Weinland Park Community Civic Association
Housing Committee
Summary of Meeting of November 11, 2014Brandyn McElroy,
president of the civic association, called the meeting to order at
5:30 p.m. at Godman Guild Association.
Mr. McElroy announced that Matt Martin has agreed to serve as
the new chair of the Housing Committee. Mr. McElroy also announced
that the Housing Committee will move to a new date and will meet on
the second Monday of each month, beginning in December. The
meetings will begin at 6 p.m.Mr. McElroy introduced Erin Prosser
and Amanda Hoffsis of Campus Partners to discuss the 7.4 acres that
comprise the south of Gateway project. Ms. Prosser explained that
City Council approved rezoning of the properties last month and now
Campus Partners now is beginning to move forward with the
project.In explaining the project further, Ms. Hoffsis introduced a
representative of Community Housing Network (CHN), which owns and
operates supportive housing in a building at 1494 N. High Street.
Ms. Hoffsis said Campus Partners will build a new facility for CHN
to replace its building on High Street. She said the project also
will include dedicated space for OSU Extension in the University
District.
Campus Partners is seeking a local developer with sufficient
experience to deal with a project of this size and commitments to
engage with the community and to support the zoning in place. Ms.
Hoffsis said Campus Partners is partnering with Edwards Communities
to develop a proposal, but no contract has been signed yet. Ms.
Prosser said she will convene a meeting for neighborhood folks to
meet with Edwards Communities representatives in the next few
weeks. Ms. Hoffsis also introduced Alex Wright as a relatively new
member of the Campus Partners staff.Kathy Werkmeister of Mid-Ohio
Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) explained that her
organization has operated the Weinland Park Exterior Home Repair
Program from its inception. The program has served more than 55
households and has a few more yet to serve. She said many folks who
participated in the home repair program are eligible for a property
tax abatement from the City of Columbus. MORPC is processing the
applications for those eligible. She introduced Tracey Davis who is
the citys program manager for the residential tax abatement
program. Ms. Davis said the city has 13 Neighborhood Investment
Districts (NIDs), including Weinland Park. Beneficiaries are
existing homeowners, new homeowners and condominium owners, and
rental property owners. The abatement runs for 15 years. To
qualify, the owner must build a new home on a vacant lot or invest
at least 20 percent of the value of the property in the renovation
of an existing home.
Ms. Davis maintains a database of properties in the program and
keeps track of the programs as they move through the process. Ms.
Werkmeister said she is willing to take calls from homeowners to
find out where their individual properties are in the process. Ms
Davis said that if a homeowner has a question about the valuation
of his or her property, the homeowner should contact the Franklin
County Auditors Office.
Ms. Davis said she must review every property for which the city
has granted property tax abatement. If a house that received an
abatement is boarded up, the property owner should contact Ms.
Davis about the situation, so the abatement is not cancelled.
Contact information for the speakers:
Tracey Davis of Columbus Department of Development at (614)
645-8530 and [email protected]. Kathy Werkmeister of MORPC at
(614) 233-4180 and [email protected].
Dan Sheehan of MORPC at (614) 233-4115.Michael Wilkos asked
about government programs that might mitigate the problem that some
neighborhoods face with rapidly rising property values and higher
property taxes for vulnerable families. Ms. Davis said there arent
such programs in place at this time. Mr. Wilkos and Martin Weston
said such programs are needed in Weinland Park.
Ms. Werkmeister said the home repair program began in 2010 with
support from The Columbus Foundation, JPMorgan Chase Foundation,
and Campus Partners. From the beginning, there have been long wait
lists for the program. She said just about everyone on the wait
list has been served. Mr. Martin asked about obtaining a steel roof
for his house as an issue for sustainabilitiy in the long term. Mr.
Wilkos explained the background to creation of the home repair
program. He said the intent of the program is about repair. He said
a conversation could be held after all of the repair work is
completed on the possibility of continuing the program and serving
more homeowners.Omar Elhagmusa suggested that MORPC reach out to
program participants to let them know where their tax abatement
applications are in the process.
Ms. Prosser said Campus Partners has begun renovation on two
additional properties: 1286 and 1314 N. Fifth Street. The houses
will be available for sale in the spring.Mr. Martin introduced
himself as the new chair of the Housing Committee. He said that, as
the chair, he wants to tackle complex problems and take care of his
neighbors.Julie Erickson asked if the grant for home repairs is
subject to federal taxation. Mr. Wilkos said the grant is not
taxable because it is not given to the homeowner, but it is given
to MORPC to contract with the companies making the repairs.
Mr. McElroy distributed the executive summary of the Greater
Ohio Policy Centers report on housing investments in Weinland Park.
The Housing Committee will be considering the reports
recommendations in the coming months.
The business of the committee being concluded, Mr. McElroy
adjourned the meeting at 6:30 p.m.
Summary prepared by Steve Sterrett.1
