Removing Barriers to Affordable Housing - June 21, 2019 - The City of San ...
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Removing Barriers to
Affordable Housing
June 21, 2019
1Table of Contents
REMOVING BARRIERS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING ..................................................................................... 3
Welcome from Tri-Chairs and Mayor’s Office .............................................................................................. 3
Overview of Mayor’s Housing Policy Task Force Report Recommendations ............................................... 3
Committee Ground Rules ............................................................................................................................. 4
UDC Amendment Process ............................................................................................................................. 5
Next Steps for UDC Amendments ................................................................................................................. 5
Member Introductions and Priorities ........................................................................................................... 5
Overview of Work by Previous Housing Commission ................................................................................... 7
Public Comment ............................................................................................................................................ 8
Homework..................................................................................................................................................... 9
Proposed Future Meeting Dates ................................................................................................................... 9
2REMOVING BARRIERS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Welcome from Tri-Chairs and Mayor’s Office
• Meeting was called to order at 11:36
• Tri-Chairs Jim Baily and Cynthia Spielman introduce themselves. Steve Poppoon was unable to
attend.
• Victoria Gonzalez from the Mayor’s Office provided short statement of support from the Mayor.
Overview of Mayor’s Housing Policy Task Force Report Recommendations
• Overview from Jim Baily:
In 2014 Julian Castro created the Mayor’s Task Force on Preserving Dynamic and Diverse
Neighborhoods. This group developed a set of recommendations that included, among other
things, the creation of a Housing Commission, displacement mitigation measures, a
comprehensive review of city policies, and a housing bond.
In 2015 the Housing Commission to Preserve and Prevent Displacement was formed and for
three years worked to carry out the somewhat limited Task Force recommendations. The most
notable achievements of this commission were the successful creation of the 20 million dollar
Neighborhood Improvements Bond and, in my opinion, serving as a platform to keep issues
around affordable housing and displacement in the public eye.
When Mayor Ron Nirenberg took office in 2017, he realized that while these efforts were a good
first step, a more energetic and holistic response was required. Shortly after taking office, he
formed the Mayor’s Housing Policy Task Force on which I had the honor to serve. This five-
member group was charged with a sweeping, whole-system review of San Antonio’s housing
ecosystem and, over 12 months, led as hundreds of citizens participated by sharing stories and
concerns, and serving on technical working groups. The task force worked with four different
consultant groups as well as City staff to do a deep dive into data and facilitate the process.
This process revealed the following:
o Housing costs are outpacing incomes in San Antonio and there is a wide and rapidly
growing affordability gap. In 2000, you could find a starter home for a new $110k. Today
the floor is about $170k. Incomes have remained relatively flat over that period.
o 50% of renters in San Antonio are spending more than 30% of their income on housing
or 45% on housing plus transportation.
o Housing supply is not keeping pace with growth: most new construction is outside San
Antonio city limits
o Neighborhood instability and displacement are real things and they are happening here.
3It wasn’t easy but under the leadership of Lourdes Castro Ramirez. We treated one another with
respect and, in the end; we developed not just consensus, but friendship. Ultimately, the five of
us, from different backgrounds and points of view, boiled the oceans of information down into
San Antonio’s Housing Policy Framework
The actions that this framework calls for are bold and sweeping and include:
o Development of a coordinated Housing System
o Increased investment in housing
o Increase affordable housing production, rehabilitation, and preservation
o Protection and preservation of neighborhoods
o And the insurance of accountability to the public.
Page 12 of the Housing Policy Framework provides an initial timeline for implementation. Many
but not all of these initial tasks are underway including:
o Council adoption of Housing Policy Framework (August 2018)
o Increased funding to implement framework recommendations (October 2018)
o Reconstitution of the Housing Commission (February 2019)
The Housing Commission is tasked to ensure the Housing Policy Framework will
of the people be implemented over the next decade and is currently chaired by
Lourdes Castro Ramirez. It is to that body this commission that we will report
our findings. Jessica Guerrero, who has joined on the phone, is our Housing
Commission representative.
o Preliminary steps on addressing and mitigating displacement (April 2019)
o Review of the San Antonio Housing Trust (July 2019)
o Establish a Technical Working Group on removing barriers to the production and
preservation of affordable housing within the Unified Development Code
Strategy 1: Undertake an inclusive public process to determine standards and
criteria to allow by-right zoning for housing developments in which at least 50%
of the units are affordable. (We are not tackling this. The implementation plan
calls for a separate working group to do so.)
