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<br />Councilmember Dehen pointed out this is an R-2 Residential district, which would require 50 <br />foot lots. This proposal has two of these buildings sitting on 40 foot lots with the other building <br />on a 44 foot lot. In his view these buildings are being crammed in. He is not in favor of this <br />project, and he indicated earlier that he is not in favor of it. He requested the applicant to explain <br />his comments about the buildings being senior friendly. <br /> <br />Mr. Murphy replied senior friendly buildings would include a main floor master bedroom and <br />bathroom with. all of the living able to be done on one level. The house has an upper level and <br />may have a basement, but the main floor living will allow individuals to remain in the property <br />as they age. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen asked if the applicant would be willing to sell these units strictly to <br />elderly individuals, or if they will be sold to anyone that would like to purchase them. <br /> <br />Mr. Murphy stated he is a real estate agent and has sold quite a few townhomes in the City of <br />Ramsey. He sat in a lot of open houses and listened to what people told him they were looking <br />for. The City of Ramsey does not have any type of project that addresses what he is trying to <br />address with this project. His job is to sell to someone that wants to buy one of these <br />townhomes. He would prefer to make it senior friendly because they do not have that in the City <br />and that is his marketing strategy. He has elderly parents in their 70's, and his dad has a bad <br />knee; that is the type of client he would like to promote the project to. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen questioned if the applicant is willing to make it a covenant of the <br />property that these townhomes would be sold to elderly people, since he is trying to sell the <br />Council on the senior friendly concept of the project. <br /> <br />Mr. Murphy replied the market will determine that. He is not trying to sell the Council on the <br />senior friendly concept. He is sold on that idea, and that is who he would like to move the units <br />to, but he would hate to limit himself. These units will not be in the price range of an entry level <br />home; they will be in the $270,000 to $280,000 range. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen stated the concern from the neighbors is that there are a number of <br />townhomes in this area, and this project would put more townhomes in. The people are <br />concerned with the younger people coming in and out, and with the area being more transient; <br />they want stable neighbors and a good neighborhood. If the applicant is not willing to designate <br />these townhomes specifically to seniors the City may not want the project. <br /> <br />Mr. Murphy stated the price point is probably the biggest deterrent for these concerns. He does <br />not know many young families that will have a $2,000 per month mortgage payment. With the <br />price range of $270,000 to $280,000 for these units he will not likely be dealing with first time <br />homebuyers. <br /> <br />Mayor Gamec commented they would run into a housing problem if certain units are designated. <br />Designating the entire project as a senior housing project involves City funds in some cases. The <br />big problem to look at is the style of the house and the development. <br /> <br />City Council I April 10, 2007 <br />Page 9 or 20 <br />