Diverse Viewpoints Sought For Affordable Housing Panel

NEW PORT RICHEY - Florida counties that receive state funding for affordable housing must take a closer look at their standards and ensure they are helping builders meet the needs.

A state law enacted last year requires counties that receive State Housing Initiative Partnership program grants to reinstate their Affordable Housing Advisory Committees. Pasco's committee has been inactive since 2001, when other committees incorporated affordable housing review into their responsibilities, Community Development Manager George Romagnoli said.

Pasco is soliciting applications to fill 11 seats on the affordable housing committee, but Romagnoli said there has not been much interest.

"I think the main trouble is making sure we have applications for all of the positions from people with different interests and careers," Romagnoli said. "We want a diverse group to look at. We are not just looking for developers."

Among the requirements, the committee must include one member in the home building industry, one member in the banking and mortgage industry and one laborer, all of whom have some involvement in providing affordable housing. The committee also must include a member affiliated with for-profit and nonprofit providers of affordable housing as well as someone in the real estate industry, someone on the local planning agency and a Pasco resident.

The committee, which is to reconvene every three years, must review ordinances, land development regulations and the comprehensive growth plan to make sure county officials take measures to provide affordable housing and also protect property values.

Romagnoli said he knows of no for-profit builder who has built "affordable housing" in Pasco without a subsidy. The county has worked with several nonprofit developers to build model houses for about $150,000, but a $150,000 house is not affordable for everyone. Habitat for Humanity builds and sells houses at cost, but Pasco's three divisions have had problems securing land and/or volunteers.

The downturn in the real estate market may be lowering prices, but higher interest rates have made it harder for struggling residents to buy homes or to keep them from being foreclosed, Romagnoli said.

So, just what is affordable? A family of four making less than 80 percent of the median income of $43,000 in the Tampa Bay area probably could afford a house priced between $120,000 and $150,000 - if they have no debt, Romagnoli said. Land prices have come down between 20 percent and 30 percent since the 2005-06 fiscal year, but most homes still are not "affordable."

One way to bring down home prices is to decrease regulations, Romagnoli said. The committee may, for instance, suggest that impact fees be reduced for developers that commit to provide affordable housing or that they be allowed to build more houses in a smaller space, provide fewer parking spaces or forgo requirements for 1-acre parks for every 100 units. Such changes could reduce the cost of building and thus selling prices, Romagnoli said.

Sidewalks, landscaping and wider roads make a neighborhood look nice, but they are not necessary, Romagnoli noted.

"We want the county to look good, but all of those things add to the cost," he said. "You can't just have a county of millionaires."

The committee also must create an inventory of land suitable for affordable housing and close to public transportation.

The deadline for applying to be a committee member is Tuesday. A list of potential members will be presented to the county commission March 25, and the committee must schedule meetings between March and September. Its recommendations are due in October.

The county commission must submit a final plan to the Florida Housing Finance Corp. in November.

If the plan is not completed by the end of 2008, Pasco's SHIP funding will be suspended.