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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRDA AG PKT 2004-02-23 #A Seal Beach, California January 26, 2004 The Redevelopment Agency of the City of Seal Beach met in regular session at 6:45 p.m. with Chairman Yost calling the meeting to order. ROLL CALL Present: Chairman Yost Agencymembers Antos, Campbell, Doane, Larson Absent: None Also present: Mr. Bahorski, Executive Director Mr. Barrow, City Attorney Mr. Whittenberg, Director of Development Services Ms. Yeo, City Clerk /Agency Secretary APPROVAL OF AGENDA Doane moved, second by Antos, to approve the order of the agenda as presented. AYES: Antos, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost NOES: None Motion carried ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Chairman Yost declared Oral Communications open. Ms. Sue Corbin, Seal Beach, stated that the Agency audit was not in the agenda packet at the library, asked where the report is and how can the citizens see it. The Chairman advised Ms. Rita Brenner, Trailer Park, - that the item to which she wished to speak was a Council item, she could comment now or under the City Council Oral Communications. Ms. Brenner said she would like her comments as a matter of record, said she feels that the Agency has been hearing things about the Trailer Park /Civic Stone saga, first of all the program does not fairly provide for the residents that really need the program, residents were told that whomever filed first would get aid first, it is known who filed first, second, etc., and who was not aided first and second, there have been seniors who were denied and are still waiting, one disabled senior waiting needs new windows and heating, there is a single mother with one child whose home is torn up and has been for many months, last year Civic Stone got someone to do part of the work, all they did was tear down walls, took off some of the outside, left everything, said the work would not be done, that a new mobile home would be better, but Civic Stone had paid the contractor up front, no one watched what they were or were not doing, Linc and Civic Stone indicated that money would need to come off of the woman's allotted loan up front, that is not fair. Ms. Brenner said now there are three others, two are seniors, that signed a regulatory agreement whereby they will receive specific sized new mobile homes, given the time and price to do repairs to almost any of the homes in the Park it seems it would cost less to bring in new homes. While the games between Linc, Civic Stone and the City were being played an adult couple RDA Item A Page Two - Redevelopment Agency Minutes - January 26, 2004 had a new home built, a redo, a roof, windows, kitchen, appliances, now a fence is being furnished and a new Jacuzzi will be put in, just two years before the couple had a new roof and windows replaced by the County, shouldn't that money be repaid,_ does no one check these people, also, they did not have to sign a regulatory agreement, why, this couple got more than $10,000, there are others that are getting more than $10,000, which does not have to be repaid, if one applicant has to sign a • regulatory agreement then they all should, or vice versa, was this couple part of the old crowd and got something for it, it is not fair. Ms. Brenner claimed that there are also people using two to three names, disabilities, getting State money, but they did not tell the truth so they could get anything and everything free, the people who really need the help are not getting it. Ms. Brenner said she has been informed that the City Attorney and Planning Director are in charge of this program and she is calling for an audit and investigation of the program with a report within one month. Ms. Joyce Parque, Seal Beach, asked if there is going to be an audit of Civic Stone, how they have handled the money, who will do the audit, in the real world the federal government does audits to make sure that the credit reports and income tax reports are true. Ms. Parque claimed that once a mobile home is repaired it can never be moved, so why are they not paying property taxes. Chairman Yost declared Oral Communications closed. To the question of the Chairman with regard to availability of the Redevelopment Agency financial reports, the Executive Director explained that they are available in the office of the City Clerk, at the libraries, and the Finance Department. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Campbell moved, second by Antos, to approve the minutes of October 27, 2003 meeting. AYES: Antos, Campbell, Doane, Larson, Yost NOES: None Motion carried ANNUAL AUDIT REPORT - JUNE 30, 2003 The Executive Director noted that this is a standard annual audit report for the Redevelopment Agency as of June 30, 2003, it is not the GASB 34 model, it breaks that out, reported that during the year the Agency increment exceeded expenses by $349,000 and the Low and Moderate Housing Fund revenues exceeded expenses. Chairman Yost asked if there is a process for evaluating or , auditing Civic Stone relating to the housing funds as the Agency has dictated. The Executive Director explained that transactions relating to the Trailer Park are reviewed by bond counsel, outside of the home improvement agreement there is always an audit, there are monthly reports by Rosnow Spevacek, technically the Agency does not audit the - Civic Stone program, an audit could be costly, however it is a fairly straight forward process, any documents the Agency would like to see can be obtained, a report could be compiled as to how many loans were awarded, what they were for, it is believed there was such a report a few meetings 'Page Three - Redevelopment Agency Minutes - January 26, 2004 back. Chairman Yost requested that that be an item for the next agenda. Chairman Yost stated he would leave the meeting at this point due to the proximity of his home within five hundred feet of the Trailer Park, the next item relating to the Park, and turned the conduct of the meeting over to Mayor Campbell. Doane moved, second by Antos, to receive and file the June 30, 2003 Annual Redevelopment Agency Audit Report. AYES: Antos, Campbell, Doane, Larson NOES: None ABSTAIN: Yost Motion carried CONDITIONAL RENTAL SUBSIDY AGREEMENT - SUBSTANTIAL REHABILITATION