HomeMy WebLinkAboutWHAC-August 2020 AgendaNEW HANOVER COUNTY PLANNING & LAND USE
AGENDA
COUNTY-CITY WORKFORCE HOUSING ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Virtual Meeting - Microsoft Teams
August 5, 2020 – 3:00 PM
Purpose: The Committee shall be organized for the purpose of developing a comprehensive workforce housing study, workforce housing
opinion study and public awareness campaign, support for increasing equitable access and the supply of workforce housing that is
affordable; informing the Appointing Authorities and other organizations of their findings; and making recommendations, in an advisory
capacity, to the Appointing Authorities and other organizations, as necessary.
Estimated
Minutes
5 I. Call to Order
Welcome
Establish Quorum
5 II. Approve Agenda
5 III. Approve Minutes
June 3, 2020
30 IV. Public Comments
45 V. New Business
Information Items
o Update on Housing Study and Survey
o Update on City of Wilmington CDBG-CV Rental Assistance Program
o Pilot Project: Workforce Housing / Housing Affordability (Presenter- Dave
Spetrino, PBC Design + Build)
5 VI. Announcements
VII. Adjourn
ATTACHMENTS:
Draft Minutes of June 3, 2020 Meeting
This meeting is open to the public by calling 1-336-218-2051 and enter Conference ID: 988 250 75#
New Hanover County-City of Wilmington Workforce Housing Advisory Committee
June 3, 2020 Regular Meeting
Committee Members Present: Patrick Brien, Philip Brown, Evelyn Bryant, Don Harris, Katrina Knight,
Katrina Redmon, R. Frank Smith, Steve Spain, David Spetrino, Paul Stavovy, Glenda Tate
Staff Present: Tufanna Bradley (NHC), Rachel LaCoe (NHC), Suzanne Rogers (CoW), Rebekah Roth (NHC)
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order and quorum established at 3:05 pm by Chairperson Evelyn Bryant.
Approve Agenda
David Spetrino made a motion to approve to the agenda, which was seconded by Glenda Tate and adopted
unanimously.
Approve Minutes
David Spetrino made a motion to approve the draft minutes from the March 4, 2020 meeting. The motion
was seconded by Katrina Knight and adopted unanimously.
Public Comments
No members of the public had signed up to provide public comment.
New Business
Update on Housing Study and Survey
Chairperson Bryant recognized Workforce Housing Planner Rachel LaCoe, who updated the committee
members.
Timeline is still on track for an October draft with a final presentation in October/November with both
consultants. Depending on the on-going COVID-19 situation, the consultants may need to adapt the
focus groups and timeline.
A brief overview on the Bowen National Research portion of the study included:
Clarification of study areas to be the (CSA) New Hanover County, (PSA) City of Wilmington using
incorporated city limits, and (SSA) balance of New Hanover County.
A regional assessment will be included to show some level of analysis comparing New Hanover
County with adjacent counties.
Housing gap estimates will be run off requested income segments but there may be opportunity
to determine what makes the most sense to communicate patterns.
Additional information will be included regarding issues with transportation, impact on schools,
storm water, and tree preservation.
Bowen requested a Realtor contact to pull Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data, Don Harris
agreed.
Bowen will be contacting some individuals for stakeholder interviews.
CARES Act and Other Funding
Planner Rachel LaCoe presented grant appropriation information from the NHC Office of Strategy,
including the Small Business Grant Program and deadline, along with a brief explanation of the State
CDBG-DR Florence funding and CDBG-CV funding opportunities.
City of Wilmington Community Development and Housing Planner Suzanne Rogers presented
information about the City of Wilmington’s Annual Action plan, including CDBG-CV entitlement funding.
A brief discussion followed regarding the City of Wilmington HOP program, including how information is
distributed to people and organizations, allocations and opportunities to provide more assistance,
including downpayment assistance grant programs.
Density and Affordability in New Home Construction
Workforce Housing Advisory Committee member David Spetrino with PBC Design + Build gave a brief
presentation on how density affects housing affordability.
UNC-G Presentation
Dr. Steven Sills, Dr. Kenneth Gruber, Mr. Bruce Rich, and Dr. Haiyang Su University of North Carolina
Greensboro Center for Housing and Community Studies gave an update on their portion of the study.
They are on track for an October/November draft but may need to adjust their timeline depending on
the length of the public opinion survey.
Mr. Bruce Rich presented his draft stakeholder interview questions to the group for edits. A copy of the
edited survey would be submitted to the Committee for their approval prior to release.
Announcements
Senior Planner Rebekah Roth gave an update on New Hanover County’s UDO process.
Planner LaCoe announced that the County conveyed the former Wrightsboro park property to Cape Fear
Habitat for Humanity for workforce housing.
Ms. LaCoe also announced that the Board of Commissioners approved the sale of 22 FEMA trailers from
Hurricane Florence.
Ms. Katrina Knight noted that the Workforce Housing Advisory Committee was not aware of the FEMA
trailer sale agenda item and made a request that any future items that are sent to the Board of
Commissioners or City Council for approval be reviewed by the Committee for their recommendation.
After a discussion on the role of the Advisory Committee in discussions of housing related items, Ms.
Knight requested that the Workforce Housing Advisory Committee write a letter to the Board of
Commissioners and City Council to remind the governing bodies of the Committee’s availability and to
request to be informed on any housing related agenda items in order to offer their expertise.
Mr. Don Harris made a motion for Katrina Knight to author the letter. The motion was seconded by Mr.
David Spetrino and adopted unanimously.
Adjournment
With no further questions or comments, Chairperson Bryant adjourned the meeting at 5:15 PM.