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Affordable Housing Advisory Board approves minutes, adopts bylaws and sets 2025 goals
Summary
At its Feb. 13 meeting, the City of Lawrence Affordable Housing Advisory Board approved December minutes, adopted board bylaws and approved the AHAB’s 2025 goals to guide the Affordable Housing Trust Fund and upcoming NOFO process.
The Affordable Housing Advisory Board of the City of Lawrence, Kansas, on Feb. 13 approved the meeting minutes from Dec. 9, adopted the board’s bylaws and voted to adopt the board’s goals as the “2025 goals” to guide trust-fund decisions.
The board approved three formal actions during the meeting: (1) approving the Dec. 9 meeting minutes, (2) adopting the AHAB bylaws, and (3) adopting the AHAB goals labeled for 2025. The board took each action by roll call vote with a majority in favor.
Why it matters: The approved bylaws implement language from a recently updated city ordinance and clarify board procedures; the 2025 goals will inform how the Affordable Housing Trust Fund is prioritized in the coming funding round and will be revisited after the city’s scheduled housing study. Board members and staff said the goals are intentionally broad to allow flexibility for the next NOFO (notice of funding opportunity) and that a future housing study will prompt a more detailed revision.
What the board voted on and how members voted Votes at a glance: - Approve minutes (Dec. 9, 2024). Motion moved and seconded (mover/second not specified on the record). Roll call: Mark Bueller — yes; Andrew Dallagher — yes; Mary (listed variably in the record as O'Fiero/O'Farrell) — yes; Christina Gentry — yes; Elizabeth O'Neil — yes; Monte Soko — not present for the motion (recorded absent earlier for part of the roll call). Outcome: approved (5 yes, 0 no recorded, others absent/not present as noted). - Adopt Affordable Housing Advisory Board bylaws (consistent with Ordinance 9,984, Article 3). Motion moved and seconded (mover/second not specified on the record). Roll call recorded in the meeting: unanimous among present members. Outcome: adopted (voice/roll-call approval recorded). - Adopt AHAB goals as the 2025 goals (motion made by Elizabeth O'Neil; second not specified). Roll call recorded: all present members voting in favor. Outcome: approved (6 yes; passed).
Details and context During the meeting Leah Rosen, Affordable Housing Administrator for the city, reviewed that the bylaws largely mirror language in Ordinance 9,984 (Article 3) and that some portions are standard boilerplate drafted by the city’s legal department. Rosen also clarified that, while the AHAB may recommend that the board or city pursue grant applications, actual applications are submitted administratively by city staff (the board does not itself execute grant applications).
Board members debated the scope and phrasing of the goals and agreed to relabel them as “2025 goals” to reflect that a city-funded housing study expected later this year will inform any longer-term revisions. Several members said the goals are broad enough to allow the NOFO and application scoring to be adjusted by the subcommittee before the next full funding round.
What’s next The board will use the adopted 2025 goals to inform a near-term NOFO and the next funding round; a city housing study expected later in 2025 will inform future updates. Subcommittees that will refine NOFO language and funding priorities must be approved by the City Commission and operate as public meetings (see separate article on subcommittees). The board also scheduled NOFO review and approval dates on its calendar (draft review in April; final approval in May; application scoring training in August).
Ending The board completed its votes and moved on to subcommittee assignments and other business, including an item raising legislative attention to a state bill that could affect low-income housing tax credits.
