An Update on CB 62

I decided to delve into the proposed legislation, CB 62, a little bit further. Having read the legislation over a couple of times, I noticed that the reporting in the Columbia Flier is missing a couple of details on the subject.

The prime detail is that the number of Moderate Income Housing Unit credits available under the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (not Act) would increase by 100 for units meeting certain requirements of square footage. These square footage standards actually violate portions of the existing county housing code for affordable housing units.

The legislation allows for the 100 additional credits to go to units that are (1) one or two bedrooms and (2) have maximum square footage of 900 sq ft for a 1 bedroom and 1100 sq ft for a 2 bedroom unit.

The county code calls for a MINIMUM square footage of 750 and 950 for 1 and 2 bedroom apartments, respectively. But, for townhomes, the county's minimum is 1400 sq ft for a 2 bedroom. This minimum is obviously larger than what is proposed in CB62. That would have to be resolved.

In my initial post, I discussed my concern with the portion of the bill that can exempt up to one-third of a development's units from having to get housing credits if they are moderate income units.

This problem, though, is equally troubling because it would likely lead to the construction of condo buildings to satisfy these conflicting minimums - as the legislation stands now. On the other hand, this legislation may compel affordable downtown units upon approval of the master plan for downtown Columbia. That would be a positive, especially considering the recent spring up in the number of short sale units in downtown condos. It could also be perceived that developers would be trying to create pockets of affordable units in lieu of mixed-income communities. That flies in the face of Columbia planning. It's a mixed bag.

Anyway, it sounds like the bill will be tabled for more review and rewriting.