Broward County commissioners delayed voting on a first-of-its-kind plan that details financial, legislative and zoning solutions for the county’s affordable housing crisis.
At a Tuesday meeting, some commissioners asked for more time to discuss the Housing Broward Master Plan before voting to approve it. They were specifically concerned about its funding, as it includes a recommendation to use 100% of Tax Increment Financing revenue — funds that are currently split between affordable housing and other programs.
“There could be lots of things we want to do with that money. It could be for different programs that we have,” said Commissioner Michael Udine.
According to the report, the switch in funding would allow for 17,000 additional affordable units to be built in the next 30 years as part of the landmark plan, to reach a total of about 36,000.
“This is a pay as you go... It's not a bond with interest to pay. It's no tax increase for anybody,” said Mayor Nan Rich, who backed approving the plan. “It's money that we already have, and it doesn't take anything from it. It doesn't take anything from anything else either.”
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The plan has been in the works for more than a year and was presented to commissioners Tuesday by Ned Murray, who leads the Jorge M. Perez Metropolitan Center at Florida International University. The 51-page document outlined strategies for the county and its 31 municipalities to produce more affordable housing.
The South Florida area, including Broward, is one of the least affordable places to live in the country and Florida the most unaffordable state for renters, according to the report. More than half of the county's residents are cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities, according to a recent Harvard University report.
“We don't have the time or the luxury to be aspirational when it comes to this issue. So what we've done is put together really actionable strategy recommendations,” Murray told commissioners Tuesday.
Switch in funding raises concerns
Tax Increment Financing dollars are currently collected by Community Redevelopment Agencies (CRAs) in different municipalities. The monies are used to leverage public funds to promote business activity in the area in an attempt to “eliminate blight.”
Tax Increment Financing "freezes" the value of properties in the redevelopment area and allows taxing authorities to collect property tax based on that frozen value. Any tax revenue collected based on increases to property value go to the CRA.
But those agencies have a limited lifetime, and they are set to expire at different times in different cities. As each agency sunsets, the remaining funds are given to the county, which initially planned to split it — with half going to affordable housing projects and the other half going towards economic development programs.
The Housing Broward plan suggests affordable housing projects will spark economic development and recommends all of the money go towards housing projects.
With commissioners disagreeing on the funding switch, they decided to workshop the plan during a Feb. 27 meeting before voting on it.
