Agenda - Planning Commission - 09/04/2014

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Last revised July 24, 2014 as large public housing buildings, seem to increase crime rates. However, other large projects had no correlation with increased crime, especially among newer and more professionally - managed developments." Poorly managed properties are more susceptible to increased crime rates and since poorly managed properties are more likely to be affordable, a negative association persists. Concern: This is not the appropriate place for affordable housing. Reality: Some communities believe that affordable housing proposals would bring "new poor" to their neighborhood. However, people who need affordable housing probably already live in the area. Additional affordable housing is needed everywhere, from rural centers to emerging suburban subdivisions to older suburbs and the urban center. While not all types of affordable housing may be appropriate in all locations, every community has people with disabilities, households experiencing food insecurity, cost burdened residents, and/or seniors with fixed incomes. And many wealthy communities need services and amenities that employ workers who need affordable housing options. The opportunity of a regional approach and a regional Housing Policy Plan As a region, we can react to these challenges, or we can plan for them. The coordinated regional planning approach underlying the Metropolitan Council and institutionalized in the Metropolitan Land Planning Act uniquely equips our region to transform challenges into opportunities to thrive. In the late 1960s when the Metropolitan Council was created, community leaders saw value in collaborating to solve regional issues. At that time, the Minneapolis -Saint Paul region was facing tough challenges resulting from rapid population growth and unimpeded urban sprawl. In 1967, the Minnesota Legislature created the Metropolitan Council and gave it responsibilities for planning and coordinating the region's growth and setting policies to deal with regional issues. On signing the bill, then Governor Harold LeVander observed that the Council "was conceived with the idea that we will be faced with more and more problems that will pay no heed to the boundary lines which mark the end of one community and the beginning of another." A region -wide perspective provides the opportunity to address issues that: • Are bigger than any one community can address alone. • Cross community boundaries to affect multiple communities. • Could benefit from an opportunity to share best practices. • Require resources that are most effectively used at a regional scale. For nearly 50 years the Metropolitan Council has played a key role in coordinating regional growth and planning, and convening partners to accomplish ambitious goals unrealistic for a single community but possible as a region. Thinking ahead —and working together with local governments, residents, businesses, philanthropy, and the non-profit sector —helps us maintain a quality of life that other metropolitan areas envy. " Agnew, Spencer. 2010. The Impact of Affordable Housing on Communities and Households. Available from: www.mnhousing.gov/idc/groups/secure/documents/admin/mhfa_010263.pdf. 2040 HOUSING POLICY PLAN I METROPOLITAN COUNCIL DRAFT RELEASED FOR PUBLIC COMMENT Part I: Introduction I Page 13