Program could create ‘attainable’ housing
By Joseph Goral
Staff Writer
jgoral@mihomepaper.com
OXFORD — The Oxford Village Council discussed using the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy’s (EGLE) Brownfield program in developing the south Washington Triangle property during its meeting on March 11.
The south Washington Triangle, a name given for the triangular-shaped piece of land located at 147 S. Washington St. and northwest of the intersection between Minnetonka Drive and Mechanic Street, was rezoned by the village council with a 3-1 vote in July from single-family residential use to multi-family.
The rezoning allows four, four-unit townhouse buildings and two eight-unit townhouse buildings to be built on the site. The buildings would hold a total of 32 townhouses ranging between 1,200 to 1,400 square-feet, and have the option of two and three-bedroom units.
The village’s planning commission recommended the rezoning during a meeting on June 18.
Village Manager Joe Madore told the council they were not looking to make any adoptions or decisions during the meeting. Instead, the discussion focused on what using Oakland County’s Brownfield Redevelopment Authority for the project could mean for the village financially.
EGLE’s Brownfield program collaborates with communities to create economic opportunities by putting contaminated properties back into productive use while protecting human health and the environment, according to the EGLE’s website.
Village attorney Bob Davis said money is used to get rid of the contamination to develop on the land. Tax Incremental Finance (TIF) growth on the project then pays back the remediation, “and then everybody has a nice new development,” he said.
This is the same concept, but with no contamination involved, according to Davis.
“You’re looking for certain income brackets and certain financial brackets to get people to qualify, and then you essentially use the incremental growth in the taxation to pay back the developer who had to suck a little wind in order to get the house into the ground,” Davis said.
According to village documents, the program will allow the developer to complete its financing package and deliver “attainable housing” to the community.
While a developer who attended the meeting did not know exactly how the units will be priced, Madore said the target demographic is 80%-120% of the median household income of the community.
A price of $250,000 was mentioned several times during the discussion as well. The average value of a home in Oxford is $378,361, according to Zillow.com.
“I love the idea of having this kind of median-income housing available in Oxford because we really don’t,” Village Council President Kelsey Cooke said on March 11. “I mean the prices today are outrageous.”
The project will also seek a 15-year reimbursement for eligible costs, and will work with the county’s brownfield redevelopment authority to bring a plan forward for the village’s consideration. Reimbursements are generated from the new property tax revenue established from the investment in the project, according to village documents.
“In some cases, even though they might be condominiums, some of them might just be rental units for a while because that benefits the project better,” Madore said.
Four residents voiced their opinions when the land was rezoned during a council meeting on July 9. Two voiced disapprovals over the type of proposed development.
One Oxford homeowner said while she knows the land will be developed, she is concerned about townhouses being built instead of single-family homes.
Residents also said they are concerned about an increase in traffic the development could create, with one saying she is imagining an intersection similar to the one located at Drahner Road and M-24. Other concerns included enough space for emergency vehicles.
One resident who spoke in support of the project said he believes the development is an opportunity to open Oxford to more people, and that town homes would be more environmentally friendly than single-family homes, increase walkability and would bring in more tax revenue to Oxford.