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Home My WebLink AboutAWHC 2025-04-02AWHC 2025-04-02 Final Page 1 of 4 AFFORDABLE AND WORKFORCE HOUSING COMMITTEE April 2, 2025 Virtual (via Zoom) Present: Leonardo Vargas-Mendez (Town Board), Ray Burger (Director of Planning), Gina Cassidy (Planning Department), Michael Murphy (Village of Dryden), Martha Robertson Absent: Christina Dravis (Town Board), Charles Geisler, Miles McCarty (Village of Freeville) Staff: Allison Kjellander-Cantu (Deputy Town Clerk) The meeting was called to order at 2:07 p.m. Review and Acceptance of Minutes RESOLUTION #7 (2025) – ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES FROM FEBRUARY 5, 2025 RESOLVED, that this Affordable and Workforce Housing Committee hereby accepts the meeting minutes of February 5, 2025, with changes provided by C Geisler. Those comments were shared in the chat. Roll Call Vote R Burger Yes G Cassidy Yes M Murphy Yes M Robertson Yes L Vargas-Mendez Yes RESOLUTION #8 (2025) – ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES FROM MARCH 5, 2025 RESOLVED, that this Affordable and Workforce Housing Committee hereby accepts the meeting minutes of March 5, 2025, as written. Roll Call Vote R Burger Yes G Cassidy Yes M Murphy Yes M Robertson Yes L Vargas-Mendez Abstained Zoning Rewrite Update: The second meeting regarding the zoning rewrite took place on March 6th, attended by members of the Planning Board, Town Board, and representatives from various advisory boards (ZBA, Agricultural Advisory Board, Conservation Board, Climate Smart Task Force), forming what is known as the Zoning Steering Committee. A substantial portion of the March 6th meeting was focused on clarifying confusion surrounding the different versions of Nan Stolzenburg’s scope of work for the phase one rewrite. The Housing Committee's feedback on Nan’s document was well received. The committee aims to establish a more specific and detailed scope of work for Nan's next phase of the project. The town does not anticipate issuing an RFP for this phase, as they are comfortable continuing with the current consultant, CPEA, due to her existing understanding of the town AWHC 2025-04-02 Final Page 2 of 4 and zoning. The previous RFP was for the audit portion. The steering committee voted to forward the contract to the Town Board. The upcoming meeting will concentrate on refining the scope of work. The objective is to have a zoning law amendment ready to present to the Town Board by October or November, with a deliverable expected by the end of the calendar year. Members request that Nan also assist in drafting zoning regulations for battery storage, data centers, and crypto mining facilities, as these topics are currently not addressed in the zoning code. M Robertson intends to recuse herself from these discussions due to their lack of relevance to housing. Ezra Village Project Update M. Murphy provided an update indicating that the developer is optimistic following initial soil testing, which suggests a presence of significant gravel deposits. This could be advantageous for stormwater percolation and may also provide materials for the construction of streets and concrete sidewalks. Progress with the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the Health Department regarding approval for 48 to 72 apartments is contingent on controlling inflow and infiltration (I&I) in the sewer system. The village has made strides in addressing I&I issues and has obtained pricing for a loan to cover its share of a grant to improve sewer and water infrastructure. They anticipate beginning this work within a month, aiming for progress that could enable construction to commence next spring. Currently, the project does not have a fully approved Planned Development Area (PDA). The exit point from the development has changed, necessitating a revised plan. There is no established timeline for the PDA approval process, and advancing this process is essential if construction is to begin next spring. Efforts are underway to coordinate with the Department of Transportation (DOT) regarding the intersection reconfiguration at Bahar Drive and TC3 to support the Ezra Village development. There is hope that water infrastructure improvements may be completed before next spring. The village is collaborating with the engineering firm MRB on the sewer and water project, and with Municipal Solutions to secure funding. The grant for improvements to sewer and water amounts to approximately $3.62 million, with the village's share (which will need to be borrowed) being about $1.81 million, reflecting a 50/50 split. Additionally, DOT has been contacted about reconfiguring the intersection near the Book Barn and Dedrick’s to enhance safety and access, which might involve acquiring a portion of the Book Barn's property. The topic