Metro Cities News 09/25/20

Sep

In This Issue:

Updated Federal FAQ – Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF)

This week, the US Department of Treasury released a new FAQ document relating to eligible expenses for the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF).

Question # 63 and question #s 70-72 are updated regarding record keeping requirements for public health and public safety employees significantly dedicated to mitigating or responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Please contact Patricia Nauman at [email protected] with any questions on the document or other questions pertaining to expenses for the CRF. Please note that some questions require information or clarification from state officials, so your patience is appreciated.

2020 Policy Committees

Metro Cities’ four legislative policy committees completed the work of reviewing and recommending legislative policies this week. Each committee held three meetings and hosted speakers on a variety of topics including federal COVID-19 assistance, the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Committee on the Metropolitan Council, new MnDOT bridge ownership and maintenance guidance, re-use of commercial properties and redevelopment, un-allotment and the state’s budget reserve policy and status, suburban transit operations, and other topics.

Thank you to the four committee chairs and to committee members for your work and participation this year. The policy recommendations made by the committees will be forwarded to the Metro Cities Board of Directors for consideration at their October 8th meeting. Once the policies are approved by the Board, they will be posted on-line, and forwarded to Metro Cities’ membership for adoption at the policy adoption meeting scheduled for Thursday, November 19th. The policy adoption meeting will be held virtually this year – please stay tuned for additional information and details.

Metropolitan Water Supply and Water Programs Update

Metropolitan Council staff presented a water supply report to the Metropolitan Council’s Environment Committee. The report, previously presented to the Council and submitted to the Legislature, includes information on how the Metropolitan Area Water Supply Advisory Committee (MAWSAC) and its technical advisory committee (TAC) worked to increase local input in water supply planning processes and to increase coordination on water supply use and data collection. The report highlights programs such as the MnTAP Water Efficiency Intern Program, Water Efficiency Grant Program, and Regional Groundwater Modeling. To view the report, click here.

Council staff also updated the committee on a request by the Metropolitan Council to the Clean Water Council (CWC) for water supply planning and funding for its water efficiency grant program. The CWC’s recommendation includes $2.3 million to support water supply planning and the grant program. The grant program funds city efforts that reduce local water use. Metro Cities submitted a letter to the CDC to support this funding. The Legislature will make a final decision on the distribution of Clean Water Funds in the 2021 session. To view the CWC recommendations click here.

Metropolitan Council, Metro HRA Apply for Mobility Demonstration Program Funds

The Community Development Committee and full Metropolitan Council this week approved its application for participating in the U.S. Department of Housing Urban Development’s Housing Choice Voucher Mobility Demonstration program.

HUD is offering five to ten grants of $4 to $10 million for the Housing Choice Voucher Mobility Demonstration program. The demonstration project is to provide voucher assistance and mobility-related services to families with children to encourage them to move to lower poverty areas, to expand their access to opportunity areas, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies pursued under the demonstration. Staff and committee members expressed support for the demonstration project, citing research showing the benefits of growing up in neighborhoods with lower poverty levels and reducing intergenerational poverty.

Award announcements are expected to be made in December 2020. If awarded to the Metro HRA, it would begin with a planning year followed by several years of program implementation, to be completed by October 2028.

Metropolitan Council Releases 2019 Plat Monitoring Report - Shows Increased Density

The Community Development Committee received a staff update on 2019 platting activities at its September 21 meeting. The report shows the overall density of development and assesses the availability of the metropolitan region’s land supply.

Data, from 44 cities and one township, showed that in 2019 the participating communities approved a total of 127 plats. 131 plats were approved in 2018. These plats accounted for 6,313 housing units, single and multi-family, on 1,677.9 acres of net developable land. In 2019, 54 percent of platted units were single family units and 46 percent were multifamily units. The Council’s net density policy is three units per acre. The 2019 report shows 3.8 units per acre net density, an increase from 3.0 in 2018. The CDC presentation, with data visualization, can be found here.