Item P7AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY
Meeting Date: September 17, 2014 Division: County Attorney
Bulk Item: Yes xx No Staff Contact: Bob Shillinger, 305-292-3470
AGENDA ITEM WORDING: Approval of report summarizing commissioners' comments at public
meeting convened by Representative Holly Raschein on August 25, 2014 in Marathon regarding
workforce housing.
ITEM BACKGROUND: Commissioner Raschein convened a public meeting on work force housing
on August 25, 2014 at I I am in the Marathon Government Center. Public notice of the meeting was
provided via the County's website, MCTV (channel 76 Comcast/channel 99 AT&T U-Verse), as well
as via item M13 on agenda for the BOCC's August 20, 2014 meeting. An estimate 50 people attended
the meeting including members of the media, elected and other officials, as well as members of the
public. Multiple County Commissioners attended the meeting and spoke about the topic of affordable
work force housing. Because some of the topics discussed at the meeting held on August 25, 2014 may
reasonably relate to matters that might come before the Commission in the future, this report is being
offered as the minutes of the Commission's meeting that day. Upon approval, this report would satisfy
the requirements of F.S. 286.011(2).
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION: 8/20/14, Board announced (Item M13) that
Representative Raschein would host the public meeting on 8/25/14 and that multiple commissioners
would attend that meeting.
CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES: n/a
1191911�1 I�i� .
REVENUE PRODUCING: —Yes No AMOUNT PER MONTH Year
APPROVED BY: County Atty/y"- OMB/Purchasing — Risk Management
DOCUMENTATION: Included X Not Required
DISPOSITION: AGENDA ITEM #
Revised 1/09
Report from Representative Holly Raschein's Affordable Housing Meeting
August 25, 201411 am
Marathon Government Center, Marathon, Florida
On August 25, 2014, Representative Holly Raschein convened a meeting of interested
public officials to discuss affordable and workforce housing issues. Because multiple
County Commissioners had expressed an interested in participating in the meeting
during the July 16, 2014 BOCC meeting, the County Attorney's office published notice
to the public of the meeting on MCTV-76, the County's website, as well as placed item
M13 on the County Commission's agenda for its August 20, 2014 monthly business
meeting.
Mayor Murphy, Commissioners Carruthers, Neugent, and Rice attended the August 25,
2014 meeting along with representatives from other public entities in the Keys and
members of the public. After some opening remarks by Representative Raschein and
others, each Commissioner present spoke about the workforce and affordable housing
needs of the community.
Mayor Murphy reminded the attendees that past efforts to address these issues had
fallen short but repeated the mantra "the fourth time is the charm". She urged those
assembled to "make it work this time".
Commissioner Neugent spoke of past successful projects such as Trade Winds and
Meridian West and indicated that a lot had been accomplished but acknowledged that
with new hotel units coming online soon that affordable and work force housing was still
a huge issue.
Commissioner Rice described affordable work force housing as the most important
issue today in Monroe County. He indicated that we, as a community, are behind the 8
ball and that the 1,000 new hotel units will put a demand on affordable housing. He
identified work force transportation, construction, and land acquisition as key
components of the issue.
Commissioner Carruthers cited a report that stated that 35% of homeowners spend
more than 35% of their income on their housing costs. She indicated that rising housing
costs contribute to a squeezing out of the working age population. She indicated that
because Miami -Dade is facing the same issues, Monroe employers should not look at
Miami -Dade residents as a long term source to fills jobs in Monroe County.
After a presentation by consultant Robert M. Jones, Director of the FCRC Consensus
Center, and public comment, officials were permitted the opportunity to make
concluding remarks. Commissioner Neugent, Mayor Murphy, and Commissioner
Carruthers each spoke.
Commissioner Neugent reminded those gathered that we need to be mindful of the
build out challenges caused by the carrying capacity of the community. He also
referenced the limitation on the height of new construction. He warned those present
not to walk away from the meeting thinking that these constraints on growth and
construction have gone away.
Mayor Murphy repeated the mantra `the fourth time is the charm". She expressed
optimism that the time was right to take meaningful action due to the convergence of
several issues including sea level rise and insurance considerations. She indicated that
a balanced approach was needed should the commission revisit the matter of the height
limitation and indicated that she had an open mind about that issue.
Commissioner Carruthers indicated that all stakeholders need to be involved in the
conversation. She mentioned that the County's height limit would need to be looked at.
She expressed concern that most of the 1,000 new hotel units mentioned previously
were there before so those should not be creating as great a demand for affordable
housing than if they were 1,000 units that had not existed before. She expressed a
desire to see state legislation to change the taxation and insurance treatment for
commercial rental properties that provide rental housing since those properties do not
have the same protections against tax increases as primary homes that are protected
by the Save Our Homes amendment.
This report is to serve as a summary of the comments by the County Commissioners,
not as a summary or transcript of the comments by other speakers at meeting. Upon
approval by the Board, it is intended to comply with the requirements of F.S. 286.011(2)
as minutes of the public meeting of the four County Commissioners present on August
25, 2014.
Respectfully Submitted,
Robert B. Shillinger
County Attorney