01. January 2021 minutes
New Hanover County-City of Wilmington Workforce Housing Advisory Committee
January 6, 2021 Regular Meeting
Committee Members Present: Sharm Brantley, Patrick Brien, Tom Gale, Don Harris, Katrina Knight,
Katrina Redmon, Frank Smith, Steve Spain, David Spetrino, Paul Stavovy, Glenda Tate, Lori Wainright
Staff Present: Joe Donohoe (NHC), Rachel LaCoe (NHC), Thom Moton (CoW), Suzanne Rogers (CoW),
Rebekah Roth (NHC)
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order and a quorum was established through roll call at 3:03 pm by Chairperson
David Spetrino.
Approve Agenda
Mr. Tom Gale made a motion to approve the agenda, which was seconded by Mr. Don Harris and adopted
unanimously.
Approve Minutes
Ms. Sharm Brantley made a motion to approve the draft minutes from the December 2, 2020 meeting.
The motion was seconded by Mr. Paul Stavovy and adopted unanimously.
Public Comments
None
New Business
Update on Housing Study and Survey
Chairperson Spetrino recognized Workforce Housing Planner Rachel LaCoe.
Ms. LaCoe provided an update of two components of the Comprehensive Housing Study.
Bowen National Research portion of the study:
Bowen completed the initial rough draft of the Housing Need Assessment Study
Staff members have received comments from Committee members and stakeholders
Ms. LaCoe returned stakeholder feedback to Bowen to incorporate into the next draft of the
Housing Need Assessment Study
A second draft of the study, including the results from the UNCG survey, is expected in early
February
Representatives from Bowen National Research will presenting at the February 3rd WHAC
meeting
UNCG portion of the study:
UNCG is reviewing the results of the survey and assembling a draft report
Ms. LaCoe shared a few initial maps from the UNCG survey report
The results from the UNCG survey will be included in the second update of the Housing
Assessment Study
Representatives from the UNCG Center for Housing and Community Studies will be presenting
at the February 3rd WHAC meeting
Housing Work Plan Outline
Ms. LaCoe provided an update on the Housing Work Plan Outline.
Phase 1:
January WHAC Meeting: Work Plan and Subcommittees
Organize Stakeholder Focus Groups
Phase 2:
February WHAC Meeting: Bowen/UNCG Presentation
Review Draft Reports and Submit Comments
Technical Stakeholder Groups
Phase 3:
March WHAC Meeting: Review Recommendations
Stakeholder Feedback and Comments of Recommendation
Subcommittee Review
Phase 4:
Finalize Work Plan
Release of Final Report and Adopted Housing Work Plan
There was a brief discussion about the timeline of the work plan. Ms. LaCoe indicated that the work plan
outline sets flexible targets to give the Committee more time to prepare the final report. It is expected
that the final report will be ready in early Spring.
Ms. LaCoe shared work plan examples from the Town of Apex, the City of Atlanta, and the City of
Greensboro.
Chairperson Spetrino opened the floor for discussion on the example work plans. Committee members
discussed selecting target audiences, the effectiveness of concise executive summaries, the benefits of
providing a variety of policies and recommendations, and the possibility of creating an interactive
website to host the final report.
Work Plan Themes and Subcommittees
Ms. LaCoe shared possible work plan themes and possible subcommittees based on four general
strategy recommendation areas.
Land Use Policies: How can the City/County use their land use regulations and zoning authority
to indirectly support the production and preservation of affordable housing?
Programs: Establishing new programs and modifying/expanding existing programs.
Funding: New sources of local funding (dedicated tax, bonds, general funds) and leveraging
existing federal/state funding.
Advocacy and Education: Conducting public education campaign tied to work plan’s release, in
partnership with other community organizations.
There was as brief discussion about the establishment of subcommittees, subcommittee topics, and
potential subcommittee members.
Announcements
Ms. Knight and Ms. Rogers provided an update on the Cape Fear Housing Coalition Legislative Breakfast.
This event will occur on January 28, 2021 from 8:30 A.M. - 10:00 A.M.
Mr. Spain shared information about the recent valuation trends of Habitat homes.
Adjournment
With no further questions or comments, a quorum was established through roll call. Chairperson Spetrino
adjourned the meeting at 4:00 PM.