PLANNING BOARD CHAIR CRITICAL OF HOME SIZE LIMIT PROCESS
The City Council's decision to spend $100,000 to hire a consultant to study and develop regulations to limit home expansions in Boulder recently drew criticism from Planning Board Chairman, Phil Shull. Shull takes exception to the Request for Proposal (RFP) the Council agreed to issue seeking consultant response, saying it does not accurately reflect the input of the committee that was assembled to write the RFP. Specifically, Shull contends that the RFP does not give equal weighting to all committee member input, particularly the Planning Board’s. The committee was comprised of members of City Council, Landmarks Board and the Planning Board. In May the Planning Board voted against putting interim home size limits in place while the issue was studied for up to a year. And, it proposed a very modest approach should the Council go ahead with an interim ordinance despite the Board's recommendation. To be sure, Council Members exerted strong influence on the RFP's content and therefore, the scope and potential outcomes. The RFP clearly calls for a review of the traditional bulk plane rules governing set backs, height limitations, and solar access. It also calls for study into neighborhood character, streetscape and visual character, preservation of older homes, preservation of mature trees, and privacy (space between homes), among others. The study and proposed regulatory changes are scheduled to be complete by the end of 2008.
BARA's HOC BEGINS AFFORDABLE HOUSING REVIEW
Housing Opportunity Committee members are set to review the City's affordable housing programs, policies and practices as officials conduct an internal review and consider possible changes. The City Council conducted a study session on June 5 to review the current programs, respond to questions from staff and provide direct to staff on the scope and direction of the internal review. We had hoped to begin our formal review in June but two events suggested that the Committee should delay for one month. First, City Housing Director, John Pollak, announced his retirement as of July 12. This is a surprising event, coming in the middle of the City's internal review. Second, the City Council Study Session results are unclear. While broad discussion on critical issues did occur, Council Members provided their individual opinions, desires, and preferences, but no clear direction or consensus was communicated to staff. Shortly, staff will present Council with a summary of the Study Session results that should describe what direction staff believes Council would like the internal review to take. Once council approves the summary document the HOC will be able to structure our review, scope and schedule.
LOWE'S CONSTRUCTION DELAYED TO AT LEAST MID 2009
Lowe's Home Improvement Center recently informed Lafayette officials that it will not begin construction on its Highway 7 and 119th Street property until at least mid 2009. In 2007, Lafayette voters approved a special election ballot issue authorizing annexation of the property and City council approved Lowe's development plan in January of 2008. One effect of the delay will be for Lafayette to revise its revenue forecasts for 2009 and that means the City’s relatively flat sales tax revenue will likely continue until 2010.
CONOCOPHILLIPS PLANS TO SUPPORT UP TO 7000 JOBS
Energy giant ConocoPhillips will seek entitlements to house up to 7000 employees at its recently purchased 432 acre site in Louisville, according to the company’s real estate manager, Mary Manning. The former StorageTek site on U.S. 36 will see demolition begin in early 2008 when the current owner, Sun Microsystems, vacates the property. CococoPhillips plans to demolish all existing structures on the site and reconstruct Tape Drive prior to beginning construction on its new facility. The company will establish a global training and technology center and a center for alternative energy R & D. The first phase of the ConocoPhillips campus will be complete in 2011, a year earlier than originally announced. According to Tom Clark, executive vice president of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, a workforce of 7000 will generate an annual payroll of $400 million to $500 million, making ConocoPhillips the fourth largest employer in the Metro region.
CONSTRUCTION BEGUN ON 75 HIGH END TOWNHOMES
In early June construction began on 75 high end Townhomes geared toward active adults at the southeast corner of McCaslin Blvd. and Coalton Road. Calmante, as the project is called, will consist of 15 five unit buildings representing a product type not currently available in Superior. The builder, Boulder Creek Homes says the homes will be between 3000 to 4000 square feet, 3-4 bedrooms, have muti-level decks, radius stairs, private courtyards, and vaulted ceilings. The home will be priced beginning around $500,000. The grounds will be professionally maintained and includes snow removal for residents. The first of the 15 buildings will be complete in late 2008.
