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VII.1. First Reading Ordinance 2021-1173 Amending the Hopkins City Code Related to Reasonable Accommodations; Riggs CITY OF HOPKINS Memorandum To: Honorable Mayor and Council Members Mike Mornson, City Manager From: Scott Riggs, City Attorney Date: October 19, 2021 Subject: First reading of Ordinance 2021-1173 Amending the Hopkins City Code Related to Reasonable Accommodations _____________________________________________________________________ Purpose In compliance with the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1988, the City is exp ected to provide reasonable accommodations to persons with a disability , as defined by Federal law, regarding the application of zoning and other city regulations in regard to providing fair housing. Staff has worked with the City Attorney to draft an ordi nance which could be adopted by the City Council and implemented should the city receive a request for accommodations to zoning, land use or any other standards that relate to fair housing. Background and History In 1988 the Federal Fair Housing Act established a requirement that municipalities provide a reasonable accommodation in the application of zoning and other regulations for qualified persons with disabilities seeking fair and equal access to housing . This can be understood as flexibility in city regulations such as zoning, land use, or other policies which may include the modification or waiver of certain rules to eliminate barriers to fair housing. Staff and the City Attorney have developed a policy which outlines a process for the City to abide by this Federal regulation. The full policy is included as an attachment to this item. In summary, the policy allows a Qualified Person such as a person with a disability or their representative to seek a reasonable accommodation from the city’s appointed Accommodations Specialist. A decision to approve or deny the accommodation would be made by the Accommodations Specialist based on the following items: (1) Special need created by the disability; (2) Potential benefit that can be accomplished by the requested accommodation; (3) Need for the requested accommodation, including alternatives that may provide an equivalent level of benefit; (4) Physical attributes of and any proposed changes to the subject property and structures; (5) Potential impact on surrounding uses; (6) Whether the requested accommodation would constitute a fundamental alteration of the zoning regulations, policies, or procedures of the city, and/or nature of the area in which the accommodation is being requested; Administration (7)Whether the requested accommodation would impose an undue financial or administrative burden on the city; (8)Whether the requested accommodation is likely to have any negative impacts on the health, safety, or general welfare of members of the community, and (9)Any other factor that may be determined to have a bearing on the request. Should the Qualified Person, or any interested party, be interested in appealing the decision an appeal should be submitted within 30 days and should be acted on by the City Council. If the ordinance is approved, PeggySue Imihy Bean will be appointed to serve as the Accommodations Specialist by the City Manager per the ordinance. Next Steps 1.Vote to approve the first reading of Ordinance 2021-1173. By approving the first reading of this ordinance, this application to establish a reasonable accommodations ordinance will move forward for a second reading and formal approval at the November 3, 2021, City Council Meeting. 2.Vote to deny the first reading of Ordinance 2021-1173. By voting to deny the first reading of this ordinance, this application to establish a reasonable accommodations ordinance will not move forward for second reading and formal approval at the November 3, 2021, City Council Meeting and the city will not have a reasonable accommodations ordinance in accordance with the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1988. Should the City Council consider this option, it must also identify specific findings that support this alternative. 3.Continue for further information. This item should be continued if the City Council finds that further information is needed. 749918.v1 CITY OF HOPKINS Hennepin County, Minnesota Ordinance No. 2021-1173 An Ordinance Adding Hopkins City Code, Chapter 1, Section 1-21, Related to the Establishment of a Process to Consider Reasonable Accommodation Requests The City of Hopkins does hereby ordain: Section 1. The Hopkins City Code is hereby amended by adding the following Section 1-21 to Chapter 1: Sec. 1-21. Reasonable Accommodation Requests. (a) Purpose. It is the policy of the city, pursuant to the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 to provide reasonable accommodation in the application of zoning and other regulations for qualified persons with disabilities seeking fair and equal access to housing. Reasonable Accommodation means providing a qualified person with flexibility in the application of land use, zoning and other regulations or policies (including the modification or waiver of certain requirements), when it is necessary to eliminate barriers to fair housing opportunities. The purpose of this article is to establish a process for making and acting upon requests for reasonable accommodation. (b) Definitions. Accommodation Specialist: City staff appointed by the city manager or their designee to coordinate and administer the reasonable accommodation process outlined in Hopkins City Code Section 1-21. Qualified Person: any individual with a disability, their representative, or a developer or provider of housing for an individual with a disability. Disability: those disabilities which are recognized under applicable federal law. Reasonable Accommodation: process by which the city may provide a qualified person flexibility in the application of land use, zoning, or other regulations. (c) Initiation of Reasonable Accommodation Request. Any qualified person who requests