The Longmont Housing Authority has revised its policy for granting tax exemptions on affordable housing projects.
The LHA Board of Commissioners, which is made up of Longmont City Council members, unanimously adopted the revision on Tuesday. The change adjusts the policy established last year to consider when and how to partner with developers to remove affordable housing from property tax rolls.
Housing authorities are allowed to partner with private sector and nonprofit developers for affordable housing and routinely provide tax exempt status for this type of partnership. While the LHA has been able to grant exemptions since this policy was put in place last year, the approved change expands and clarifies the process.
The update also gives the LHA more flexibility to work with a variety of projects that were previously restricted.
The amount of property exempt from property tax is proportional to the number of affordable units, and the city has first right of refusal when and if a developer decides to sell the affordable housing project.
The developer has to comply with a number of requirements that align with the mission of the housing authority, and there is a fee for the service that can be used to further invest in affordable units.
“It gives us some leverage on things we don’t have leverage on that benefits the resident,” City Manager Harold Dominguez said.
He summarized that the city is learning as it goes with the best policies for affordable housing, which is why these changes were designed. Dominguez added that more concepts are currently in the works to continue furthering affordable housing.
