Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Klamath Falls sets $1 million housing reserve, targets blight removal and upper-floor housing
Summary
The city budget includes a $1 million housing reserve sourced from sale of the Amazon property and airport-related interest income; funds are targeted to blight removal, downtown upper-floor development, SDC assistance and code amendments to enable more housing types.
The City of Klamath Falls budget sets aside $1 million for a housing reserve to support housing development and blight removal, city staff told the budget committee.
City Manager Jonathan Teichert said the money came from proceeds of the sale of an Amazon property near the airport and interest income from airport projects tied to the Air National Guard. “The first of these is housing. The city of Klamath Falls, we budgeted a million dollars into a housing reserve fund,” Teichert said. The committee heard that about $250,000 is earmarked for blight removal and funds will also be available to support upper-floor housing in downtown and to backfill System Development Charges (SDCs) up to $50,000 per builder.
Staff also said the city is drafting code adjustments to allow additional housing types and that the city participates in programs with the Klamath County Economic Development Association and the South Central Oregon Economic Development District, which offer neighborhood revitalization grants for blighted properties.
Why it matters: The reserve and related programs are intended to lower barriers to housing production, assist rehabbing uninhabited blighted houses and promote infill and downtown housing choices.
Clarifying details provided in the meeting included the SDC backfill limit of $50,000 per builder and that the housing reserve funding originates from the Amazon property sale and airport project interest.
