housing Authority Board and Hampshire Heights resident, as well as other residents that Netanya Ortiz, the Resident Services Coordinator will assemble. Julio and Edgar will also address the Committee. Peg noted that if the Village Hill Affordable Housing Project moves forward in this fiscal year, the CDBG allocation for the playground will need to come after July 1, 2020. Policy Committee Update Jim reported that he has been in touch with Patrick Boughan and gotten an update on things the committee had been working on. Jim and Julio will review and update the New Member Guide, and send out an updated draft of the process for utilizing Air B and B tax revenues to recommend to the Mayor. Researching Housing Trusts was also part of the work plan, which they will summarize for future discussion. Housing Choice Legislation Members thanked Alex for sending around the article describing arguments against this legislation. Peg explained that according to the Mayor, the Mass Municipal Association has endorsed the legislation, and Northampton is a member of the MMA. He said he was not sure the Partnership needed to take a stand on this, and that Northampton has incorporated most of the recommendations already. The Partnership opted to take no action, but to monitor the progress. The primary concern expressed was that creating high end units may create movement in the market by increasing the numbers of overall units, but trickle down theories rarely work and not tying affordability to any of the new unit creation could produce gentrification and little relief for people with low incomes. Members agreed it could be supported, but with amendments. Fair Housing Plan Copies of the final plan were distributed to members. Because the Mayor has asked to attend the December Partnership meeting to discuss the Work Group Study Report on Panhandling, they should review that report as well. The Action Plan in the Fair Housing Plan should inform the work of the Partnership moving forward. A public launch of that report will be scheduled after the members have had a chance to absorb and discuss the recommendations. 2
Other Business Todd reported that as part of the staff transition plan, Wayne Feiden has reached out to some community stakeholders. Peg's position (she is retiring in January) is moving back into the Planning Department so Wayne was talking to members of the groups Peg has been working with to get a sense of their activities. The plan is moving forward to reduce the number of seats on the Partnership from 15 to 11, for ease of making quorum. Wayne had suggested that if that number was too low, the NHP could appoint associate members, or ad hoc committee members to work on specific tasks. This would make the quorum threshold 6. Adjourn There being no additional business to discuss, the meeting concluded at 7:00 p.m. Julio and Gordon noted they would not be able to attend the January 4th meeting. Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller
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NORTHAMPTON HOUSING PARTNERSHIP Minutes
December 9, 2019 Members Present: Rev. Todd Weir, Chair, Gordon Shaw, Vice-Chair, Edgar Cancel, Jim
Reis, Richard Abuza, Julio Alves, Carmen Juno, Dan Krassner. Absent were Becky
Lockwood and Alex Jarrett. Also present, Mayor David Narkewicz and Peg Keller, staff. Call to Order: Chair Weir called the meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. This meeting was
rescheduled from last week due to inclement weather. Members introduced themselves
to the Mayor. The Mayor announced quorum for the Housing Partnership is now based
on 11 members. At the Partnership's request, he presented this change to the
Administrative Code to City Council last week. This revision reduced Partnership
overall composition from 15 to 11, which allows 6 members to achieve quorum. Minutes: Jim made a motion to approve the minutes from the last meeting, seconded by
Richard; vote in favor unanimous. Mayor's Presentation/ Work Group Study Report on Panhandling The Mayor then presented a Power Point slide show depicting the Work Group
membership, the process, data results and some preliminary recommendations about
which he is soliciting public feedback. Afterward, members offered the following: Rev. Weir-as a member of the Work Group (representing the Housing Partnership, the
Friends of Hampshire County Homeless Individuals Board and a downtown
stakeholder/First Churches) he appreciated the different perspectives present on the
Work Group and felt they all learned from participating in the process. His takeaway is
hopeful that our community can come together to arrive at a common place. He felt the
group did as much as they could to gather data to inform the path forward. Carmen -asked how many surveyed from the street population were actually
homeless? She noted that housing first/low threshold housing and a day program are
the two items she sees as having the highest priority for implementation. She noted that
the Soldier On Program reprimands their clients if they engage in panhandling. She
appreciated the inclusion of information on being trauma informed and the stresses that
people experience. (She is a retired case manager from the VA in Leeds).
