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Committee moves IGA amendment for regional housing trust to County Council after presentations
Summary
The committee voted to forward a resolution authorizing amendments to the regional housing-trust intergovernmental agreement—chiefly substituting BJHT Inc. as fiscal/physical agent—after presentations on the trust's history, funding and recent projects, including state grants and a $500,000 investment in a Boundary Street senior-affordable development.
Item #9 on the Feb. 18 agenda asked the Finance, Administration & Economic Development Committee to authorize the county administrator to execute amendments to a regional housing-trust intergovernmental agreement.
Deputy County Attorney Dylan summarized the proposed changes, saying the amendments are documented in Exhibit A and include six modifications, principally substituting “BJHT Inc., 501(c)(3), as the physical agent,” clarifying term and termination procedures and specifying how funds would be handled in the event of termination or dissolution. Dylan told the committee there was no immediate fiscal impact from the amendment and staff recommended forwarding the resolution to County Council.
Representatives of the regional housing trust gave a detailed history and update. One speaker described the trust’s mission plainly: “We create and preserve workforce and affordable housing,” and outlined three program platforms — production of workforce/affordable units, home repair, and homebuyer assistance. The presenters cited program-level outcomes and funding: the trust reported about $2,000,000 in committed resources by December; it invested $500,000 in a Boundary Street senior-affordable project (Carrington Manor); it provided $364,000 in homebuyer-assistance grants and reported creating 12 new homeowners with a projection of 42 total; and the trust served as fiscal agent for a $600,000 grant used to acquire townhomes.
Trust leadership also described a $3,000,000 state grant secured earlier with legislative support, and said the nonprofit had qualified as a sponsor for the South Carolina Housing Trust Fund (a home-repair program with a statewide $20,000,000 pool). Presenters recounted prior fiscal-agent arrangements with Community Works, explained steps taken to segregate funds while governance questions were resolved, and emphasized that the nonprofit board’s fiduciary oversight remains distinct from the IGA parties (the local governments).
After staff and trust remarks, a committee member moved, a second was made, and the committee voted without objection to forward the resolution to County Council for final action.
The committee’s action at the meeting was to forward the amendment for council consideration; the County Council will have the final authority to adopt the amended IGA.
