|
Concerns raised about space for the homeless BAXTER CITY COUNCIL Staff Writer BAXTER - Before the Baxter City Council gave its support to a proposed housing development, concerns were raised about four units reserved for the homeless in the proposed development.
The council Tuesday passed resolutions of support for the Grand Oaks Court Townhomes Development so developers can apply for Minnesota House Finance Authority tax credits.
The Central Minnesota Housing Partnership had previously received council support, including a city tax increment financing request, for this 24-unit affordable housing development. However, the project hasn't been awarded the highly competitive state tax credits for the past three funding cycles so the project never moved forward.
This proposed project is to be located on Grand Oaks Drive, just north of the CMHP's similar 24-unit Grand Oaks Townhomes project which has a 100 percent occupancy rate. Project cost is estimated at $3.9 million.
However, a new key component of the proposed housing project is the addition of four units for the homeless. These three two-bedroom units and one three-bedroom unit will serve households experiencing long-term homelessness, said Bill Reinke, CMHP executive director.
Council member Jim Klein said he was concerned that homeless people living elsewhere, like Chicago, would want to take advantage of the situation and would move to Baxter because of this service. Project developers told Klein that there are more than enough homeless currently living in this area.
Rents for the four homeless units would be about $100 less than other units in the project.
Baxter resident Bob Miller questioned if the city should extend itself into this type of housing.
"To put it bluntly, are we becoming a Mecca for the poor and is that the direction we're heading?," Miller asked the council. "I know people work $10 an hour jobs around here but do we want to become a Mecca for this?"
Council member Todd Holman said he supported the project. Holman said there is a demonstrated need of housing for the homeless in the lakes area. He said this project is designed to meet that need.
Baxter Mayor Darrel Olson said this is the only TIF project he has ever supported because of the reputation of the project developers, whom he researched, and because all the units in these developments are subsidized.
The council Tuesday passed resolutions of support for the tax credit application and for TIF assistance.
In other council action, council members:
Accepted the resignation of investigator Andy Rooney as a full-time officer with regret. After 16 years of employment with the city, Rooney has accepted a position as a law enforcement instructor at Hibbing Community College. Rooney will temporarily continue as the city's defensive tactics officer and firearms instructor.
Approved the wage increase for intermittent officers from $18.75 to $19.25 per hour.
Adopted a resolution that establishes an absentee ballot board.
Authorized the distribution of the Potlatch West Baxter Alternative Urban Areawide Review, or AUAR, to agencies and to the public for a 30-day review period for the 465 acres located in West Baxter owned by Potlatch. Accepted a $3,000 donation from the Baxter Lions Club for the Baxter Police Department K9 program.
Authorized U'S Again Closing Recyclers of Roseville to place collection boxes at three Baxter sites, including Wal-Mart and PartyWorld, but denied a request to place a bin on city of Baxter property.
Accepted a $5,000 donation from the Baxter Snowmobile Club for regional transportation and trail planning.
Set a public hearing for 7:15 p.m. July 1 for certification of delinquent utility bills.
Set a public hearing for 6 p.m. July 9 for the Novotny Road and Dellwood Drive project.
Approved the Schoena land acquisition for a future Forest Drive extension on the understanding that no road is being planned in the near future.
Approved the 2007 audit report from LarsonAllen, the city's auditing firm. A copy of the financial statements will be available for public review on the city's Web site in July.
To Subscribe to the Brainerd Dispatch, Click Here.
Note: Comments are not edited and don't represent the views of The Brainerd Dispatch. Please read our posting rules in the terms of service policy. To report a post that may be inappropriate, click the triangle alert icon.
|
|