PROJECTS The Director of Development Services presented the staff report, explained that this item is presented for Agency consideration in order to allow certain types of applications within the Trailer Park for what is called substantial rehabilitation under State law requirements to proceed. He noted that there are conflicting provisions between the State law requirements on the affordability of units that undergo substantial rehabilitation and the existing bond documents relative to the acquisition of the Trailer Park, the issue is the long term affordability of units whereas under substantial rehab are required to have a covenant recorded on the property for fifty -five years to maintain the long term affordability under State law requirements. He noted that Linc expressed some concern that by signing those types of unit regulatory agreements at some time in the future the affordable rent could be calculated pursuant to the State law provisions, and might in some manner impact their ability to make the long term bond debt payments by ,restricting the rent on certain units. The Director explained that the agreement before the Agency has been negotiated between City counsel and counsel for Linc, whereas the Agency would agree to make up whatever the shortfall amount might be of the long term affordability rents over that period of time, and as indicated in the staff . report there are two properties involved in this, both properties at this point do not receive a subsidy for the rent as far as affordability, it is also not seen where that situation would occur, the staff report also indicates that these are the only two properties that staff will approach the Agency with under this type of situation. He explained further that one of the properties is the result of the initial work starting as a rehabilitation loan however once they started to tear into the unit there was substantial termite damage found which was unanticipated and put the property into a substantial rehabilitation category. The Director noted that this is an issue that counsels for the City and Linc have been working on for about four to five months, the recommendation is execution of the agreement attached to the staff report. Councilman Antos asked what would be the practical impact of signing the agreement if the Agency at some point in the future were to decide to abolish the Agency. In response, the Director said he did not know if ' Page Four — Redevelopment Agency Minutes - January 26, 2004 that would be an issue that could be addressed at this meeting, the Agency in the past has provided staff reports on the impact of disbanding the Agency prior to its normal termination as set forth by ordinance, that could be brought back to the Agency, yet this is basically a guarantee that rents will not rise to a level to where Linc would have to subsidize a portion of the rent to maintain long term affordability, at this point the ability to pay rent, by both properties, exceeds what the long term affordability figure is, and it is expected that those numbers would stay in line over the period of time that the covenant would be in place, there are other identified costs involved with regard to bonded indebtedness, etc. that would have to be considered in any disbandonment of the Agency. Councilman Antos said assuming that at some point in time the property might change hands and there would be another owner, would this agreement remain in effect with a new owner whose income was such that they did not need the rental subsidy for affordability. The Director noted that the proposed agreement is applicable to successors and assigns of the resident and Linc as the property owner, the second is that under the regulatory agreement that the residents of these two units sign there are provisions in the agreements that the Agency previously approved that discusses the fact that they can not sell to persons of less income yet can sell to persons of equal or greater income provided it does not exceed the moderate income level, if it does then the Agency has the option of buying the unit at that time if that was desired. Councilman Antos surmised that if the unit were sold to a • moderate income person at some point that did not need the rental subsidy then this particular provision would not be applicable and the owners would basically pay the going rent for that type of unit. Mayor Campbell noted that the Park residents pay a vehicle license tax on their units, and inquired what other tax they pay. The Director noted that there are a number of different ways that personal property taxes are paid on these units, if a mobile home or travel trailer they pay a license fee to the Department of Motor Vehicles as one would with a car, that type of a license fee is not paid on the manufactured homes rather a personal property tax not a property tax, because they do not own the in -fee title to the property itself, it is taxed as personal property such as a boat or business inventory in a commercial enterprise, the Trailer Park property as a whole is owned by Linc Housing and they pay property taxes on the-entire mobile home park, the residents in the Park do not own land, they lease the land and then place a unit on the land, the type of tax that is paid is dependent upon the type of living unit, in cases where the mobile home or travel trailer or portions thereof exist they may be paying a license fee and personal property tax, it depends upon the individual situation.. Doane moved, second by Campbell, to approved the Conditional Rental Subsidy Agreement and authorize the Executive Director to execute said Agreement, and furthermore, that the applicants for 54 Riversea Road and 139 Cottonwood Lane be authorized to proceed with the replacement of their unit within the loan limits and guidelines of the approved Home Improvement Program. • Page Five - Redevelopment Agency Minutes - January 26, 2004 AYES: Campbell, Doane, Larson NOES: None ABSTAIN: Antos, Yost Motion carried ADJOURNMENT It was the order of the Chair, with consent of the Agency, to adjourn the meeting at 7:06 p.m. THESE MINUTES ARE TENTATIVE ONLY, SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL OF THE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY OF THE CITY OF SEAL BEACH. Redevelopment Agency Minutes Approved: