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City Council Minutes Page 2 <br /> April 23,2019 <br /> ----------------------------- <br /> ■ City can work out agreement with property owners for future development <br /> rather than owning property. <br /> ■ Small businesses hold communities together by supporting local and youth <br /> events. <br /> ■ City should create and continue showcasing Elk River's amenities. <br /> ■ Downtown core should be expanded. <br /> ■ Larger stores help small businesses by bringing traffic. <br /> ■ City does best to get people downtown by holding concerts, farmer's market, <br /> and Elk RiverFest. <br /> ■ Accessibility drives business and will change with Highway 169 interchange. <br /> ■ Can fill in gaps with increased density rather than developing outlying areas. <br /> Housing/Code Enforcement/Redevelopment <br /> Housing <br /> Mr. Carlton presented information on housing in Elk River. He indicated Elk River <br /> continues to see growth in single-family construction. He stated the price point for <br /> new construction in Elk River is $300,000 or above.Mr. Carlton explained Elk River <br /> is starting to see a gap in the housing lifecycle for starter homes. Builders are saying <br /> cities are not allowing them to build new, affordable housing because of regulations, <br /> etc. He added without affordable starter homes we risk losing young or aging <br /> residents. <br /> Councilmember Westgaard questioned what we are doing as a city to increase the <br /> builder cost for new construction. Mr. Carlton explained he believes it may be more <br /> of a cultural issue with people wanting to move in to a home with amenities <br /> including granite countertops and larger garages driving the price up. He stated Elk <br /> River's permit fees are less than other communities so he doesn't believe it to be a <br /> hold up. He noted there are infrastructure costs associated with new construction. <br /> Mr. Carlton indicated Elk River has affordable homes in this price range but they are <br /> not what people are looking for as they are older homes that are starting to look <br /> outdated and may not be weft maintained. He noted economic development has a <br /> program to assist homeowners in the urban service district with financing <br /> improvements which can help with keeping these homes looking nice. He added <br /> proactive code enforcement and point of sale inspections are additional ways to help <br /> keep properties looking nice and maintaining housing stock. <br /> Proactive Code Enforcement <br /> Council and staff discussed proactive versus complaint driven. <br /> Councilmember Ovall questioned if there would be an expense for additional <br /> employees with proactive enforcement. He indicated he sees value in proactive <br /> enforcement but questioned if it is a core value to be added to the budget. He noted <br /> major sports stadiums have technology options for people to text in complaints and <br /> wondered if that is something the city could implement. <br /> POWERED 9r <br /> UREJ <br />