6A | MARCH 25, 2021 |
MUPTE
from A1
on land value and any com-
mercial portion of the prop-
erty.
It was adopted as part of
the Cottage Grove Municipal
Code in December 2019 in
order to increase the devel-
opment of new multi-family
housing in Cottage Grove.
Applicants must meet sev-
eral requirements in order
to be approved for the pro-
gram, including the location
be along a transit route, the
development of three or more
units, provision of a public
benefit and an agreement
to maintain residential use
throughout the duration of
the tax abatement.
Each applicant is subject to
a public hearing and must be
considered by the council.
The program’s core theory
rests on the idea that the tax
exemption will generate more
tax revenue in the long run
by making projects financial-
ly feasible. Without financial
feasibility, the projects may
not be built and the city would
ultimately miss out on the po-
tential tax revenue.
In effect, the program helps
reduce the opportunity cost of
a stagnating development rate.
Similar programs have been
implemented in Salem and
Eugene with apparent success.
Since
1978,
Eugene’s
MUPTE program has incen-
tivized the creation of about
1,500 units to its housing
stock in the city center. Sa-
lem has seen seven residential
projects since 1976, creating
around 750 units in its down-
town core.
On Monday, the Cottage
Grove City Council first con-
sidered an application from
SquareOne Villages, a Eu-
gene-based housing nonprofit
which has overseen the devel-
opment of the Cottage Village
housing cooperative in Cot-
tage Grove.
Cottage Village is a cluster
of 13 tiny homes, four still un-
der construction, on Madison
Avenue. Another unit on the
property serves as a commu-
nity space. The project aims
to elevate lives by offering af-
fordable housing and self-gov-
ernance for residents.
Completion of the project is
scheduled to finish by June 30.
In meeting the public ben-
efit qualifications, SquareOne
submitted that two of the 14
units are fully ADA (Amer-
icans with Disabilities Act)
accessible, there is a storm-
water quality detention pond
COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
in the northwest corner, and
the project was designed so
as to keep rents low enough
to serve those who are most
in need.
Estimates performed by city
staff show that the city would
be waiving approximately
$45,000 to $52,000 over the
10-year period of the pro-
gram. At the completion of the
10-year period, the city would
receive approximately $5,871
annually on the improvement
area.
Due to its tax cycle and the
timing of the construction
process of the development,
SquareOne was required to
pay property taxes last year.
The nonprofit applied for
the MUPTE this year after re-
alizing that the property taxes
would cause rent to go up in
the tiny homes, thus nullify-
ing the mission of the project
to remain affordable.
“It provides a unique op-
portunity for people to be in
community but also to pre-
vent homelessness,” testified
Cottage Village Coalition
Chair Bruce Kelsh at Monday’s
meeting. “From a financial
point of view, I would hope
that the city council would
also view this as an investment
in affordable housing and in-
vestments for people that are
living at Cottage Village.”
Councilors were high-
ly supportive of the Cottage
Village project, however con-
cerns were raised about es-
tablishing a precedent that
MUPTE could be awarded to
construction projects that had
already begun.
“My concern is that we’re
going to get applications for
developments that have al-
ready been either completed
or started and that we’re don’t
really have a basis to say ‘no,’”
said Councilor Greg Ervin.
It was also proposed that a
previously existing unit on the
property be removed from the
MUPTE application as it had
already been taxable.
Councilor Mike Fleck
shared Ervin’s sentiments.
“I am concerned about
making sure that the MUPTE’s
intent and integrity is intact,”
he said. “And I also would not
want to see a bunch of build-
ers that had already been ap-
proved coming forward.”
Councilors instructed staff
to return to the next council
meeting with data which re-
flects the removal of the exist-
ing unit from the application.
The next MUPTE applica-
tion on the agenda, in con-
trast, passed unanimously af-
ter some discussion.
The application came from
Double H Investment Group,
the property owner of a 40-
unit apartment project cur-
rently underway on Gateway
Boulevard.
In meeting public benefit
criteria, the company has pro-
posed and is in the process of
completing a four-lot land as-
sembly to create the necessary
square footage to develop the
project.
One of the pieces of land
contributing to this project is
a remnant of a tax lot that the
city declared surplus this Feb-
ruary.
Land assemblies are listed
among public benefit qualifi-
ers as part of the program.
Additionally, the applicant
is including ADA accessibility
facilities in four of the units.
Estimates performed by
staff show that the city will
be waiving approximately
$230,000 to $250,000 over the
10-year tax exemption period.
At the end of the period, the
city will receive approximately
$27,500 annually on the im-
provement area.
The project is slated to
be fully completed around
July 2024, at which time the
MUPTE would begin and the
property will be taxed only on
its unimproved land for 10
years.
During public comment,
resident Duane Taddei ques-
FITS YOUR
855-962-4793
South Lane Mental Health
Grupo FUERTE
PUBLIC MEETINGS,
TRUSTEE NOTICES,
PROBATE,
AUCTION &
FORECLOSURE
NOTICES,
AND MORE.
