Housing and Community Development First (5th) Year Action Plan (2019)

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AP-75 Barriers to affordable housing -91.420, 91.220(j) ' Introduction The following public policies could negatively impact affordable housing and residential investment in St. ' Joseph County: Property Tax Rate - Homeowners in South Bend and Mishawaka pay city taxes while those in the County ' Remainder do not. To address this problem, South Bend has implemented a residential tax abatement program. In addition,the County Property Tax Rate for St.Joseph County is the second highest in the iState. Design Standards-South Bend and Mishawaka require design improvements such as curbs, sidewalks and drainage. The areas within the unincorporated county do not require these infrastructure improvements. Building Codes and Local Historic Districts- Codes related to construction and development allow no special provision waivers for the construction of new, or rehab of existing, affordable housing. The lack of provision waivers for affordable housing could be considered a barrier to the development of affordable housing. Local regulations for historic districts require exterior compatibility at the time of renovation or rehabilitation, possibly imposing costs which could make the development of affordable housing within those districts more expensive. Regulatory Barriers in the Rural and Suburban Areas- Roughly sixty percent of the land in the unincorporated areas of St.Joseph County is zoned agricultural, meaning a home built in the district must have a minimum of a twenty acre lot. This requirement limits the development of affordable housing in areas zoned agricultural. Actions it planned to remove or ameliorate the negative effects of public policies that serve as barriers to affordable housing such as land use controls, tax policies affecting land, zoning ' ordinances, building codes, fees and charges, growth limitations, and policies affecting the return on residential investment Support for the development efforts that improve employment prospects for low/mod income individuals is ongoing. People returning to the community from prison often need assistance in securing jobs and affordable housing. ' The Residential Tax Abatement program is available to potential homeowners for consideration when thinking about homeownership. This allows a phasing in the costs that can lessen the immediate financial burden and, coupled with the legislative property tax cap, could be critical to new ' Annual Action Plan 55 2019 OMB Control No:2506-0117(exp.06/30/2018)