COUNTY TO CREATE GREEN CODE FOR COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS
This summer, Boulder County officials will gather with stakeholders to create suggested green building codes for commercial buildings in unincorporated area of the county. They also hope the regulations will serve as a model for the county's cities and towns. County-wide, commercial and industrial buildings account for 42 percent of the county's green house gas emissions (58 percent in the city of Boulder). In addition to some of the more creative ways to mitigate carbon impacts, the county is expected to propose more of the traditional energy saving and green approaches, including increased insulation standards, high efficiency lighting, high efficiency windows and increased use of solar and wind energy. Since most commercial buildings are lease or rented, the benefits of green building (energy cost savings) do not necessarily accrue to the building owner, making investing in green building less attractive than in owner occupied housing. Proposed regulations are expected in early fall.
COMMISSIONERS APPROVE HOME SIZE AND TDR REGULATIONS
Although it was a foregone conclusion, it was still disappointing to see the Boulder County Commissioners approve the Expanded TDR Program and revised Site Plan Review (SPR) regulations in spite of vocal and sustained opposition by a number of groups, including BARA, opposed to the restrictions the regulations will impose on property rights. Planner Michelle Krezek says there is a lot of work to be done before the regulations go into effect on August 8th including the establishment of the development credit clearing house and the implementation of GIS software to allow online identification of neighborhoods and median home sizes as required by the new SPR regulations. Because the "threshold" for the home size limits is 6,000 SF which includes garage and storage space (but excludes covered porches), the regulations are not as draconian as they were when first introduced at 2600 SF. However, the fact that the County pushed forward with an unnecessary, complex and expensive set of regulations is discouraging. In terms of these regulations, Residential Floor Area includes all attached and detached floor area on a parcel including principal and accessory structures used or customarily used for residential purposes, such as garages, studios, pool houses, home offices, and workshops but not agricultural buildings. Krezek notes that many "barns" are not for really made for agricultural purposes. She warns that if there is a question about a building's purpose the applicant will have to have an affidavit certifying that the structure is truly for agricultural use.
UNNINCORPORATED COUNTY TOWNS TO REFINE BUILDING RULES
This month county officials began working with residents in Boulder County's unincorporated towns to shore up there building codes that will limit home sizes and preserve the Towns' unique characters. During the year and a half process of developing county-wide home size regulations and an Expanded Transferable Development Rights program, county officials singled out the Towns as 'Special Character Areas' and debated putting severe limits on home sizes and community character. Strong opposition prompted the County to reconsider. Now each of the seven towns will be independently reviewed and will develop customized regulations that reflect each community's unique character and attributes. The first two areas set for review are Allenspark and Eldora. The Townsite Planning Initiative will then review Eldorado Springs, Gold Hill, Hygiene, Raymond and Riverside. Expected outcomes include new individualized land use codes, amendments to the boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan, home size limits, setbacks, zoning changes and wastewater treatment issues.
COUNTY NOW LICENSING CONTRACTORS
Contractors working in unincorporated Boulder County must be licensed as of July 1. The licensing requirement will not apply to property owners performing work on their own homes or properties. In the spring of 2007, the Colorado Legislature approved HB-1078, a bill that gives counties the authority to establish contractor licensing programs. Boulder County’s program was approved by the Board of County Commissioners on February 12, 2008. For more information about the licensing program, visit www.bouldercounty.org/lu or call the Building Division, 303-441-3925.
SEPTICSMART REGULATIONS EFFFECTIVE SEPTEMBER 1
Boulder County Public Health will begin enforcing the point of sale septic certification regulations beginning on September 1, 2008. The regulations require all homes with septic systems in unincorporated Boulder County be in legal compliance and certified at the time a property transfers ownership, unless the septic system has a Certificate of Operation less than four years old. The so-called 'Property Transfer Regulation' means that either the existing owner or the buyer will need to make any repairs or replacements within one year of the sale date. The regulations, resources, and information are available at www.septicsmart.org. Public Health recently contacted BARA and sent us sample copies of informational panels designed to provide overview and key contact information. There are two customized panels; one for sellers and one for buyers. They are well done, informative and easy to read. Hard copies will be printed and available for distribution later this summer. (BARA will stock the panels for distribution to our members.) Public Health also plans to post the panels in pdf format on the SepticSmart.org Website so they can be downloaded and printed.
