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HRA Meeting Minutes – Saturday, April 21, 2012 Page 3 1 Chair Maschka opined that this was one consideration in addressing the SE area of Roseville; and noted 2 recent use of tenant remediation used by the City of St. Paul; as well as use of trusteeship. 3 4 Ms. Kelsey reviewed the options and legalities of both remedies, specifically the tenant remediation 5 option, with property abated by a third party, and then potentially returned to the previous owner, 6 developer, or management firm. 7 8 Chair Maschka noted that Member Elkins was a strong advocate of land trusts. 9 10 At the request of Member Elkins, Ms. Kelsey provided a status report on the School District (old 11 Comcast) site; currently being prepared for demolition. Ms. Kelsey advised that the land had yet to be 12 made officially available; however, the HRA had expressed interest to the School District of the HRA’s 13 interest in having the first right of refusal on the site. 14 15 Member Elkins provided her experience with a recent Cambridge, MN project, having served on the 16 Central Minnesota Housing Partnership Advisory Board; and the success of that mixed housing project, 17 including a hand full of high-end homes, some moderate, and a spattering of Community Land Trust 18 (CLT) units. Member Elkins recognized the problem with finding sufficient land in Roseville; 19 however, she considered the School District site a possibility. Member Elkins opined that the Rondo 20 Land Trust would be very amenable to a partnership with the City; and noted the available of the CLT 21 Advocate, Michael Brown, a Minnesota native, but active nationwide in setting up such housing 22 opportunities. Member Elkins noted the interest of Ramsey County in working with the City; as well as 23 interest of other private parties (e.g. Common Bond) in building a multi-family complex that would 24 incorporate some type of senior housing. Member Elkins also noted the numerous options for financing 25 such a venture for multi-family buildings; and offered her network of contacts with several of those 26 agencies. As a grant writer, Member Elkins recognized the expertise available with Housing Manager 27 Kelsey in obtaining grant funding for such an effort. 28 29 For the benefit of the entire HRA and newer members, Chair Maschka provided an update on 30 discussions to-date with the School District. Chair Maschka advised that there had been three (3) 31 informal meetings with him, Dr. John Thein, and former School Board Chair Lisa Edstrom; however, 32 he clarified that the full School Board had not been formally approached. Chair Maschka opined that 33 Dr. Thein appeared to be interested in pursuing something, with a structure available for payment for 34 the land over time. Chair Maschka opined that the School District site was prime for a housing project, 35 suggesting multi-generational or townhomes, with the site being large enough to serve such a purpose. 36 However, Chair Maschka was unsure of the interest of the School Board as a body, anticipating that it 37 was probably not a high priority for them to deal with the property at this time. 38 39 As a member of the School Board, as well as on this HRA, Member Majerus opined that the property 40 was not currently on the School Board’s list of priorities. 41 42 At the suggestion that their interest may be dependent on financial issues, Chair Maschka opined that 43 there didn’t appear to be a sense of urgency on the School District’s part; and while he thought that site 44 held great potential, he suggested that the Target/County Road B site or the Rice Street area may be 45 greater opportunities for the City at this time. 46 47 With Ms. Kelsey noting that Good Samaritan was the current owner of the Target site, Member 48 Willmus suggested that the HRA hold a joint meeting with them and put the opportunities on the table. 49 50 Ms. Kelsey advised that staff was in frequent touch with Good Samaritan representatives and that they 51 were not yet ready to come forward with a proposal, but were in the process of doing their own housing 52 study and the availability of financial tools. Ms. Kelsey noted that one detriment was that while the 53 HRA’s previous market study identified a missing housing need in Roseville for independent, 54 affordable, senior housing, the State of MN had backed away from that type of housing and no financial 55 tools were currently available in MN, such as point scoring for age-restricted housing. Ms. Kelsey