Ward Zoning and Planning Committee Meeting: 6/29/05

Alderwoman Smith opened the meeting by repeating the question that she is faced with daily- "What is going on at City Hall?" Her reply- "I have no idea, but the people who are being brought in as replacements are extremely good. All in all we are going to come out of this very well."

She asked to take a straw vote to aid her in an upcoming Council vote on banning smoking in restaurants and bars. From the show of hands, and with nothing formally recorded, it looked as if the banning was strongly approved. Again, it was merely a straw vote.

Police or Cop Cams: There was a request for 3, and all have been paid for. The reason that they have not yet been installed is the apparatus at the police end has not yet been installed. When that end of the circuit is complete the cameras will be installed and fully functioning.

Armory Restoration: The alderman stated: "It has been as you all know a decades long crusade; the armory was downgraded to a zone R-1 to avoid it being developed. What has been encountered is a lot of lead and asbestos, the removal of which is taking some time. The Department of Aging, Department of Housing, and the Library have prepared a $40 million multi-use project. We have the money for the new library. We have $2 million for the Senior Citizens Center to be above the library and we would like a senior Citizens housing project adjacent to the Armory. The funds for the new library are coming from the sale of the old library building and the land. All in all we have a projected shortfall of some $11 million. There will be no additional cost as there will be no need for additional land acquisition. It will house the largest indoor Recreation Center in Illinois. There are various agencies preparing to take over the project for the Housing for the Elderly."

Argyle Tree Planting: Tree planting will begin once we have guarantees that the trees will be watered, cared for and that no trucks will use the sidewalks. We are getting close and we now look for planting to begin in the fall of 2005, probably Gingko trees.

CPAN: The main topic for this meeting was to discuss and vote on the 48th ward CPAN initiative. Mr. Brian O'Donnell is an expert on the mechanics of the program who spoke at the meeting. He wished to make a point that this is not rental housing, not CHA, not scattered-site, and not Section 8 housing but that it is a set-aside of property from developers working in conjunction with the City to offer a certain number of their units at below market rates to people who are of middle income means and who qualify for a mortgage from a lending institution.

Greg Harris then stated: "According to the Broadway study, 66% of current residents could not afford to purchase a home in this community today, based on a study commissioned by the Edgewater group. This [CPAN] targets purchasers and provides purchase assistance from the developers. The 48th ward is the only lakefront ward that has no firm policy of participation. These neighboring wards: 43 (Lincoln Park), 44 (LakeView), 46 (Uptown), 47 (Lincoln Square), and 49 (Rogers Park) all use a similar formula on new development or up-zoned property: there must be a set-aside of 10% of the units in a 10-unit or more development. Alderwoman Schiller (46th Ward) also has some language as regards alley access and will accept a cash contribution to the Low Income Trust Fund in lieu of CPAN."

In this area the old Goldblatt Building was asked to use the CPAN program (on an ad hoc basis) when it was converted to Borders and condos. The developers were asked to provide 50% of the units for current residents solely. It was also mandated that an equal mix of 1,2,3 bedroom units be used to reflect the make-up of the community.

Greg then read from a report (Information from the Broadway Study for the year 2004) stating that for residents in our area of Edgewater, Uptown, and Rogers Park:
24% have an annual income of less than $15,000
12% have an annual income of $15,000 - $25,000
13% have an annual income of $25,000 - $35,000
16% have an annual income of $35,000 - $50,000
16% have an annual income of $50,000 - $75,000
19% have an annual income of $75,000,
and that
25% of the City's Senior Citizens' housing is in our area.

Returning to CPAN, the minimum acceptable price point for a property in the program is at $150,000. Because of the formula used, the city requires a markdown of $20,000 from the minimum market price to obtain that number; as a result the lowest market price property that can be used in CPAN must carry a true market value of $170,000.

How are the buyers chosen? Most wards use some form of lottery. As an example in Schiller's ward she requests that 50% of the units be used for current residents and 50% for out of area residents. Schiller has had 14 CPAN projects in her ward thus far.

What types of professions do the buyers represent? The city tracking of this program shows that buyer's occupations are thus far: RN, sales professional, editor, systems analyst, creative director, flight attendant, teacher, administrative assistant, human resources personnel, and doctor. To date there have been less than 10 foreclosures of the 2000 total CPAN units sold citywide.

Where does the money go after a marketplace sale of a unit sold through CPAN? If the unit is sold to another CPAN program user the unit is again sold at a below market rate. If it is sold to a non-user, the difference between the original mark-down and the current market rate is then funded to the Low Income Trust Fund. The seller in CPAN to a non CPAN buyer will see however a % gain equivalent to the % gain of the unit, but just the % difference and not the full cash value. The only way a seller will see the full cash value is if he or she holds the mortgage to its closing and then decides to sell.

Before a vote could be taken as to the 48th Ward's CPAN initiative, a motion was placed that the vote be tabled until the next Zoning meeting in July. The motion was seconded. A vote was then taken to accept or decline the motion. I opposed the motion to table, due to the fact that the Carmen-Winona Block Club had already discussed these points at the last meeting in June when a vote was taken and it was agreed to use the formula of a 10% set-aside with new developments of 10 or more units and or/up-zoning. Nonetheless, the motion to table until the July meeting was carried by a vote of 16-11.

What we now have on the table is the following for CPAN: Do we vote yes/no for using the set-aside of no less than 10% and no more than 20% of the units in a 10-unit new development or up-zoned property? Do we opt for a lottery rule requiring a certain % of buyers be from within the area as current residents, as opposed to out of area residents? Do we align ourselves with the other wards, using a straight 10% rule with new development of 10 units or more or newly up-zoned property? Do we vote no to CPAN participation altogether?

Note: This will have little effect on development pro or con. Developers may always decide whether to develop here or anywhere. As a result it is considered a 'voluntary program' to the developer. Also, the developer may opt to build with less than 10 units to avoid the set-aside or may build property that falls out of the purview of the program by developing properties whose units will carry an extraordinarily high market rate. The developer does get benefits from zoning fees, etc. from the city as an incentive to participate in CPAN.

The next meeting is scheduled for July 27, 2005.