of geothermal heating and cooling for Ezra Village was discussed. The developer is enthusiastic about the potential for gravel deposits to reduce costs and has primarily been considering solar energy. The committee stressed the advantages of geothermal options for the development of this scale and suggested that the developer reconnect with the county's Business Energy Advisors program. Committee members would like to inquire about the developer's geothermal plans during the PDA approval. A link was placed in the chat, touring the benefits of a decentralized heat pump system for an apartment complex: https://www.energy.gov/eere/geothermal/geothermal-heat-pump-case-study-autumn- gardens-apartment-complex AWHC 2025-04-02 Final Page 3 of 4 Potential Housing Grant Application: County Housing Funds L Vargas-Mendez informed the committee that Chuck provided a series of theme questions to consider for a potential grant application for county housing funds, which include research relevant to affordable housing. The committee discussed the concept of developers paying into an affordable housing fund instead of building affordable units on-site (mitigation banking). This is seen as a tool used by larger municipalities with pros (town control, potential for non-profit involvement) and cons (administrative burden, potential impact on diversity). The current level of development activity in the town was discussed, with varying perspectives on the number of projects coming forward. Ezra Village (750 units) is a significant outlier in scale. The zoning rewrite presents an opportunity to mandate affordable housing in multi-family developments through the special use permit process. The status of the land behind the Town Hall was revisited. The latest plans focus solely on designing ball fields (approximately seven acres near the Town Hall) due to wetland delineations that restrict access to other locations of the parcel. Housing development on this land appears to be eliminated from current plans, and even restrooms for the ball fields may be outside the current budget. An idea was proposed to use a $10,000 county grant to investigate underutilized land closer to Ithaca and NYSEG for potential housing development, particularly focusing on the feasibility and cost of extending water and sewer infrastructure to these areas. Infrastructure Study R. Burger reported that an infrastructure study for the NYSEG intersection area (conducted by TG Miller) is nearing completion after a long delay. Contact has been made with a partial owner of the 100-acre Leonardo parcel between NYSEG and Etna, which is currently tied up in court regarding ownership. The owner is interested in potential development and has been in contact with INHS as a potential partner, which went well. The feasibility of extending utilities to the Leonardo parcel is crucial, as it would significantly impact potential density (septic vs. sewer/water). The committee agreed to revisit the Route 13 study (from 2005/2007) and the IAED water and sewer study to refresh their understanding of existing infrastructure and potential in the NYSEG to Etna Road area. The $10,000 grant could fund a conceptual study design based on these existing reports, potentially including the long-awaited TG Miller report. The county housing grant has a rolling application process with a September deadline until funds are exhausted. Hanshaw Village Mobile Home Park Sewer Project The effort to replace the sewer system at Hanshaw Village Mobile Home Park, which was previously dropped, has been revived. The town will likely partner with them to apply for a CDBG grant through the CFA process to extend sewer infrastructure to the park (south side of Route 13, up Hanshaw Road). This would likely create a new sewer district, with the debt primarily borne by the mobile home park residents. The Health Department is aware of this, as they have issued multiple boil water orders for the park. There may be potential to address the park's water system issues in the following year if this sewer project proceeds. The grant application outcome is expected around December, with potential groundbreaking in 2026. The park has approximately 150 units. Extending sewer and potentially water could open the possibility of future expansion of the mobile home park and development within the infrastructure extension. AWHC 2025-04-02 Final Page 4 of 4 Short-Term Rentals A discussion on short-term rentals was initially considered but was deferred to a future meeting to allow more focus on the grant application and zoning rewrite updates. M Roberston will invite Nick Helmholt to a future meeting regarding short-term rentals. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 3:16 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Allison Kjellander-Cantu Deputy Town Clerk