Agenda - Planning Commission - 09/04/2014

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Last revised July 24, 2014 Leveraging other funding streams Regional Solicitation for Transportation Funding The Council uses the Regional Solicitation for Transportation Funding to distribute millions of dollars from three major federal transportation programs —the Surface Transportation Program (STP), Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ), and Transportation Alternatives. Its main objective is to help advance regional policies and priorities through the allocation of federal transportation funds to a variety of locally -initiated projects that address transportation needs. For context, the distribution for fiscal years 2018-2019 (to be completed in 2015) is expected to be a total of approximately $150 million. Proposed projects implement the Transportation Policy Plan and Thrive MSP 2040 and support the region's economic vitality and quality of life. The Regional Solicitation process has long used an applicant's affordable housing performance as a scoring element although the specific measure used has varied among the Housing Performance Scores, performance against the Livable Communities Act Goals, or counts of new affordable units. The Score, however, is a more comprehensive indicator of a city's progress and commitment toward expanding housing choices. To incent communities to expand affordable housing options and to be consistent across the Council, the Council is recommending that the Regional Solicitation process use the Housing Performance Scores. Council actions to leverage the Regional Solicitation for Transportation Funding to elevate the importance of housing performance: • Propose to the Transportation Advisory Board the inclusion of the Housing Performance Scores (existing and as updated in this plan) as a scoring element in the Regional Solicitation for Transportation Funding. Sewer Availability Charge The Sewer Availability Charge (SAC) is a one-time fee imposed by Metropolitan Council Environmental Services (MCES) to local communities for each new connection made or an increase in capacity demand to the Metropolitan Disposal System. The SAC fee is assessed per residential unit; other types of buildings, such as multifamily residential, pay a prorated SAC fee based on the estimated potential capacity of wastewater they may generate. Some multifamily dwellings of four or more units can also receive discounts on the SAC due, ranging from 20% for a `typical' multifamily apartment building without individual laundry facilities to 40% for multi -dwelling publicly -owned or publicly -subsidized properties with no individual laundry facilities, garbage disposals, or dishwashers. Local governments may waive or pass the SAC fee along to developers but, regardless, remain obligated for the payment made to the Council. The SAC system is a complex structure governed by state statutes and administrative procedures. As a result, it is both politically and structurally challenging to leverage SAC to promote affordable housing. However, there is an opportunity to demonstrate the Council's commitment to affordable housing development through its handling of SAC. The proposal below, modeled after the existing provisions for Phased Redevelopment Plans, represents one approach that the Council believes may be feasible within existing statutory and administrative frameworks. 2040 HOUSING POLICY PLAN I METROPOLITAN COUNCIL DRAFT RELEASED FOR PUBLIC COMMENT Part III: Council Policies and Roles I Page 56