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Jim who was employed long term at Way Finders/HAP Housing in the Family Emergency Shelter & Services system put his thoughts in writing and submitted the following: 1. Finalize an Outreach Job and Services Description -to serve panhandlers in downtownNorthampton. This description would be specifically targeted and include daily contactwith all panhandlers on the downtown streets checking in on their basic needs (i.e.housing food, clothing, etc.), assistance accessing needed services (i.e. mental health,drug and alcohol, etc.), and if available connection to paid day labor.•Secondarily -explore the possibility of expanding the hours of the HomelessResource Center and/or merging that program with the Recovery Center. There isa definite need to increase the availability of a place to stay and be helped duringthe day especially in inclement weather. This service could also offer securestorage.2.Establish a Giving Fund to Pay for the Services in # 1 Above -with multiple ways tocontribute -cash preferred, but also basic needed items (i.e. clothing, food, tooth brushes,etc.). This fund would be targeted only for this service, and not in general to other at-riskof homelessness serving agencies. If possible a website would be included to bothprovide info about the fund, but also take on-line contributions.3.Gain the Support of Key Community Leaders -from the religious, social service,political sectors, the Chamber, etc. to strongly endorse this effort in #1 and #2 above.4.Identify a "Lead" Local Social Service Agency -thru an "open to all" process willing totake the lead on employing a staff member (probably part-time or a portion of a positionto start gi:ven fiscal limitations) as a member of their existing homelessness serviceprograming. This agency would receive funds collected and also be supported in applyingfor additional funds from CPA, state and federal governments, United Way, Foundations,etc.5.Conduct A Comprehensive Public Education Effort-utilizing a multimedia approach(i.e. newspaper, radio, social media, flyers, etc.) communicate the following:•Several key findings of the report-a) panhandlers (i.e. survey documentedlegitimate housing and other needs, not from other communities, often notengaged in services, interested in working part-time, etc.); downtownbusinesses (survey revealed legitimate impact on many businesses and feelingof safety.•Brief description of# 1 and # 2 above to encourage people to support this �targeted service outreach to panhandlers.2
•Include the support of community leaders identified in #3 above.
6.There are a number of other longer range efforts that should be pursued such as
creating low threshold affordable housing
Jim added that as a long term overnight volunteer at the Inter Faith Shelter, he sees
guests leave the shelter at 7 a.m. in search of a place to "be" during the day. He also
noted that belongings are not even secure at the Shelter, hence the need for safe storage. Dan began by thanking the Mayor and the Committee for their leadership on this issue.
He wondered if the Gazette could commit to a tangible role, in addition to covering the
stories. For example, Oklahoma City has a non-profit organization that employs people
to sell the local newspaper. This not only gives people an income, but increases the
circulation of the newspaper. The Mayor said they (the Gazette) held a forum on the
downtown, which ( d)evolved into an extensive discussion of panhandling, but no, the
Gazette has not offered to do anything more specific. Dan said there should be
"natural" site locations for the storage units, possibly Amtrak or Peter Pan -
organizations who are used to people coming and going. He supports the Living Room
concept. Panera has a "pay what you can" program, as do some cafes in Philadelphia.
