Brighton presents affordable-housing plan draft: staff seeks feedback on AMI definition and fee reductions

Sean Wyman, Brighton's new affordable housing coordinator, presented an initial work plan and proposed definition and incentive changes to the City Council at a study session on Jan. 28, 2025. Wyman laid out steps to increase housing supply at lower price points, align local definitions with widely used income measures and use targeted fee reductions to make affordable projects feasible.

Wyman summarized the housing-needs assessment adopted by the council in October 2023 and said the city needs roughly 3,100 homes over the next 10 years, including about 400 units at 80% area median income (AMI) and 1,000 units at 60% AMI and below to serve workforce and retired residents. "Providing 60% and less area median income housing is the main recommendation of the HNA," Wyman said. He recommended the city adopt a single authoritative AMI definition (staff recommended Adams County AMI data) and revise the municipal impact-fee reduction matrix so incentives are clear and scalable by AMI level.

Wyman described early work already completed: an accessory dwelling unit guide and checklist posted on the city website to help homeowners and builders, and a review of where manufactured and small-format homes can fit into existing zoning. He said staff proposes two compliance methods for affordable projects (an "average" and a "pro rata" method) and recommended adding a 70% AMI level to give more options for smaller projects. Under the draft table staff presented, most city impact fees would be waived for projects with units at 60% AMI or lower; the table also shows smaller reductions for projects at 70% and 80% AMI.

Wyman explained why fee relief matters to affordable housing finance: reduced net operating income for lower-rent units makes conventional debt financing infeasible without gap funding, donated land, tax credits or reduced local fees. He recommended the city use Adams County AMI figures (rather than HUD's broader metropolitan-area measures) because they better match Brighton's market and are regularly published in family-size increments.

Council members responded with a mix of support and caution. Mayor Pro Tem said the effort was "a breath of fresh air" and described housing affordability as a central planning issue for the city; he urged plain-language materials so residents can understand who qualifies by income and family size. Council member Green said he supported affordable housing but expressed concern about deep fee waivers at the 50% and 60% AMI levels and the fiscal impact on other service providers (for example, school-district capital fees and fire district revenues). Council member Pawlowski urged balance, saying Brighton should expand attainable housing without overconcentrating lower-cost units in single neighborhoods.

Wyman said staff will continue to refine the fee-and-dedication table, pursue expedited review processes required by Prop 123 grant awards, explore city-owned and infill sites for affordable projects and seek grant funding and CHFA (Colorado Housing and Finance Authority) tax-credit coordination where appropriate. He asked the council for direction on the proposed AMI definition, the draft fee-reduction table, and whether the city should consider additional incentives beyond the minimums shown.

Council provided general support for aligning definitions with standard, widely used AMI measures and for a clear, public fee-reduction table; several members asked staff to return with more fiscal models showing the city's potential net cost and mitigation options for other affected entities (for example, school district and fire district fees). Staff said funding for fee reductions could come from a mix of sources including general fund, capital funds and grants, and that some external fees (water and school land dedication) may need case-by-case consideration because the city does not directly control them.

Staff will present revised code language and a refined fee-reduction table at a future meeting for council direction.