TAD Advisory Committee - Lexington Road

MINUTES LEXINGTON TAX ALLOCATION DISTRICT (TAD) ADVISORY COMMITTEE Thursday, April 15, 2021 – 5:30 pm Held remotely via WebEx https://youtu.be/lUY-tKxgd2w Members Present: Dr. Cshanyse Allen Rhett Butler Shane Dekle Dr. Mack Duncan Mae Walter Absent: Brantley Colbert Staff: Ilka McConnell A. Overview of Agenda: Ilka McConnell B. Approval of Minutes Motion: Rhett Butler Second: Mae Walter Unanimously approved by the Committee C. Committee Questions & Discussion: TAC Members Concern that the # of workforce dwellings is very small compared to the overall # units and bedrooms in the development. The initial 66 workforce dwellings represent only 8% of the total development's beds. Concern about subsidizing these rent levels, as they do not seem to be reduced from market rent for the same size of apartment. Question: Seems there is a bigger need for lower income housing. How much need is there for workforce over the next 20 years? Workforce growth projections? Question: Out of the 66 dwellings, how many are 1 bedrooms and how many are 2 bedrooms? Info provided says of the 120 (66 + 55 additional): 42 studios, 42 1BR, 36 2BR 63270438v.2 Question: What is the deed restriction - who is it with? Do we have a copy of the agreement with Athens Land Trust? Is it in place yet? Would be helpful to build more housing and increase supply to bring prices down. There's a long-term need for workforce housing because of the businesses here and the lack of housing in surrounding counties. Concern that this facility is not family-friendly because 2 BR is too small for a family. The workforce unit is also located right along Lexington, which is a noisy corridor and not ideal for a family. Concern about the larger development, that student housing goes through cycles, runs down, and then students move out. Question: Are they required to build the retail portion of the site? Concern that there's not an additional need for retail in the Lexington corridor. Concern regarding ability to require fair wages for construction workers to build the development. What is the average wage paid to subcontractors that will be helping to construct the project? Do they use day laborers? Where will the subcontractor companies be based? Concern that the subcontractor labor pool here in Athens is very busy and not available for a large project of this magnitude. Question: What is the Unified Government's target amount of workforce housing units throughout the county that we would like to see? Question: How do TAD funds interact / leverage with TSPLOST funds? Can the TAD Committee put in a request for a TSPLOST proposal for a project in the Lexington Corridor? Question: How will this group's recommendation be presented to the Mayor & Commission? Will the TAC members make a presentation? Question: What is the process for the Community Benefits Agreement? Does the TAC create the draft recommendation for the M & C to review? What are the steps? D. Next Steps: Ilka McConnell E. Date for Next Meeting: Thurs, April 29th at 5:30 pm F. Adjourn 63270438v.2