Housing Commission

12/19/2023 - Minutes I. Call to Order Members Present: Katherine ‘Deac’ Deccareau, Jack Commo, Shaun Gilpin, Jessica Bridge, Anna Wageling, Robert Millar, Leslie Black-Plummeau City Staff Present: Jazmine Hurley, Councilor Charles Judge Call to Order by: Jessica Bridge Meeting Start Time: 6:03 PM Minutes Recorded by: Anna Wageling II. Public Comment Bove Properties sent out letters to tenants of 300 Main Street that they need to be out by January 31, Mayor Lott has been in contact with Rick Bove weekly regarding this III. Approve Previous Meeting Minutes Decision: Approve Motion by: Deac Second: John All approve, Leslie abstains as she was absent IV. City Staff Liaison Updates l Awarded the Municipal Planning Grant l Many discussions around tax increases V. City Council Liaison Updates l CC discussed short-term rental information, positive feedback, feel encouraged by the work being done l meeting February with Planning Commission to drive toward priorities together VI. Inclusion & Belonging Updates / Introduction l Lily is new Inclusion and Belonging Ambassador l Lily (they/she) is currently a carpenter, has lived in Winooski a little over one year l Inclusion and Belonging has appointed 3-4 new folks VII. Discussion: 2024 Commission Meeting Scheduling All dates work for commission members, Jazmine will send out calendar invitations. VII. Discussion: 2024 Commission Meeting Scheduling All dates work for commission members, Jazmine will send out calendar invitations. VIII. Discussion: Housing Trust Fund Changes, Updates l Interest rate buydown passed by City Council, added to portfolio l Vague language around lending institutions l Jazmine reached out to Opportunities, hopefully will start offering it before the holidays l Paul and Jazmine will work on more comprehensive marketing plan l Can utilize Jessica’s contacts- will add to agenda for January (NVRA- Northwest Vermont Realtor’s Association) l VGS thinks it should be unwise for city to be involved in energy-related projects l If city provided upfront capital: could be used nefariously because of privacy l Efficiency VT cannot verify reimbursement or cost with a customer (they are reimbursed a percentage of the project) l VGS said storm windows sometimes need improvements and that would be opportunity for loan to cover l Deac: many of the homes in Winooski do not have compliant windows, some wisdom in this l Efficiency VT said the money is more needed for code violations rather than energy efficiency l Also said owner-occupied units generally in better condition than non-owner-occupied units l Jazmine will draft if we carve out efficiency, providing updates needed to participant in efficiency programming l Council wants to make sure people won’t take money then flip it to an STR- Jazmine will add in long-term rental where criteria is l If they converted, then they would have to pay of the balance of the loan- once loan is paid off, no restrictions Public comment: l List of vendors approved to do the work? l Disclosure in contract signed with company around ‘yes, you can share my information with the city’ IX. Discussion: Short Term Rental Draft Ordinance: City Council Feedback Decision: Set fees for $250 for owner-occupied per year and $1000 for non-owner-occupied Motion by: Deac Second: Shaun l Change added before presentation: fire chief and fire marshal want more frequent inspections for STRs: want to be in there once per year l Council stated they prefer every other year instead l Cost analysis for increased inspections: we would be in the red unless we did inspection every other year and increased non-owner-occupied fee to $775 l Wait a year to gather more data first as there are too many variables and not enough data l Inspection every year is not equitable to the tenant l Homestead definition as is easier to administer l Expressed interest in charter change for tax collection l Wanted us to increase fees exponentially: $200 for owner and $600+ for non-owner  l Wait a year to gather more data first as there are too many variables and not enough data l Inspection every year is not equitable to the tenant l Homestead definition as is easier to administer l Expressed interest in charter change for tax collection l Wanted us to increase fees exponentially: $200 for owner and $600+ for non-owner occupied l Burlington has 9% of yearly revenue l $4,022 per month revenue for Winooski STR- if we charged 9%, would be $4,343 l We could easily do $1,000 for a fee with non-owner-occupied l Should we consider a cap on the amount of rentals people can own? (comment from state rep at meeting) l Instead of capping the amount of properties, can we say once that cap is met, licenses will be prioritized for folks with less properties l Vote on two numbers now, then get more options to vote on next meeting, being introduced as ordinance on February 20 th at council meeting Public comment: l any amount of money is not a lot of money for them l $250 discount for non-owner occupied for folks who live in Winooski l Instead of $50 per additional room, could up that too because it is such a small amount l If people have more than 5 properties, maybe increase the fee to $1,500 instead- can be a tiered system X. Discussion: Policy Direction and Priorities from City Council l Spurred us combining a planning and housing commission meeting in February l Burlington and South Burlington have replacement ordinances l Starting to look at ordinances and what we need to do re: replacement XI. Adjourn Motion by: Leslie Second: Jack Meeting End Time: 7:58