April 6, 2023
S100 - Senator Harrison
-Lot of moving parts in this bill- 44 sections!
-Spent 5 weeks on this bill in committee, heard from over 100 people
-Would primarily impact municipalities
-Bill requires that single family home areas allow duplexes
-Parking can be used as a way to stop development- if more parking is required than exists.
-Bill makes it so that the town cannot require more than one parking space per unit.
-Unit/developer/owner could provide more, but town cannot provide more.
-Under certain conditions you have 1.5 spaces
-Towns can give authority to administrative officers to approve subdivisions and decide if a hearing should be required.
-On municipal permitting: developers said appeals are a big problem. Appeals cannot be done on reason of “character of the area”.
-Original bill removed ability of any ten voters in a town to appeal
-Not taking away the right to appeal. There are still many ways to appeal.
-RPCs are funded with “housing navigators” to help towns navigate housing resources, funding.
-Raising jurisdictional threshold of Act 250 from 10 units to 25 units in certain areas
-This part sunsets July 1 2026- this doesn’t mean you have to build in three years, just have to get a permit in 3 years
-Enhanced designation of village center to allow priority housing with 50 units, enhanced designation for municipalities
-Addressing the “missing middle”- get middle class homes built
-VHIP program, where private owners of rental units can get state loans/grants of 30-50k to bring units up to code
-Committee wanted to see commercial conversions to residential
-We don’t need as much office space, leads to empty downtowns/blight.
-Wanted to have no permit amendment required when converting from commercial to residential. Committee wanted this, but it didn’t happen
Karen Horn, VLCT
-Supportive of the bill as it came out of Senate Economic Development Committee
-VLCT concurs that municipal zoning is part of the problem with building housing in reasonable time with reasonable cost
-Two layers of zoning: municipal, and Act 250 (which is statewide).
-Has led to housing crisis as we know it
-With respect to this bill, VLCT cannot support a bill that changes municipal zoning rules, changes the rights of any 10 people to challenge development.
-Additionally, this bill makes only the most modest of amendments to act 250- from 10 to 25 in only SOME designated areas during a 3 year period.
-Town would have to apply for designation through processes that haven't been created yet- and that project needs act 250 designation, as well as a guarantee that the project will be finished by 2029.
-Cannot support amendments that shunt lower income housing into those designated zones
-Could support a bill that enacts measures on local level to encourage developers to build units scaled to community size, close to services, close to water and sewer
-Could support a bill that delegates Act 250 review to cities and towns who have laws that are already close to the state’s Act 250 designations
-Amending S100 to include municipal designation would strengthen our communities, help affordable housing, and support environmental interests of the state.
-The bill that passed the senate pits community level interests against environmental interests
Maura Collins, VHFA
-Worked with Senator Harrison’s committee on S100
-Largely in support and appreciative of this year’s legislative focus on housing
-Village centers are hugely important to rural areas
-One of the funding programs would be rental revolving loan fund
-20 million of one-time dollars to create a rental revolving fund, which would be a legacy program
-VHFA would design it, it is currently being tested with very small developers in Bradford and the NEK.
-Designed it to work for a 10 unit project- get a loan from a regular bank based on what rents will be, but there will be a gap. VHFA’s program would close this gap to incentivize middle class housing development
-The bill that has passed is excellent! Hearing VLCT’s concerns, but looking forward to forthcoming studies and will look at appeals processes
Megan Sullivan, VT Chamber of Commerce
-Represents businesses and industry across the whole state
-Housing was the number one issue we were focusing on, workforce is facing a critical shortage in Vermont.
-Hearing from businesses who have lost employees and recruitment opportunities because of lack of housing
-Need to build rental and home ownership opportunities
-Disappointed with what’s been lost in s100, but pleased with what’s there
-Disappointed with restrictions on “25 by 5” piece, and that this process can only happen in very specific areas
-Hearing about employers housing their workers- but becoming landlor and employer can be messy
-Revolving loan fund is a great idea- employers can invest in loan fund
-Wage threshold of 150% of AMI, higher than where most programs go in the state, but it is important that it stays here if we want employer buy-in
Austin Davis, Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce
-Lake Champlain Chamber ofCommerce’s area is obviously not that rural of an area, but coming to Rural Caucus because housing is essential
-Lots of time has been spent on studies, tests, etc. Vermont does not have time to study anymore.
-Back in 2016 a study was launched that created the 50 Year Act 250 report. Legislators discussed this study through 2019-2021. 5.5 years of studying and discussing Act 250 without any tangible results.
-We cannot solve any other major economic issues without addressing housing.
-We need market rate housing built by normal entrepreneurial Vermonters at every price level.
-It can’t just be big developers or nonprofits.
-Make regulatory structure easy enough that regular people can build.
-We need to deal with housing at every income level- this isn’t a problem unique to low income individuals.
Questions:
Rep Lipsky: One of the first points Sen. Harrison made about individual homes being converted to multi family homes. To get a permit to build, you need a wastewater or well permit from the state. Will this bill require amending these state permits?
Answer from Sen. Harrison: Family housing has special status where you can do a lot on your own. Instead of single family, you can duplex, if other permits are required, you would need them. ADUS are allowed as well.
Doodle Poll will be going around about a time for conversation as a caucus around S.100!