Affordable Housing Task Force — Columbia, SC
Date: 2021-03-09
Time: 11:00

COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING AGENDA
 TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021

The Columbia Affordable Housing Task Force will conduct a meeting on Tuesday, March 9,
2021 at 11:00 a.m. using Video Conferencing Technology. The meeting will be streamed online
at www.columbiasc.gov.

CALL TO ORDER
APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. Approval of February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes

COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

2. Committee Reports

 Accessibility - Ms. Julie Ann Avin, Chair
 Financing - Mr. Reggie Barner, Chair
 Legal & Zoning - Ms. Sue Berkowitz and Ms. Lila Anna Sauls, Co-Chairs
 Partnerships - Ms. Jennifer Moore, Chair
 Public Education & Awareness Committee - Ms. Brenna Bernadin, Chair

ANNOUNCEMENTS
NEXT MEETING DATE

April 13, 2021 at 11:00 a.m.

ADJOURNMENT




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COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING AGENDA
 TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021


The Columbia Affordable Housing Task Force will conduct a meeting on Tuesday, March 9,
2021 at 11:00 a.m. using Video Conferencing Technology. The meeting will be streamed online
at www.columbiasc.gov.

CALL TO ORDER
APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. Approval of February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes

COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

2. Committee Reports

 Accessibility - Ms. Julie Ann Avin, Chair
 Financing - Mr. Reggie Barner, Chair
 Legal & Zoning - Ms. Sue Berkowitz and Ms. Lila Anna Sauls, Co-Chairs
 Partnerships - Ms. Jennifer Moore, Chair
 Public Education & Awareness Committee - Ms. Brenna Bernadin, Chair

ANNOUNCEMENTS
NEXT MEETING DATE

April 13, 2021 at 11:00 a.m.

ADJOURNMENT




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 COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2021
CALL TO ORDER




 Attachment: AHTF_MN_020921 (6546 : Approval of February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes)
The meeting was called to order at 11:03 a.m. by Chair Tameika Isaac Devine.

 Attendee Name Present Absent Late Arrived
 Tameika Isaac Devine   
 John Andoh    11:31 AM
 Jeff Armstrong   
 Julie Ann Avin   
 Reggie Barner   
 Sue Berkowitz   
 Brenna Bernadin   
 Bryan Grady   
 Dylan Gunnels   
 Tonya Isaac   
 Jeff Larimore   
 Ivory Matthews   
 Jennifer Moore   
 Mary Louise Resch   
 Shayla Riley   
 Lila Anna Sauls   
 Gregory Sprouse   
 Allison Terracio   
 Regina Williams   
 Lester Young   
 Jim Zieche   
 Chris Zimmer   

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. Approval of January 12, 2021 Meeting Minutes

Upon a motion made by Ivory Matthews and seconded by Jennifer Moore, task force members
voted unanimously to approve the January 12, 2021 Meeting Minutes as amended to mark Chris
Zimmer as present during the January 12, 2021 meeting.



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 Packet Pg. 2
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 COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2021
COMMITTEE DISCUSSION




 Attachment: AHTF_MN_020921 (6546 : Approval of February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes)
2. Definition of Affordable Housing

Upon a motion made by Sue Berkowitz and seconded by Ivory Matthews, task force members
voted unanimously to approve the following definition of Affordable Housing: Affordable
housing is a continuum of equitable, inclusive, and quality rental and homeownership
opportunities for people at every income level, which is critical to creating safe, complete, and
thriving communities.

3. Affordable Housing Unit Goal

Krista Hampton, Planning and Development Services Director reported that multi-family
housing projects are coming along. Lorick Place has been constructed in two phases with 12
units per building. The Pointe at Elmwood is under construction as a 58-unit senior housing
project. Both are low income tax credit projects. There has been an increase in single-family
construction over the past several years. A good amount of that is affordable at 80% to 100%.
We are still lacking below that point. There are up to 160 multi-family units under construction.

Gloria Saeed, Community Development Director said both projects also received community
development block grant disaster recovery funding as an incentive.

Councilwoman Devine noted that the Waites Road project is also coming online and Kevin
Connelly and Bob Hughes are looking to develop affordable housing projects. We settled around
a goal of 10,000 units over 10 years. We need a goal for 2021.

Ivory Matthews, Columbia Housing Authority said a number of private developers have
contacted us to issue multi-family tax incentive bonds. This will allow us to help preserve a lot of
housing units. Preservation will have a great economic impact. She described how the Columbia
Housing Authority is addressing maintenance challenges and redevelopment strategies.

There was an in-depth discussion about the lack of low-to-moderate income housing inventory,
benchmarks, and the need to track rental and homeownership units, levels of income
(affordability), permits, and certificates of occupancy.

There was a consensus of the task force members to track both the permits and the certificates of
occupancy for 2021. During the fourth quarter of 2021, the task force will set goals for 2022,
2023, and 2024 based on the actual certificates of occupancy that have been issued. Krista
Hampton was asked to provide the 2019 and 2020 numbers, as well.


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 Packet Pg. 3
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 COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2021
ANNOUNCEMENTS




 Attachment: AHTF_MN_020921 (6546 : Approval of February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes)
Councilwoman Devine asked the committees to meet before the next task force meeting. Let's
start talking about plans for community conversations and the education component.

Sue Berkowitz, SC Appleseed announced that they are working with the NACCP on the Housing
Navigator Pilot Project. There is an eviction diversion program and we hope to help people
access the resources they need. Columbia is 8th in evictions and we hope this program will help
to create stability.

