Subject:
Title
Adoption of State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Incentive Strategies Evaluation and Recommendations Report.
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Fiscal Impact:
FY 2024-2025: There will be no impact to the General Fund. Approval of this action facilitates the continued receipt of SHIP funding from the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, which is $2,648,427 for the current fiscal year.
Dept/Office:
Housing and Human Services
Requested Action:
Recommendation
It is requested that the Board of County Commissioners approve the State Housing Initiatives Partnership 2024-2025 Affordable Housing Committee Incentives Strategies Evaluation and Recommendations Report.
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Summary Explanation and Background:
Florida Statutes (Section 420.9076(4)) requires that the Brevard County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHAC) conduct an annual review of local policies and procedures, ordinances, land development regulations, and the Brevard County Comprehensive Plan Housing Element to create an Incentive Strategies and Evaluation Report. This report is submitted in conjunction with the Local Housing Assistance Plan (LHAP). The purpose of the report is to recommend specific actions or initiatives to encourage or facilitate affordable housing development and is required for compliance with State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) regulations. Without both components, future SHIP funding is jeopardized.
The 2020 legislative session amended the Statute to make the Incentive Strategies and Evaluation Report annual while keeping the LHAP approval process triennial. The Board of County Commissioners, on May 21, 2024, approved the current LHAP and the 2024-2025 Incentives Report will be transmitted to the State for annual compliance upon approval.
The Brevard County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, at a public hearing and meeting on November 21, 2024, reviewed and approved the recommended annual (2024-2025) Incentive Strategies Evaluation and Recommendations Report for final approval by the Board of County Commissioners.
The recommendations are that staff coordinate with relevant partner County Departments, Agencies, and Legal staff to continue the established procedures and direct staff to further evaluate the feasibility in the following focused areas, which are the same from last year’s report with added consideration to exceptions notated below*:
• Density Flexibility (*potential building height flexibility)
• Accessory Dwelling Units and Tiny Homes
• Land Bank Inventory (study the feasibility of priority review and right of first refusal on available properties in the County delinquent property tax certificate sales program)
• *Parking & Setbacks (potential space size flexibility)
• *Reservation of County Infrastructure (potential utility concurrency reservations)
Approval of this report makes no changes to the County’s current Land Development Regulations.
Clerk to the Board Instructions:
None