Commissioners approve $13,500 housing needs analysis to explore Reinvestment Housing Incentive District

Crawford County commissioners voted to fund a countywide housing needs analysis at a cost of $13,500 to determine whether to establish a Reinvestment Housing Incentive District, a financing tool that captures incremental property-tax revenue to reimburse developers for public-infrastructure costs.

Commissioner Jim, speaking during new business, described the RHID as a program that "captures the incremental increase in real property taxes for up to 25 years," and said the revenue can be used "for reimbursement for costs or to pay debt service on bond." He recommended hiring Novo Granick to expand an existing City of Pittsburgh housing study to cover Crawford County and said the countywide update cost would be $13,500 versus $10,000 for a smaller, zoned area.

The RHID process outlined in the discussion includes five steps: (1) complete a housing needs analysis, (2) set boundaries for the RHID, (3) pass a resolution establishing the RHID, (4) adopt a development plan, and (5) implement the program. Jim emphasized that the first step — the housing needs analysis — is mandatory to qualify for an RHID and said the county could use the study for other neighborhood-revitalization or grant purposes even if it chooses not to implement an RHID.

Commissioners discussed boundary options and program design. Jim said the governing body could set RHID boundaries to cover the whole county or a targeted area, and that local officials could specify qualifying thresholds (for example, a minimum number of homes or acreage). He described eligible costs listed in the materials as including "land acquisition, site prep, sanitary storm sewer" and other infrastructure items and noted the program is intended for residential subdivision-scale development rather than single-home remodels.

On administration and repayment mechanics, Jim said the county treasurer would collect property taxes, the county assessor/appraiser would place valuations on completed properties, and the county would internally track the base value versus the increment so reimbursements could be made to developers as agreed. He also noted the statute change that extended RHID project periods to up to 25 years and a July 1, 2023 change that made counties with populations under 85,000 eligible to participate.

Commissioner discussion produced a motion to engage Novo Granick for the $13,500 housing needs analysis; a motion was made and seconded during the meeting. Commissioners scheduled an executive-session consultation on legal advice about the RHID before returning to public session and then proceeded with the motion to fund the study.

The materials passed around and discussed identify the study vendor as Novo Granick, list the $13,500 countywide estimate and the $10,000 zoned-area estimate, and state that the RHID program is residential only. The commissioners said they would aim to keep additional setup costs low if possible and would return to map boundaries and draft the development plan after the study is complete.

Commissioner Jim framed the study as useful beyond RHID eligibility: "I think it's still a good — it's good expense, good use of the money because we may look at other grama, neighborhood revitalization or other programs that could still use the housing needs assessment."