Bryan Grady, PhD, SC Housing Finance and Development Authority announced that the SC
Stay Mortgage and Rental Assistance Program is available to assist households who are unable
to pay mortgage or rent due to COVID-19. For more information, visit
https://www.schousing.com/Home/SC-Stay.

NEXT MEETING DATE

Tuesday, March 9, 2021 at 11:00 a.m.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was closed at 12:09 p.m.

Respectfully submitted by:

Erika D. Moore, CMC
City Clerk




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 Packet Pg. 4

COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021

CALLTO ORDER
The meeting was called to order at 11:04 a.m. by Chair Tameika Isaac Devine.

 Attendee Name Present Absent Late Arrived
 Tameika Isaac Devine   
 John Andoh   
 Jeff Armstrong   
 Julie Ann Avin   
 Reggie Barner   
 Sue Berkowitz   
 Brenna Bernadin   
 Bryan Grady   
 Dylan Gunnels   
 Tonya Isaac   
 Jeff Larimore   
 Ivory Matthews   
 Jennifer Moore   
 Mary Louise Resch   
 Shayla Riley   
 Lila Anna Sauls   
 Gregory Sprouse   
 Allison Terracio   
 Regina Williams    11:20 AM
 Lester Young   
 Jim Zieche   
 Chris Zimmer   
APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. Approval of February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes

Upon a motion made by Mary Louise Resch and seconded by Reggie Barner, task force
members voted unanimously to approve the February 9, 2021 Meeting Minutes.




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 COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021
COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

2. Committee Reports

Councilwoman Devine said we have a definition for affordable housing. We will use 2021
benchmarks to set our goals for 2022, 2023, and 2024. The Accessibility Committee would like
to delve into solutions for making access to quality affordable housing a reality for people within
special populations.

Reginal Barner, Financing Committee requested an update on the City of Columbia local
affordable housing tax abatement program. To stimulate the development of affordable housing,
he proposed a social impact fund for private investors. Atlanta issued an affordable housing
bond. Some cities are putting affordable housing mechanisms into their one cent sales tax
program. Tax increment financing and the multi-county industrial park legislation can be used to
create affordable housing, as well. In Ohio, unclaimed state funds are used to financially assist
with the creation of affordable housing. Communities also have land banks. There are a lot of
infill lots in the city that we can tap into. Lastly, an affordable housing impact fee can be
assessed at the city and county level on new residential and commercial development. A portion
of the assessment can go into a fund to help create affordable housing. The state tax credit
program is attracting developers to South Carolina.

Jim Zieche asked if consideration was given to a countywide trust fund.

Councilwoman Devine asked Gloria Saeed, Teresa Knox, and Patrick Wright to do additional
research and provide a legal opinion on what is currently available, what needs legislative
support, and what will require education and lobbying.

Sue Berkowitz, Legal & Zoning Committee said we have an eviction crisis in Columbia and we
want to talk about mechanisms to address the issue of providing assistance and funding. We want
to look at innovative ideas and how zoning ordinances can help with abandoned properties like
hotels and motels.

Lila Anna Sauls, Legal & Zoning Committee said Charlotte renovated motels into single-use
apartments. We have to identify what already exists and what modifications need to be made to
incorporate special projects into the overall affordable housing plan.

Councilwoman Devine requested information for tenants on their rights and how to report
various concerns.



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 COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021
Sue Berkowitz, Legal & Zoning Committee requested an inventory of tax credit properties and
properties that are accepting vouchers.

Brenna Bernadin, Partnership & Education Committees reported that the committees formed
eight outreach categories: political developers, business and community partners, state and local
housing agencies, funders and real estate partners, neighborhood associations, potential
homebuyers and new renters, community and neighborhood coalitions, and the media in
partnership with the City’s Public & Media Relations Department. We want to start a success
story model. The goal is to demonstrate the worth and positive side of affordable housing, to
debunk the myths, and work with opposition. We will develop a one-pager with goals and a
slogan for social media campaigns.

Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine said we will create a one-page document with the Task
Force’s goal and the committees' priorities by the end of this month. The document will be
shared with all task force members for feedback. After next month's committee reports, we will
finalize the document. Both Councilwoman Devine and Councilwoman Terracio will then
present the report to their respective councils.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Ivory Mathews invited property owners to partner with the Columbia Housing Authority by
becoming landlords for the housing choice voucher program. A virtual meeting will be held on
Monday, March 15, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. Register here

Jeffrey Armstrong announced that Family Promise is hosting a virtual Night of Promise Gala on
April 24, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. It is a fundraiser to help find creative housing solutions for families
and provide stability for children. Click here to become a Gala Sponsor.

Lila Anna Sauls, said Homeless No More opened the application process for Myrtle Grove, an
affordable housing development for families on Waites Road. There are 15 units at 30%, 50%,
and 60% AMI; they are not voucher driven. Click here for an application.

Councilwoman Devine asked the accessibility committee to consider barriers to affordable
housing for individuals who don’t make enough money and they don’t qualify for certain
programs because they don’t have a family.

Sue Berkowitz, SC Appleseed the NAACP is leading an Eviction Navigation Project. Individuals
facing eviction will be partnered with a navigator.




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 COLUMBIA AFFORDABLE HOUSING TASK FORCE MEETING MINUTES
 TUESDAY, MARCH 9, 2021
Councilwoman Allison Terracio said we had turnover on Richland County Council and some of
the new members are excited about working on affordable housing. That will go a long way
towards working with staff and others.

Councilwoman Devine acknowledged that this is campaign season. She pledged to not let the
Task Force's work be politicized or derailed.

NEXT MEETING DATE
Tuesday, April 13, 2021 at 11:00 a.m.

ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was closed at 11:53 a.m.
Respectfully submitted:



Erika D. Moore Hammond, CMC
City Clerk




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