Strategy 2: Exempt affordable housing units from SAWS impact fees. (Our group
might wish to look at SAWS and CPS related issues)
Strategy 3: Revise the UDC to remove regulatory barriers to affordable housing.
(This will be the primary goal for our group and details are on page 40 of the
Housing Policy Framework)
Committee Ground Rules
• Overview from Cynthia Spielman:
4o We will be respectful of one another and assume that people have good
intentions.
o Comments will be concise and on topic so everyone has the opportunity to
contribute.
o Decisions will be made on a consensus basis.
o Listening is a radical act.
UDC Amendment Process
• Amendments happen every 5 years and the next round of taking place in 2020
• Each amendment submitted will be reviewed by the Planning Commission Technical Advisory
Committee (PTAC)
• General timeline of 2020 deadlines:
o Jan 1 – May 1: Amendment submissions
o May 1 – July 1: City Staff follow-ups
o October: Planning Commission and Housing Commission Hearings
o December 1: Commissioner must refer to City Council
IB_558.pdf UDC 2020
Overview_PPT.pdf
Next Steps for UDC Amendments
• The Committee process over next 6 months will include:
o Following UDC Amendment Process Timeline
o Meeting Mondays, 2nd of the month for 6 months until December
o Public meeting in the evening
o All committee members seeking input and encouraging neighborhood engagement
Member Introductions and Priorities
• Cynthia Spielman
o Affiliate of Tier 1 and Beacon Hill Neighborhood Association.
o Wants to ensure committee members respect one another throughout the process and
that community members are involved.
• Summer Greathouse
5o Affiliate of Bracewell, LLC and an attorney in affordable housing space with expertise in
Housing Tax Credits, Housing Bonds, and Public Finance Corporations. She lives in the
Monte Vista Neighborhood.
o Wants to ensure amendments are well worded & easily interpreted.
• Colleen Waguespack
o Affiliate of Northside Neighborhoods for Organized Development.
o Colleen’s mother lives in affordable housing and she hopes to better educate the public
about affordable housing.
• Jose Gonzalez
o Jose has been a financial consultant since 1992 and has served on Housing Commission.
o He is looking to identify tools we need to provide affordable units based on average
incomes of a neighborhood.
• Jordan Ghawi
o Jordan is a neighborhood leader.
o He hopes to increase affordable housing stock and help legacy residents stay in place.
• Dahlia Garcia
o Affiliate of Crockett National Bank and the West side.
o She wants to help enhance financing to end user, especially those in the 80% AMI and
lower income range, as well as build housing that is truly affordable.
• Anisa Schell
o Affiliate of Tier 1 as well as a taskforce member for the Mayor’s Housing Policy
Framework.
o She is looking to find affordable housing solutions for existing neighborhoods and
prevent displacement.
• Jeff Buell
o Affiliate of Sitterle Homes and the Greater San Antonio Builders Association.
o He is here to learn more about affordable housing and provide developer insight.
• Rebecca Flores
o Rebecca is a neighborhood leader on the west side of San Antonio and has worked with
residents of colonias throughout her life.
o She has seen the destruction of neighborhoods and is committed to keeping
neighborhoods affordable by supporting legacy residents and preventing displacement.
She is also concerned about property taxes.
• Frank Pakuszewski
o Affiliate of SOJO Urban Development which focuses on building townhomes in the
urban core.
o He is concerned about rising land and labors costs and wants to look at UDC standards,
processes, and innovative ways to produce affordable housing.
• Suren Kamth
6o Affiliate of Briggs Medical. After moving to San Antonio in 1975 as a student he built a
successful medical office park and wants to give back to San Antonio. In addition, he has
served on the zoning commission.
o He wants to focus on housing that is affordable for employee such as those who work in
his medical park by making recommendations to the Unified Development Code.
• Sandra Tamez
o Affiliate of the Fair Housing Council.
o She is concerned about the definition of affordable housing and where accessible
housing is offered. She also wants to address displacement.
• Martha Banda
o Martha is an equitable development specialist and has lived on the west and east side of
San Antonio. Her background is in public health and found that the built environment
has a huge impact on the health of residents.
o She is interested in mix use with a focus on the original 36 square miles of San Antonio.
• Ian Benavidez
o Affiliate of Neighborhood and Housing Services and City of San Antonio.
o He is here to help implement policies in Mayor’s Housing Policy Framework which
includes this task force to remove barriers to affordable housing.
