The Workforce Housing Committee put forward support for changes Sept. 29 to clarify what criteria a housing developer must follow to qualify for low-income housing tax exemptions.
Among the changes is an increase in the minimum number of housing units considered affordable for households at or below 30% of area median income from 10% in a development to 25%.
The developer must also present an estimate of tax revenues the city will not receive annually over the lifetime of the project and provide a plan for placing the property back on the tax roll if necessitated in the future.
Council will also hold a discussion on Robert’s Rules of Order during council meetings, City Council rules of decorum and whether members must be present on the dais during council meetings. Council members are allowed to videoconference into council meetings, though the number of council members that do so began to diminish in the past three months.
At the Feb. 15 council meeting, an ordinance was tabled that would have established new criteria for the registration of lobbyists with the city along with the reporting of contacts made with lobbyists by elected officials, board and commission members, and city staff. The council’s debate on the item often became heated before voting to postpone the item with a vote of 4-3 with Council Members Maxfield Baker, Alyssa Garza and Saul Gonzales voting against the postponement.
At one point, Mayor Jane Hughson said, “We’re done. Mr. Baker, if you were in chambers, I’d probably ask to have you escorted because you keep on and on and on. And I’ve asked you to stop.”