CAR OPPOSES HOUSING INVESTMENT FUND TRANSFER TAX
The CAR Board of Directors voted to oppose Initiative 103 (Colorado Housing Investment Fund/Transfer Tax) per the recommendation of the association's Issues Mobilization Committee. Initiative 103 would amend the Constitution of the State of Colorado to increase the documentary fee on real estate transactions by four cents per hundred dollars of valuation. The taxes thus collected would be used to fund affordable housing. REALTORS are consistent supporters of affordable housing. The CAR Housing Opportunity Foundation (CARHOF) has distributed more than $6 million to support affordable and emergency housing needs. Our own research reveals that there are hundreds of agencies already spending millions of dollars each year on affordable housing in our state. And there has been no state-wide needs assessment that tells us additional money would be beneficial. Please help us spread the word. Before we add another cost to the purchase of a new home we should look at how we are already funding affordable housing and for solutions that will work.
CREC ANNOUNCES CE RULE CHANGE
The Colorado Real Estate Commission recently approved changes regarding continuing education. Licensees are now required to complete 12 credit hours (3 courses) of CREC Annual Update Courses every license cycle as well as an additional 12 credit hours of elective continuing education every license cycle. Unless a course is offered by a government agency, a REALTOR Association or DPOS it must be approved by the Division of Real Estate. At the CAR Summer Meetings it was announced that the 2008 (Version 2) Update course will be available beginning July 23rd.
NAR JOINS SENATORS TO INTRODUCE THE SMALL BUSINESS HEALTH OPTIONS PROGRAM
On June 10, 2008, NAR Treasurer Jim Helsel represented the National Association of Realtors at a bipartisan press conference introducing H.R. 6210, the Small Business Health Options Program Act (SHOP).
As proposed, the SHOP concept would offer tax incentives to encourage states to reform small group insurance markets and to make health insurance premiums more affordable for small businesses and the self-employed. It would also develop a nationwide insurance small-business purchasing pool that would still be subject to state insurance regulation to protect those who choose to participate.
In announcing its support for the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP), NAR reiterated the importance of reforming the U.S. health care market for small businesses and independent contractors. In a recently conducted 2008 NAR Health Insurance Coverage survey, 82 percent of REALTORS believed the current health care system is not meeting the needs of most Americans, and nine out of 10 REALTORS thought that the U.S. health care system should be reformed. Nearly a quarter of NAR's 1.2 million members do not have health care insurance, and for most REALTORS without insurance, the reason is cost. NAR continues to meet with both Senate and House offices seeking additional cosponsors.
SBA's OFFICE OF ADVOCACY SHARES NAR's CONCERNS WITH HUD's PROPOSED RESPRA RULE IMPACTS On June 11, 2008, the U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy (Advocacy) filed comments on the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) proposed regulations on the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA): Proposed Rule to Simplify and Improve the Process of Obtaining Mortgages and Reduce Consumer Settlement Costs. A copy of Advocacy's comments can be found at: www.sba.gov/advo/laws/comments.
Advocacy commented that although the agency put forth a significant amount of effort in its initial regulatory flexibility analysis (IRFA) the agency may have underestimated the economic impact on small businesses. Advocacy suggested that HUD create a Good Faith Estimate that mirrors the HUD-1 to prevent consumer confusion and clarify the language on tolerances. Advocacy also suggested that HUD eliminate the closing script from the proposal, reconsider volume discounts, and the yield spread premium disclosure. Advocacy further requested a delayed implementation period for small entities, if HUD decides to go forward with the proposal.
NAR submitted a RESPA comment letter on June 11, 2008 to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on its "Proposed Rule to Simplify and Improve the Process of Obtaining Mortgages and Reduce Consumer Settlement Costs." The letter, signed by NAR President Dick Gaylord, applauds HUD's desire to improve disclosures but states that the proposed rule fails to achieve its objectives. The letter states that the proposal:
fails to strike the right balance between simplification and understanding, contains government -directed price controls that will have anti-competitive consequences and will reduce the quality of settlement services, and under-estimates the cost of implementation and overestimates the benefits to the consumer.
"It will have no measurable effect on total greenhouse gas emissions while it distorts housing costs in an already rarified market. Meanwhile, however, it represents a form of lifestyle management by government for which there is no logical limit." From a May 3, 2008 Rocky Mountain News editorial commenting on Boulder County's proposed home size limits, Expanded TDR Regulations, and BuildSmart code.
