HomeMy WebLinkAboutAffordable Housing Policy
☒City Council Approved: 11/1/2015
☐City-Wide Revised: 2/7/2018
☐Department
City of Edina Policy
Affordable Housing
Background
The City recognizes the need to provide affordable housing in order to maintain a diverse
population and to provide housing for those who live or work in the City. Since the remaining land
appropriate for new residential development is limited, it is essential that a reasonable proportion of
such land be developed into affordable housing units. As such, the City of Edina adopts the following
Affordable Housing Policy:
The Policy
1. This policy applies to all new multi-family developments of 20 or more units that require a re-
zoning or a Comprehensive Plan amendment. All new multi-family developments requiring a
rezoning shall be required to be re-zoned to PUD, Planned Unit Development.
2. New rental developments will provide a minimum of 10% of all rentable area at 50% affordable
rental rates or 20% of all rentable area at 60% affordable rental rates as defined below.
3. New for-sale developments will provide a minimum of 10% of all livable area at affordable sales
prices as defined below.
4. Rental and for-sale/owner occupied affordable units shall include the following:
A. On-site parking will be provided (either surface or enclosed) for affordable units, and
will be included within the affordable sales price and/or affordable rent. At least one
enclosed parking stall shall be included in the purchase price of an affordable for-sale
unit in the same manner as offered to buyers of market rate units. Adequate surface
parking shall be provided at no additional charge.
B. Affordable and market rate residents will have equal access to all entries, lobbies,
elevators, parking and amenities.
C. Exterior appearance of affordable units shall be visually comparable with market rate
units in the covered development and amenities and access thereto provided with
market rate unit shall also be provided with the affordable units. Examples of
“amenities” include storage lockers, balconies, roof decks, outdoor patios, pools, fitness
facilities, and similar unit and project features.
5. New rental housing will remain affordable for a minimum of 15 years, and this requirement will
be memorialized by a Land Use Restrictive Covenant.
6. New for sale or owner-occupied developments will remain affordable for a minimum of 30
years, and this will be memorialized by a Land Use Restrictive Covenant. The Land Use
Restrictive Covenant will contain a provision providing the Edina Housing Foundation the right of
first refusal to purchase affordable units.
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7. Recognizing that affordable housing is created through a partnership between the City and
developers, the city will consider the following incentives for developments that provide
affordable housing:
A. Density bonuses
B. Parking reductions
C. Tax increment financing
D. Deferred low interest loans from the Housing and Redevelopment Authority and/or
Edina Housing Foundation
E. Tax Abatement
8. It is the strong preference of the City that each new qualifying development provide its
proportionate share of affordable housing, however, the City recognizes that it may not be
economically feasible or practical in all circumstances to do so. As such, the City reserves the
right to waive this policy (only if circumstances so dictate, as determined by the City). In lieu of
providing affordable housing in each new qualifying development, the City may consider the
following:
F. Dedication of existing units in Edina equal to 110% of what would have been provided in
a proposed new development. These units would need to be of an equivalent quality,
within the determination of the City.
G. New construction of units of an equivalent quality within the City at a different site, at
the discretion of the City.
H. Participation in the construction of affordable dwelling units of an equivalent quality by
another developer on a different site within the City.
I. An alternative proposed by a developer that directly or indirectly provides or enables
provision of an equivalent amount of affordable housing within the City.
Definitions
Rental Housing
Either 10% of all rentable area is both rent restricted and occupied by persons whose
income is 50% or less of area median gross income,
Or 20% of all rentable area is both rent restricted and occupied by persons whose
income is 60% or less of area median gross income.
Both gross incomes (adjusted for family size) and gross rental rates (adjusted for
bedroom count and including utilities) are updated annually by the Minnesota Housing
Finance Agency (MHFA) and published at www.mnhousing.gov. 2017 income and
rental limits are as follows:
Gross Incomes Gross Rents
60% 50% 60% 50%
1 Person $37,980 $31,650 Studio $949 $791
2 Persons $43,440 $36,200 1 Bedroom $1,017 $848
3 Persons $48,840 $40,700 2 Bedroom $1,221 $1,017
4 Persons $54,240 $45,200 3 Bedroom $1,410 $1,175
5 Persons $58,620 $48,850 4 Bedroom $1,573 $1,311
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6 Persons $62,940 $52,450
Ownership Housing
10% or more of all livable area is affordable to and initially sold to persons whose
income is at or below the levels set in the MHFA’s “Startup Program” (first time
homebuyer). This program has a sales price limit of $306,000, adjusted annually. The
Edina Housing Foundation has set this limit at $350,000 in consideration of the high
prices in Edina. The following sales prices will be used as the acquisition limit in this
definition:
1 bedroo 1 bedroom $250,000
2 bedrooms $300,000
3+ bedrooms $350,000
The 2016 income limits as published on the MHFA website are as follows:
1-2 person household $90,400
3+ person household $103,900
Income limits and maximum sales prices are updated annually. See www.mnhousing.gov.