Published weekly in the
Cottage Grove Sentinel
and online at cgsentinel.com
S entinel
C ottage G rove
Contact: Meg Fringer
541-942-3325 x1200
mfringer@cgsentinel.com
La pandemia de Covid-19 impacta nuestros niveles de
estrés y ansiedad. Una forma de lidiar con los efectos de
la pandemia es buscar y crear conexiones sociales en su
comunidad. Grupo FUERTE es un grupo de apoyo para
hombres hispanohablantes en el condado Lane. Únete
al Grupo FUERTE para aprender de recursos locales,
temas de bienestar mental y crea su propia red social.
Este es un servicio gratuito patrocinado por South Lane
Mental Health. Para más información o para inscrib-
irse, llame a 541-942-3939 y pregunte por el Grupo
FUERTE.
The Covid-19 pandemic impacts our stress and anxiety
levels. One way to deal with the effects of the pandemic
is to seek and build social connections in your com-
munity. Grupo FUERTE is a support group for Spanish
speaking men in Lane County. Join Grupo FUERTE to
learn about local resources, mental health topics and
create your own social network. This is a free service
sponsored by South Lane Mental Health. For more in-
formation or to enroll, call 541-942-3939 and ask about
Grupo FUERTE.
Discover Something
New Every Day
When it comes to
learning, the newspaper
gives you the big picture
by bringing your
favorite school subjects
to life! Find out what’s
happening in your
community and on the
other side of the globe.
It’s all inside your local
newspaper.
Brad’s Cottage Grove
Chevrolet is proud
Sponsor of Newspapers
in Education.
care facilities, open spaces,
recreation facilities and ded-
ication of land for public use.
Only one of these must be
met to satisfy the public bene-
fit requirement.
In initially creating the
MUPTE program, council-
ors opted to model Cottage
Grove’s program after Salem’s,
which is less restrictive com-
pared to Eugene’s low-income
housing focus. The council
at the time reasoned that this
model would attract more
developers and help the city
meet its housing needs target.
Public Works and Devel-
opment Director Faye Stew-
art explained to council the
inclusion of land assembly in
Cottage Grove’s public benefit
criteria.
“This specific item was to
encourage developers, if they
purchase adjoining pieces of
property, to make a larger one
to build a larger development,”
he said.
Councilor Kenneth Rob-
erts, too, recommended that
See HOUSING 10A
Winter Heating
Tune-Up
Only
$119*
We’ll make sure your system is running eff ectively and effi ciently.
Call for details and an appointment today, and beat the winter rush!
Complete Heating & Cooling System Service
Reasonable Rates • All Work Guaranteed
* Limited-time off er. Restrictions apply. Call for details.
standards
Book your FREE design
CONSULTATION today!
Public Notices
The Lowest Rates in Lane County
tioned the “true public bene-
fits” of the apartment project.
“The ultimate public ben-
efit from any application of
the MUPTE is housing units,”
said Fleck, citing the city’s
2018 Housing Needs Analy-
sis, which states that Cottage
Grove must add 69 dwelling
units annually to meet the
projected need of 1,379 more
units by 2038.
Fleck added, however, that
he is open to modifying the
program down the road, in-
cluding revising the public
benefits or adding affordable
housing provisions.
Councilor Candace Soles-
bee echoed Fleck’s take on
housing.
“Bottom line, we have a
supply problem,” she said,
“and supply and demand are
what drive our prices.”
Councilor Jon Stinnett said
he was a bit conflicted on the
point.
“Obviously, our town needs
these housing options, but I
also think we have a MUPTE
process that states that we
need something from the ap-
plicant beyond just the benefit
that the development can pro-
vide,” he said. “The benefit to
the general public beyond just
the housing is a bit of a stretch
in this sense.”
Stinnett suggested there be
more discussion over how le-
nient the city is willing to be
regarding public benefits.
The application for Cottage
Grove’s MUPTE program lists
17 criteria to choose from in
meeting public benefit quali-
fications, which include child
541-726-7689 541-942-9635
Eugene/Springfi eld Cottage Grove
Z
olezzi Insurance Agency is
pleased to introduce our
new Personal Lines Agent,
Jill Kallinger. Jill joined our Drain
agency February 2021 and has over
6 years insurance experience.
Jill enjoys meeting new people
and fi nds working with customers
extremely rewarding. She takes
the time to understand the needs
of her clients
and to match
them with the
coverage they
need. If you are
EST. 1968
shopping rates
or just looking
WĞƌƐŽŶĂůͻƵƐŝŶĞƐƐͻ>ŝĨĞͻWƵďůŝĐŶƟƟĞƐ
for a friendly,
local agent,
give Jill a call
(541) 997-1167
(541) 836-2177
(541) 459-2250
5370 Buckskin Bob
208 West C Street
112 Eagle Ct.
today at
Florence, OR 97439
Drain, OR 97435
Sutherlin, OR 97479
www.zianw.com
www.zianw.com
www.zianw.com
541-804-2581!