Council postpones housing vote
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » Saratoga Springs City Council will host a workshop Tuesday, June 13 at 1:30 p.m. before voting on the proposed inclusionary zoning ordinance at a later date.
City Council had scheduled to vote on amending the zoning ordinance during this week’s council meeting but decided to postpone the vote until next meeting on a recommendation from city attorneys.
City attorney Vincent DeLeonardis said the council could have voted Tuesday night.
“The determination was made that we will issue a letter to the county planning department letting them know that they will be receiving nothing in addition to what they already have, letting them know that we will be voting on this on June 19 and they will be welcomed to provide a response at that time or not,” said DeLeonardis.
Saratoga County Planning Board determined the SPA Housing Ordinance an incomplete application, as the planning board looked for the provision of a tested, independent financial assessment, or an analysis of costs vs. benefits, prompting the postponed vote.
“We continue to not understand their reasoning. We don’t know what’s incomplete there,” said Commissioner of Public Safety Christian Mathiesen. “In terms of the financial analysis that they want, we don’t know what that’s all about or why they would require that.”
Commissioners John Franck and Michele Madigan thought it would be beneficial to host another workshop with developers, bankers and housing specialists to further address the SPA Housing Ordinance.
Franck said at the meeting some of the issues he had with the ordinance dealt
with the legal language relating to the deed and the language relating to the developers.
“The fact that they are asking for this additional input, we think we should provide it. We really want the votes,” Mathiesen said Wednesday. “We think this is important to the city, so we will jump through necessary hoops to try and make sure we accommodate everyone’s concerns and do what we need to do in order to get affirmative votes on this.”
Mathiesen plans for the council to vote on amending the zoning ordinance Monday, June 19 during a re-scheduled council meeting.
The SPA Housing Ordinance would be an amendment requiring that in residential developments of 10 or more units, 20 percent of the units, for sale or rent, be dedicated as affordable to households of moderate or low income.
The median household income in Saratoga Springs is about $75,000.
The target household income for moderate income households’ rental units is 60 (about $45,000) to 90 (about $67,500) percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) while home ownership is 80 (about $60,000) to 110 (about $82,500) percent of the Area Median Income.
Developer costs to provide these affordable units would be offset by the ability to build up to 20 percent more units on the same site. This program would apply to housing developed for both sale and rental units. There are no state or federal subsidies needed for this program. The ordinance was crafted specifically for the Saratoga Springs housing market.
Those who oppose the zoning ordinance say the city should only explore site-specific approaches for building affordable, workforce housing, but Harry Moran, president of Sustainable Saratoga, disagrees.
“We are pleased the city is encouraging the site-specific workforce housing developments on South Broadway and West Avenue. However, these projects depend on federal and state housing tax credits and it is not yet certain they will be funded,” said Moran in a Reader’s View June 3. “Well-designed, site-specific projects can play an important role in a city’s affordable housing toolbox, but they work best as a complement to inclusionary models that require diversity and affordability throughout the community.