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Identifying the need for Livable Communities Transit Oriented Development funding, and authorizing an application for grant funds for the Downtown St. Paul YMCA Re-imagination, Park and Como, and North West Corner of University and Dale projects.
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WHEREAS, the City of is a participant in the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act (“LCA”) Local Housing Incentives Program for 2018 as determined by the Metropolitan Council, and is therefore eligible to apply for LCA Livable Communities Demonstration Account and Tax Base Revitalization Account (TBRA) Transit Oriented Development (collectively, “TOD”) funds; and
WHEREAS, the City has identified a proposed project within the City that meets TOD purposes and criteria and is consistent with and promotes the purposes of the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act and the policies of the Metropolitan Council’s adopted metropolitan development guide; and
WHEREAS, the City has the institutional, managerial and financial capability to adequately manage an LCA-TOD grant; and
WHEREAS, the City certifies that it will comply with all applicable laws and regulations as stated in the grant agreement; and
WHEREAS, the City acknowledges TOD grants are intended to fund projects or project components that can serve as models, examples or prototypes for TOD development or redevelopment elsewhere in the Region, and therefore represents that the proposed project or key components of the proposed project can be replicated in other metropolitan-area communities; and
WHEREAS, only a limited amount of grant funding is available through the Metropolitan Council’s Livable Communities TOD initiative during each funding cycle and the Metropolitan Council has determined it is appropriate to allocate those scarce grant funds only to eligible projects that would not occur without the availability of TOD grant funding; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED that, after appropriate examination and due consideration, the governing body of the City:
1. Finds that it is in the best interests of the City’s development goals and priorities for the proposed TOD Project to occur at this particular site and at this particular time. These projects include: Downtown St. Paul YMCA Re-imagination, Park and Como, and North West Corner of University and Dale.
2. Finds that the TOD Project components for which Livable Communities TOD funding is sought:
(a) will not occur solely through private or other public investment within the reasonably foreseeable future; and
(b) will occur within the term of the grant award (two years for Pre-Development grants, and three years for Development grants, one year for Cleanup Site Investigation grants and three years for Cleanup grants) only if Livable Communities TOD funding is made available for this project at this time.
3. Authorizes its Department of Planning & Economic Development to submit on behalf of the City an application for Metropolitan Council Livable Communities TOD grant funds for the TOD Project component(s) identified in the application, and to execute such agreements as may be necessary to implement the TOD Project on behalf of the City.