Overview of Work by Previous Housing Commission
• Overview by Kristin Flores
The previous Housing Commission noted several ways to improve Sections 35-360 (Bonus
Density) and 35-372 (Affordable Dwelling Units) in the Unified Development Code. The concern
was that these parts of the code were not highly utilized as the bonuses were small. Below is an
overview of the general ideas of changes put forth by Housing Commission.
Current Policy
Issue Proposed Changed
Applicability Current policy only applies to multi-unit projects subject to application for
rezoning, MDP, or planning. Policy should include single-unit projects and should
allow for uses not permitted in a zoning district. (e.g. duplex in R-4)
Affordability Currently the policy defines low income as not exceeding 80% AMI and very low
income as not exceeding 50% AMI. Policy should have more comprehensive range
of AMI categories especially for homeowners.
Density Bonus and Currently developers can increase permitted units by 20% if 10% of the units are
Set-Aside low income housing and a 10% increase if 5% of the units are very low income
housing. Policy should have a minimum of 5% restricted income units and an
increasing bonus density for every 1% increase of restricted units.
Affordability Period The current policy states units must be affordable for 50 years. Policy should
7reduce the length of affordability to 20 years for a homebuyer and 30 years for
rental units.
Additional Development Specifications
(Proposed to be applicable for projects with 75% or more affordable units)
Issue Proposed Changed
Minimum Lot Size Allow minim lot size to be reduced to 1,250 square feet.
Building Setbacks Should not require front or side setbacks and reduce rear setback to 5 feet.
Street Construction Projects that reuse existing buildings or development an infill parcel of 5 acres or
Standards less should not be required to upgrade or improve existing streets or sidewalks.
Utilities Projects that reuse existing buildings or development an infill parcel of 5 acres or
less should not be required to improve deficiencies in existing utility
infrastructure.
Storm water Projects that reuse existing buildings or development an infill parcel of 5 acres or
Management less should not be required to improve deficiencies in existing off-site storm
water. There should be increased options for off-site drainage alternatives in lieu
of on-site retention/ detention pond.
Parks & Open Space Parks and open space dedication and fee in lieu of land dedication standards shall
not apply.
Tree Preservation Projects that reuse existing buildings or development an infill parcel of 5 acres or
less should not be required to mitigate the removal of tress located in
development areas.
2017 Housing
Comission Proposed U
Public Comment
• Each person in the room observing the meeting was asked to introduce themselves and provide
any feedback or concerns:
o Denise Homer was glad to see financial institutions in the room, but is still concerned
with actual affordability for residents in San Antonio and what they can truly afford.
o Mark Spielman is from the Beacon Hill Neighborhood Association.
o Mary Johnson is concerned with displacement and is hoping to see community input.
She is currently looking at comparable cities who have avoided the affordable housing
crisis to identify the tools they have used.
o Barbra Witte-Howell is a representative of seniors and the City/County Joint
Commission on Elderly Affairs. She is concerned about affordable housing as it relates to
seniors since 1 in 5 seniors living in affordable housing.
8o Rich Acosta is the president of My City is My Home and provided comments below
Rich
Acosta_MyCityIsMyH
o Tammy Kegley is from Alta Vista and is concerned with the perception of the term
‘affordable housing’. She wants to ensure that we keep legacy neighborhoods and is
worried about the effects of short term rentals which are not owner occupied.
• City Staff Present:
o Kristin Flores (Neighborhood and Housing Services)
o Ian Benavidez (Neighborhood and Housing Services)
o Christopher Lazaro (Center City Development Office)
o Susan Guinn (City Attorney’s Office)
o Jameene Williams (City Attorney’s Office)
o Melissa Ramirez (Development Services)
o Catherine Hernandez (Development Services)
o Tony Felts (Development Services)
o Monique Mercado (Development Services)
o Lauren Chavez (Development Services)
o Cory Edwards (Office of Historic Preservation)
o Stori Nuri (Neighborhood and Housing Services)
o Sarah Perez (Neighborhood and Housing Services)
Homework
• Read Housing Policy Framework
• Review Affordable Dwelling Units portion of the Unified Development Code
• Complete survey with Top 3 Priorities for UDC Amendment Topics
Proposed Future Meeting Dates
• Meetings are proposed to take place the second Monday each month from 11:30 am - 1:00 pm:
o July 8th
o August 12th
o September 9th
o October 14th
o November 11th
o December 9th
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