Title
Adoption of the Los Alamos Affordable Housing Plan
Recommended Action
I move that Council adoption of the Los Alamos County Affordable Housing Plan as presented.
County Manager's Recommendation
The County Manager recommends that Council adopt the Los Alamos County Affordable Housing Plan as presented.
Body
The County, region, and nation are experiencing an acute shortage of housing. This lack of housing affects the quality of life for people who live and work in the county and creates a problem for the local economy, which depends on a diverse labor force that supports not only knowledge based and skilled workers but also small businesses, services, trade, retail, and other lower-paying local jobs.
The State of New Mexico enacted amendments to the New Mexico Affordable Housing Act in 2007 (“Act”). The Act requires the local governing body to adopt an Affordable Housing Plan (“Plan”) if it wishes to provide donations or support towards affordable housing projects.
Affordable housing projects are residential housing primarily for persons or households of low- to moderate-income. Through the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (MFA), the Act permits State and local governments latitude to provide or pay all or a portion of the costs of acquisition, development, construction, financing, operating or owning affordable housing projects.
This specifically includes, “the land upon which affordable housing will be constructed; buildings that will be renovated, converted or demolished and reconstructed as affordable housing; the costs for acquisition, development, construction, financing, and operating or owning affordable housing; or the costs of financing or infrastructure necessary to support affordable housing”.
The purpose of the Plan is to establish continued compliance with the New Mexico Affordable Housing Act while demonstrating a need for affordable housing services and justification for financial donation by the county. This Plan identifies barrier...
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