a reasonable accommodation in the form of modification in the application of a zoning or other regulation which may act as a barrier to fair housing opportunities due to the disability of existing or proposed residents, may do so on an application form provided by the city’s Accommodation Specialist. The application shall include a detailed explanation of why the accommodation is reasonably necessary to make the specific housing available to the person(s), including information establishing that the applicant is disabled under applicable laws, as well as other information required by the Accommodation Specialist to make the determination. If the project for which the request is being made also requires an additional land use review or approval, the applicant shall file the request concurrently with the land use review. (d) Accommodation Specialist; Required Findings. The Accommodation Specialist, in consultation with other appropriate city staff, shall have the authority to consider and act on requests for reasonable accommodation. The Accommodation Specialist shall issue a written decision in which the request is approved, approved subject to conditions, or denied. In making the decision as to whether an accommodation is reasonable, the following factors shall be considered: 749918.v1 (1) Special need created by the disability; (2) Potential benefit that can be accomplished by the requested accommodation; (3) Need for the requested accommodation, including alternatives that may provide an equivalent level of benefit; (4) Physical attributes of and any proposed changes to the subject property and structures; (5) Potential impact on surrounding uses; (6) Whether the requested accommodation would constitute a fundamental alteration of the zoning regulations, policies, or procedures of the city, and/or nature of the area in which the accommodation is being requested; (7) Whether the requested accommodation would impose an undue financial or administrative burden on the city; (8) Whether the requested accommodation is likely to have any negative impacts on the health, safety, or general welfare of members of the community, and (9) Any other factor that may be determined to have a bearing on the request. Any approval issued under this section may include such reasonable conditions that the Accommodation Specialist deems necessary to mitigate any adverse impacts that the granting of such reasonable accommodation may produce or amplify. (e) Notice of Decision. The written decision of the Accommodation Specialist shall be mailed to the applicant within five business days of such decision being made. All written decisions shall give notice of the right to appeal a decision of the Accommodation Specialist pursuant to Section 1-21. The decision of the Accommodation Specialist shall constitute the final decision of the city, unless appealed according to the procedures and within the time limits provided in Section 1-21. Only the aggrieved applicant of the written reasonable accommodation determination has a right to appeal the decision. A reasonable accommodation approved under this section shall become effective on the first calendar day following expiration of the right to appeal. (f) Applicability. Any approved request shall constitute a limited license which shall allow the property owner or occupant to continue to rely upon such accommodation only so long as they own or occupy the property. Approval of a reasonable accommodation does not constitute a property right, does not run with the land, and does not provide future owners or occupants any rights to rely upon such accommodation approvals. Only the person who applied for such reasonable accommodation, and who is specifically named in the city's approval of such accommodation, shall be entitled to the benefits and protections thereof. The holder of an approved reasonable accommodation license hereunder shall, on or before January 1st of each year, provide the city with an updated affirmation that the reasonable accommodation is still necessary. In the event that the Accommodations Specialist has reasonable cause to believe that the factors supporting the original approval of a reasonable accommodation have changed, the Accommodation Specialist may request additional information from the license holder. Failure to annually reaffirm the need for the reasonable accommodation, or failure to provide information reasonably requested by the Accommodation Specialist shall result in automatic termination of the reasonable accommodation upon written notice by the Accommodation Specialist. (g) Conditions and Guarantees. Prior to the issuance of any permits relative to an approved reasonable accommodation request, the Accommodation Specialist may require the applicant to record a covenant acknowledging and agreeing to comply with the terms and conditions established in the determination. (f) Appeals. Any decision reached by the Accommodation Specialist pursuant to Section 1-21 shall be subject to appeal to the City Council by those persons with a right to appeal as provided herein. All 749918.v1 appeals shall be initiated by submitting a notice of appeal, in writing, to the Accommodation Specialist within 30 days of the date upon which the decision was made. Upon notice of appeal, the city manager or their designee shall present such appeal to the City Council for action within 30 days. The Accommodation Specialist shall also serve notice of such appeal on all parties entitled to receive notice of a decision issued under Section 1-21. Following a hearing on such appeal, the City Council shall issue its findings, in writing, within 30 days. Section 2. The effective date of this ordinance shall be the date of publication. First Reading: ______________________ Second Reading: ______________________ Date of Publication ______________________ Date Ordinance Takes Effect: ______________________ _______________________________ Jason Gadd, Mayor ___________________________ Date ATTEST: _________________________________ Amy Domeier, City Clerk