Buffalo City Rejects Lease With Private Affordable Housing Company |

BUFFALO — The Buffalo City Council voted unanimously Tuesday not to enter into a lease agreement with a private company seeking city-owned property on which to build a limited-income apartment building.

In June, Housing Solutions, LLC., a Missoula, Montana-based company, approached the city about a 99-year lease on city-owned land on which to build a limited-income apartment building. The City Council held a public hearing at its meeting Tuesday to gauge public opinion on the project and to satisfy state law, which requires the city to hold a public hearing before entering into a lease.

At the meeting, the two main issues residents and city council members discussed were the location of the land and the city’s involvement. The company has done several other projects similar to the one it proposed for Buffalo, but those projects were on private land.

“Every other project they’ve done, they’ve bought land,” said Councilman Scott Madsen. “I would fully support that project if they wanted to find land to buy somewhere else.” Madsen is the city’s liaison to the Johnson County Community Foundation, a nonprofit that works to address housing needs in Buffalo.

Housing Solutions asked the city for an option to enter into a 99-year lease on city-owned land, offering to pay the city $10,000 per year.

Last year, Housing Solutions approached the city with an offer to lease the land for $100 a year.

The company said it would use the land to build a 24-unit apartment building for households earning 30 to 50 percent of Johnson County’s median household income. Current estimates for the company’s proposal put that at $25,770 to $51,540 for a three-person household.

If the company were to obtain a lease option from the city, it would then apply for a tax credit from the Wyoming Community Development Authority to finance the project. The company needed an option for a lease agreement so it could submit its intent to apply for the tax credits by the end of August deadline. If WCDA funding were secured, the company would then want to enter into the lease with the city.

Johnson County Community Foundation President Jerry Spiering and city Building Inspector Terry Asay stressed at the meeting the need for all types of housing in Buffalo.

The property in question is located along South Burritt Avenue near Cloud Peak Elementary School. The company said that while finding affordable land near city services is difficult, the land is ideally located to score high on the WCDA tax credit score sheet. Scores are determined in part by where developments are located relative to nearby hospitals, stores and schools.

Sue Clinton, who lives in the surrounding neighborhood, said the stretch of South Burritt Avenue near the field already has enough traffic during the school year, and the location of the development could only make it worse. The congestion is almost dangerous, she said.

“There’s no question that we need affordable housing in Buffalo; that’s not our problem. What we see every day, every school day, the congestion on that street, you wouldn’t believe your eyes,” Clinton said. “It’s bad enough as it is.”

Asay said the property’s location is ideal for a project like the one Housing Solutions is proposing. He said the city’s 2007 comprehensive plan and the engineering firm currently working on a land-use plan for the city support that point. Exits from the property could also be designed to mitigate traffic impacts on South Burritt, Asay said.

Another nearby resident, Louie Mullen, expressed concern at the meeting that the council would rush its decision if it entered into a lease with the company.

“You should have at least a year to consider a 99-year lease. Your lawyer should be talking to the community. Council should be reaching out to community members. We should not be voting on this at a meeting without notice,” Mullen said.

Most council members had already expressed apprehension about the proposal at previous meetings.

City Councilwoman Myra Camino expressed concerns about the city getting into “the housing business.” Travis Lawrence, a member of the Johnson County Community Foundation, said there are other options to address Buffalo’s housing needs.

“Right now, I guess there’s a proposal on some city land. I don’t know if that’s the direction you want to go,” Lawrence said. “But the city also has other tools you can use to incentivize, whether it’s water and sewer taps, discounted building permits, etc. But that would have to be a discussion.”