[bouldercouncilhotline] Hotline: Equity Co-ops

[cmosupport at bouldercolorado.gov]

Sender: Yegian, Jeffrey

   

Members of Council,
 
Councilmember Shoemaker has requested that staff be prepared to address Council’s potential interest in “responsibly governed equity co-ops” as part of your
discussion of occupancy ordinance changes tonight. The proposal was to increase the feasibility of an equity co-op as an affordable housing option through potential ordinance changes in the first quarter of 2016.

 
The principal policy issues that would make equity co-ops more feasible include:
 
·       Allowing occupancy above the six to eight currently allowed;
·       Changing the approaches to mitigating possible neighborhood impacts resulting from increased occupancy; and,
·       Removing the conditional use five-year renewal and revocation requirements to enable co-op financing.
 
Staff could prepare these and/or other proposed amendments to facilitate equity co-ops in the first quarter of 2016.  However, this is a significant work plan item due to the policy issues involved and the potential community interest in such changes.  To complete this work staff would need to restructure the current Housing Boulder and CAO work plans, delaying Housing Boulder items such as development of the Neighborhood Pilot program and options for Housing Strategy Governance.  
 
Alternatively, such potential changes could be considered and addressed as part of the proposed Neighborhood Pilot program of Housing Boulder, as discussed
with Council on September 1st. This could provide a different path for council to consider and potentially “test” alternatives to the current equity coop rules in a particular neighborhood. 

 
Please note that such changes would likely be subject to the proposed charter provisions being considered by voters this November under the “Neighborhood Right
to Vote” ballot title.
 
Staff requests a “nod of 5” to change the Housing Boulder work plan priorities or to wait until the next Council is seated to confirm the Housing Boulder priorities
for 2016.  
 
Jeff Yegian
Division of Housing Manager
303-441-4363
 

From: Shoemaker, Andrew

Sent: Thursday, September 10, 2015 11:39 AM
To: HOTLINE
Subject: Equity Co-ops


Following up on our discussion Tuesday night, and my interest and the apparent interest of some other Council members in encouraging responsibly-governed equity co-ops (i.e., owned by the residents/owner occupied), can Staff be prepared next Tuesday evening as part of the Occupancy agenda item to discuss its ability to do the following by the first quarter of 2016: propose amendments to the existing co-op ordinance to increase the feasibility of an equity co-op as an affordable housing option in our community, so that we can hold hearings and determine whether and where to encourage such investments in the near future and well before the completion of the lengthy BVCP process.

Andrew Shoemaker
Member, Boulder City Council