Carroll City officials are looking to expand the recently approved infill residential housing incentive program and raise or eliminate the cap on eligible project’s value to spur additional community construction. The initial program provided a $20,000 grant for new construction valued up to $325,000 for the first 10 eligible building permit applications. According to City Manager Mike Pogge-Weaver, staff has been contacted by multiple parties who indicated the value cap is too low for their planned projects. During the Aug. 22 meeting, he sought direction from the council on how to proceed.
Pogge-Weaver adds the program is in a bit of a gray area regarding the use of public funds. A previous Iowa Supreme Court ruling allowed the use of public funds for private use when it serves a public purpose, and Carroll has an identified housing shortage at all levels. However, he says the difficult part is determining where the cap should be.
Ward 4 Councilwoman Carolyn Siemann favors eliminating the cap, as the clock is ticking on how long funding will be available.
Pogge-Weaver says they can certainly make a case for doing so, but too high of a value cap or no cap at all runs the risk of straying outside of what is allowed by Iowa code. At-Large Councilman LaVern Dirkx and Ward 3 Councilman Kyle Bauer do not believe there will be a massive surge in high-end construction if the restriction is lifted.
The council directed Pogge-Weaver and staff to prepare an amendment to the existing infill housing program to raise or eliminate the value cap. They are expected to meet for a brief special session next week to vote on the cap changes. City officials also voted unanimously to expand the program from 10 structures to 20 and to include the North Ridge neighborhood. Video from this portion of Monday’s meeting can be found included below.
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