He said such organizations in Boston could serve as good resources. (The Mayor noted
the Common Account at Haymarket, locally). He supported the potential for revenue
generation through giving via technology -with such a generous community -that
could be significant. Richard noted that the focus on housing and support services is critical and appreciates
the support and commitment of the Housing Partnership and other entities, but a
related piece, often unacknowledged, is the need to reinstitute civil discourse. He noted
that the panhandling situation is an important issue for business owners. He said that
for some, when the negative impacts of the practice have been expressed, bullying has
resulted which has led to a fear of expression for some. He noted the downtown camera
discussion as being very intense. He asked that civil discourse be restored so that
everyone feels safe and able to speak freely. Julio -was surprised there was not more evidence in the report of business's true
sentiments and wondered about the fear of reprisal. He appreciated the sections of the
report that addressed root causes, and the impact Federal policies have had. He
advocated for short term solutions in view of the Federal government status. He
supports the day program as it would relieve pressure on the library and downtown
businesses. He also supports 24 hour access to shelter as seemingly essential. He
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reiterated the need for centralized information for housing resources and search. He
wondered about duplication of services, in view of their being many. He said people
need one person, in one place to assist with housing access, and THAT is something we
can do locally, with local control. He cautioned against a II one size fits all" employment
program, due to peoples different challenges/capabilities. He added that giving could
be coordinated with food insecurity and that since people engaging in street activity are
consumers and make purchases, this could lead to improved relationships with
downtown businesses and those who panhandle. He asked the Mayor if he is concerned
about providing "too much" for people. The Mayor responded that people are already
here/ that is not a reason to not try to solve problems/ and no, he is not worried about
attracting more people. Julio said he was glad to hear that response. Edgar who is working at the Amherst Survival Center noted the convenience for people
having food, laundry, medical care, case management, there, in one location. Such a
multi-purpose/service location is needed in Northampton. He sees every day how
important it is to people in need. There are 8 paid staff and many volunteers, =/-30 a
day at the ASC. He said program participants are so grateful and he himself is looking
forward to being part of the solution. Gordon said he supports all the recommendations, particularly the ones that work
towards solutions. He noted that resources are too II siloed", housing access is not a
centralized process and housing alone is not the entire solution. There are so many
other issues; CORI' s, finding landlords to take vouchers and still half the households
facing eviction in housing court have subsidies already.
The Mayor thanked the members for their comments. He said the Work Group will re
assemble soon to incorporate the feedback received from the various meetings he has
attended and develop a more intentional work plan. New South St. Apartments/ Support Letter Peg described work Home City Housing Development Inc. plans to undertake on this
long term affordable apartment building located behind the Academy of Music. HCHDI
is requesting a support letter from the Partnership to submit to DHCD in a One Stop
funding application. The project will finance rehabilitation of the 18 unit building, by
making improvements to the energy efficiency, and the income eligibility levels will be
adjusted to serve more households at 30% ami and below. A Supportive Services Plan
has been created and funding for it will improve the life quality of the residents. The
Mayor had made a "soft funding" commitment last fall of $50,000 to indicate city
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support. This allocation would need to come from the new round of funding (after July
1, 2020), and HCHDI will still need to submit a formal application in January of 2020.
Richard made a motion to support the administrative actions consistent with the
Partnership's long term commitment to this property, and approve the requested letter.
Dan seconded the motion and the vote in favor was unanimous.
Community Preservation Committee A wards
Chair Weir reported that both the North Commons Rental Housing Project at Village
Hill ($250,000) and the Hampshire Heights playground project ($200,000) received their
full funding requests in this CPA round. He thanked all members who participated in
the process which he described as phenomenal. Edgar did a great job engaging the
families that resulted in their attendance and testimony at the public meetings, Becky
wrote a wonderful application, Alex came to site visits, Julio, Becky, Todd and Edgar,
residents and Housing Authority staff all spoke at the CPC meetings - a true
community collaboration. ONWARD to build a playground!! Peg noted that the timing
of both projects relative to the CDBG award was still in flux. They will both get the
funding they need, but whichever project moves faster will get the current $150,000
allocation and the other project will need to wait until the new program year, post July
1.
Fair Housing Plan
After discussion, it was determined that a small group would meet to digest the
extensive recommendations in the Plan. This will help frame the discussion at the
January meeting. Rev. Weir, Jim, Carmen and Edgar agreea tu assemble to accomplish
this.
January Meeting
The next meeting, January 6th will be Peg Keller's last, so the agenda will consist of
membership discussion about what the scope of work moving forward with new staff
should entail.
Adjourn
The meeting concluded at 7:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted, Peg Keller
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