Item 7: MUPTE for Fenway Apartments

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ECC UGENE ITY OUNCIL AIS GENDA TEM UMMARY Action: Application for a Multiple-Unit Property Tax Exemption – The Fenway Meeting Date: July 14, 2008 Agenda Item Number: 7 Department: Planning and Development Staff Contact: Richie Weinman www.eugene-or.gov Contact Telephone Number: 682-5533 ISSUE STATEMENT The City Council is asked to approve or deny a resolution granting a Multiple-Unit Property Tax th Exemption (MUPTE) for The Fenway at 450 E. 14 Avenue in Eugene. BACKGROUND The Oregon legislature adopted the enabling statutes for the MUPTE program in 1975. This incentive was created as an implementation tool to complement the state land-use laws that were approved in 1973. The intent was to “stimulate the construction of rental housing in the core areas of Oregon’s urban centers…” In July 1977, the City Council adopted the provisions through a resolution that included “. . . to complement the Eugene Community Goals and Polices adopted in 1974 which stated that ‘High density dwellings should be encouraged close-in to accommodate those people who prefer to live near the center of activity’…” Since that time, both the state statutes and Eugene’s implementation of them have been amended. For instance, multi-family ownership is now allowed in addition to rental housing. Most recently, the council amended Eugene’s regulations and boundary in April 2004. The Fenway is located in the West University Neighborhood. The property is zoned R-3 and the development is an outright use. The property currently has two houses on it. The front house will be retained and rehabilitated and the back house will be removed to make room for this project. In April, the council denied a MUPTE request for this project. The proposed project is not substantially different but has since been altered. The existing four-bedroom house is remaining on the site but is being moved closer to the street. The new building in the rear will have one additional housing unit – a total of seven units rather than six. Public Comments A display ad was placed in the Register Guard on June 1, 2008. Comments were requested for a 30-day period. No comments were received. The West University Neighborhood received a presentation about the project and endorsed the MUPTE application. Their letter is provided as Attachment F. Design Features Each applicant for a MUPTE is expected to respond to a list of quality standards. The applicant responded by including the following features in this proposal. Z:\CMO\2008 Council Agendas\M080714\S0807147.doc