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I lousing and Redevelopment Minutes Page 2 <br /> June 7,2021 <br /> 6. Public Hearings <br /> There were no public hearings. <br /> 7.I HRA Housing Rehabilitation Loan Program Update <br /> Ms. Eddy presented the staff report. She indicated staff is looking for direction from the <br /> commission if they wish to schedule a work session with CEE to discuss the city's rehab <br /> loan program guidelines along with CEE's programs. She stated residents are taking <br /> advantage of the various programs CEE offers reminded the HRA the interest rate of 4% <br /> and $25,000 lending limit could be discussed and changed if the commission felt it necessary. <br /> Commissioner Swenson stated it would be wise to discuss their options with CEE. <br /> Mr. Portner explained he and Ms. Eddy were reviewing some of the reasons for recent loan <br /> denials to see if we can offer residents more opportunities to qualify or provide incentives to <br /> use our funds, perhaps by applying a lower interest rate, looking differently at credit reports, <br /> or turning the loan into a grant. He stated banks take risks and perhaps the HRA should be <br /> taking a more extreme risk to help our community. <br /> Commissioner Ovall stated interest rate is a nominal issue especially at the high loan to value <br /> proposals. He felt the bigger issues has been the loan amount with residents doing bigger <br /> projects. He noted residents have continued to use the services of CEE and felt the HRA <br /> continues to accomplish the same mission. Based upon currently economic activity and <br /> material shortage and costs, Commissioner Ovall did not know if the HRA needed to <br /> respond to the current lack of activity based on current economics. He stated they can <br /> review lowering the interest rate. He reiterated the current priorities for the commission and <br /> did not know if adding more money or incentive will produce the results. <br /> Commissioner Swenson appreciated Commissioner Ovall's comments and wondered if this <br /> program is helping the community right now and would like to review the guidelines to <br /> ensure the needs of the community are being met. <br /> Commissioner Chuba stated he felt it was worth having a work session to review and discuss <br /> options with CEE. <br /> Chair Toth agreed with what Commissioner Ovall said and noted when the program was set <br /> up it was based on the economy at the time,and that economy has changed. <br /> Commissioner Ovall noted there's other initiatives, such as generators and electric cars, so <br /> an innovative approach is valuable. <br /> Staff will schedule a work session at the July HRA meeting with CEE. <br /> 7.2 Main and Gates Redevelopment Update <br /> Ms. Eddy presented the staff report. �� <br />